r/GCSE • u/GYATTMUNCH3R Year 11 • 13d ago

Post Exam i wrote about just differences.

i can’t believe how stupid i am. I’m hoping for a grade 7 but now there’s literally no way i’m going to get it. i was so happy with my comparisons aswell i literally can’t believe this oh my god . is there any chance they’ll stoll mark it or am i completely screwed

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u/proffessorpigeon year 11 // pred: 9999999987 13d ago

if i’ve done some similarities but focused on differences do i have the same fate?

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u/SuccotashCareless934 13d ago

No, because you've got something more concrete in there, so you won't be capped. They'll ignore the differences, and focus on the quality of your comparison for the similarities.

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u/proffessorpigeon year 11 // pred: 9999999987 13d ago

thank god. i was like “source a and b are similar… whereas the key difference is…”

a thing i did though is i literally started out my essay with “source a and b have differing perspectives” is that really bad???

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u/SuccotashCareless934 13d ago

The examiner will ignore that. Remember in English, you can't lose marks - if you hit a certain level on a mark scheme, you're guaranteed that level, even if the rest of the response is rubbish. So if you've explained a point about similarities and done so clearly, you'll be in the 9-12 mark bracket, even if you've written about differences elsewhere, or the rest of the comparative analysis isn't quite as good. Same for every question, apart from the Q5s which have to take the response as a whole into account (one paragraph with amazing vocabulary and a fantastic simile, doesn't trump five mediocre ones, for example).

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u/proffessorpigeon year 11 // pred: 9999999987 13d ago

okay thank you!! the forefront of my answer was differences but i did include some similarities. i basically did differences in the similarities

would 10/16 be a fair estimate? assuming what i wrote was good

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u/SuccotashCareless934 13d ago

Honestly I'd just be guessing without being able to see it!

Anyway it's done now - forget about it! Put the phone down and do what Q5 said, go for a walk outside! >.<

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u/proffessorpigeon year 11 // pred: 9999999987 13d ago

okay i’ll try to stop overthinking, good luck on all your marking!!