Dear Parent/Carer
Further to my letter on 14 December, which included the timetable, here is some information to help our students prepare for their exams which begin next week. Please note students should be present for a morning exam at 8:45 and an afternoon exam at 12:45. There was a typo on the previous schedule –
ALL MORNING EXAMS START AT 9:00 : ALL AFTERNOON EXAMS START AT 13:00
As you can see from the timetable there are exams for Health and Social Care, Sport, and Applied Science (all CTEC) and Applied Law and Business (BTEC). If students need confirmation of which exams they are entered for please check with their subject teacher or myself (Lisa Lucas).
Duration does not include extra time for those students who are awarded this as an access arrangement.
Please read the exam guidance to help prepare for the exams on the following pages which has key information about the exams and other FAQs such as illness on the day.
Please contact me if you have any questions by emailing LLucas@S6C.MLP.college, or telephone 01722 597970.
Yours sincerely
Lisa Lucas
Exam Officer and Office Manager
GUIDANCE FOR STUDENTS & PARENTS
EQUIPMENT
You need the following equipment:
Transparent pencil case containing; black pens, pencils, rubber, long ruler, pencil sharpener, protractor, compass and a calculator.
Water may be brought into the exam room but must be in a clear bottle with no label or writing.
CLOTHING
You are required by the college to wear appropriate clothing for the examinations as per college rules. You may not wear hoods or hats, or have your face obscured in any way.
ITEMS NOT ALLOWED INTO THE EXAM ROOM
● Mobile phones and watches. These items may be left (on silent mode) outside the examination room or in a locker during the examination for safekeeping but no responsibility will be accepted for these. If you accidentally take one into the exam room, give it to the invigilator immediately;
● Bags – leave them in your locker or the café area;
● Food (unless approved due to medical condition);
● Calculator lids;
● Water bottles with labels, or bottles with logos or writing. Only still water is allowed in the exam room;
● Correction pens / fluid / Tippex
RULES AND REGULATIONS
The JCQ (governing body for exams) has strict rules and regulations to ensure that exams are fair. You must read the JCQ ‘Notice to Candidates’ which is published on behalf of all of the awarding bodies. Breaking these rules will result in you being reported for ‘malpractice’ – sanctions will be decided upon by the awarding body and can include disqualification from a specific paper, a whole subject, or disqualification from all of your examinations. The following are examples of malpractice:
● Borrowing equipment from other candidates during the examination
● Communicating or attempting to communicate with other candidates in any way – this includes speaking, passing notes, sign language of any description, facial signals etc.
● Having a mobile phone or watch in an examination, even if it is turned off / in your pocket / hasn’t been used / you forgot you had it
● Taking notes into the examination room
GOING INTO THE EXAM ROOM
Exams will take place in the theatre or in the dance studio… Please be in the café 15 minutes prior to the start of the examination.
Check your seat allocation on the seating plans outside the exam room.
Listen carefully to the announcement by Lisa Lucas (Exam Officer), the teacher in charge or the invigilator prior to going into the room. You MUST enter the room in silence and in an orderly manner – you are under exam conditions as soon as you go through the door. Any communication after this point is malpractice and will be reported to the awarding body.
IN THE EXAM ROOM
● Sit in silence at your allocated desk, facing the front, until instructed by the invigilator.
● Listen carefully to the instructions read out by the invigilator – there may be amendments to the paper which you need to know about.
● Check you have the correct exam paper – subject, paper number, correct exam board, tier of entry and the date on the paper is correct. If you are not sure, put up your hand and ask the invigilator.
● Check you have all the materials required – these will be listed on the front of the exam paper.
● Read all the instructions on the front of the paper carefully to ensure you understand which questions need to be answered.
● When instructed, fill in the boxes on the front of your paper.
o Your candidate number and centre number will be on the label on your desk.
o You MUST write your legal name on your paper, not the name you are known by if this is different.
● Do not open your paper until you are told you can begin.
● No papers may be removed from the exam room.
THE EXAM PAPERS
➢ Ensure each question is numbered correctly, particularly in answer booklets.
➢ Continuation sheets must have your name, centre number and candidate number clearly written on them.
➢ Write legibly! You can’t be awarded marks for something the examiner cannot read!
➢ Show your working where this is appropriate – there may be marks available even if your final answer is incorrect.
➢ Write all of your answers IN THE SPACE PROVIDED – papers are scanned electronically and each question may be sent to a different examiner. The paper will have the spine and areas surrounding the questions (where it says ‘do not write here’!) sliced off before scanning and work may be lost.
➢ Black pen is important as other colours do not scan well and marks may be missed. Gel pens do not scan well – DO NOT USE THEM!
➢ DO NOT draw graffiti or write offensive comments on your paper – if you do, the awarding body may refuse to accept your paper. ALL extra sheets of paper have to be attached to your main paper and sent to the awarding body.
DURING THE EXAM
If you need to attract the attention of the invigilator for any reason – put up your hand
If you feel ill – tell an invigilator
If you need the toilet – the invigilator will call for an escort. You will be allowed to leave the room but will not receive any extra time.
If you are entitled to a rest break and wish to take one – tell the invigilator. The invigilator will temporarily take your paper. You will be allowed a short break at your desk, or by prior arrangement an escort will be called to allow you a short walk outside the exam room. The clock will be ‘stopped’ for approved rest breaks and will begin again when you recommence the paper
If the fire alarm should sound – wait for instructions from the invigilator. You will be required to put down your pens, close your papers and remain in silence. You will leave the room in the order in which you are seated by the external doors onto the staff car park and must remain in silence throughout. Stand away from other students and await further instructions. In the event that the building has to be evacuated, the college will apply for special consideration for all students affected.
If you have finished – check over your work. Check you haven’t missed out any questions / turned over two pages at once by accident. Read the questions again – have you read them correctly? Missed a key word or phrase?
AT THE END OF THE EXAM
You must wait until the formal end of the exam before you will be allowed to leave the exam room. If you are entitled to extra time, you may leave at the end of the normal exam if you have finished but do not rush in order to do so – this is your future you’re short-changing if you leave before you’re ready! If you choose to leave early you will have to sign a statement to show you understand that you are entitled to extra time and have chosen not to use it. If you remain into your extra time you must remain in the exam room until the scheduled finish time. These rules are in place to avoid distractions for remaining candidates.
When the invigilator tells you to stop writing you must do so immediately – not at the end of the next sentence or phrase… immediately. Failure to do so will be malpractice and reported as such. You will be given a few seconds to fill in any gaps on the front cover, to cross through work you do not wish to be marked and to write in answer numbers if these have been missed but you must wait for the instruction before you pick up your pen to make these amendments.
If you have used more than one answer booklet or extra sheets these must be attached using a treasury tag (these will be provided).
Invigilators will collect your papers. You are still under exam conditions and must remain in silence until you are outside the examination room and well away from the doors.
Question papers, extra paper and answer booklets MUST NOT be removed from the examination rooms.
INVIGILATORS / QUESTIONS ABOUT THE PAPER
Invigilators are members of S6C staff and should be afforded the same respect and courtesy as any other member of staff. Students are required to follow their instructions at all times.
Invigilators are not allowed to explain questions to you or answer any queries about the paper other than to help with the instructions on the front cover. If you think there is a problem with a question or there is something inaccurate on the paper then raise your hand and tell the invigilator, who will alert the exams office who will contact the awarding body for clarification. You should carry on with the paper as normal unless told to do otherwise. Remember that every other student in the country will have the same issue if there is a legitimate problem so you will not be disadvantaged. In such cases the usual action from the awarding body will be to disregard that question when marking the paper but you should attempt to answer the question anyway, in case they decide the question is legitimate and will be included in the marking.
WHEN WILL I GET MY RESULTS?
Results day for BTEC exams taken in the January Season is 23 March 2022 and CTEC results day is 13 January 2022 and will be issued on these dates.
FAQ
Something is incorrect on my / Timetable / other administrative paperwork – what should I do?
Notify Lisa Lucas asap.
What should I do if I’m ill on the day of an exam?
Ring college (01722 597970) and let us know as soon as possible (prior to the exam day if you can). We will advise you as to what action should be taken whether you should come in or stay at home, and what the consequences will be for each option. Please don’t rely on emailing as in the whirl of action at the start of the day emails rarely get checked before the exam has already begun.
IF IN DOUBT TELEPHONE THE COLLEGE – 01722 597970
Please note that misreading the timetable will not be accepted as a satisfactory explanation of absence. Although we encourage all students to arrive in plenty of time for all exams so that there is not a last minute panic, it is important that we have up-to-date contact telephone numbers for both you and your parents, or anybody else who might be able to help in an emergency.
What should I do if I’m going to be late?
First of all, try not to be! Give yourself a margin of safety – it’s better to be very early than late! Late arrivals are usually stressed, disrupt everyone else, may not be allowed to take the exam, could incur extra invigilation costs and may automatically fail the exam.
However, if you are going to be unavoidably late, ring college as soon as possible to let us know. Louise Henderson will make the decision whether or not you will be allowed to sit the exam if you arrive late and the earlier we know about the situation, the easier it will be to make arrangements for you to still sit the exam. Get to college as soon as is safely possible and report to the exams office immediately. You must not enter the exam room without being escorted. Students arriving over an hour late for an exam have to be reported to the awarding body who will decide whether or not to accept the paper for marking. In most instances they will not accept it.
We suggest you and your parents both save the college number into your mobile phone to enable you to alert us if there is an issue during your journey to college – 01722 597970.
Can I go to the toilet during an exam?
Yes, but it’s wise to make a visit before each exam to try and avoid this! It will distract you from your exam, distract other people and you will lose the time you spend outside the exam room. You will need to be escorted.
What do I do if I feel ill during an exam?
Raise your hand and tell the invigilator. We will arrange for you to leave the room if necessary, stop the exam temporarily and discuss your options with you.
How do I know how long my exam lasts?
This is shown on your timetable under ‘duration’. Once the exam is in progress, the start and finish times for the exam are displayed on the board at the front of the room. Invigilators are not allowed to tell you how long you have left, nor prompt students with regards to timing.
ACCESS ARRANGEMENTS
There are a number of access arrangements in place for individuals in the college. If you have been granted access arrangements and use these as a normal way of working these will be allocated to you in your public examinations. These arrangements are mostly awarded via formal testing and approval by the awarding bodies only, but in emergency situations approval may be granted, for example a laptop may be awarded for an injury affecting writing, rest breaks for someone suffering from significant illness etc. It is therefore important that you bring any issue that you think may affect you on the day which could not be foreseen to the attention of Nicola Miller to determine whether there are any arrangements which can be made to help you.
SPECIAL CONSIDERATION
If you are fully prepared for your examination but are ill on the day of, or just before your exam, or suffer a bereavement or other significant unforeseen circumstance we may be able to apply for ‘special consideration’. This is a formal application to the awarding body concerned outlining the circumstances and is applied by the awarding body at their discretion. You will be required to provide evidence; therefore, you should obtain a medical certificate to support your application if appropriate. The awarding body will indicate whether it has accepted your application and will apply between 0% and 5% extra marks but will not say what percentage they have awarded. If you feel you have grounds for an application for special consideration, please make sure you see Lisa Lucas.
Attached is the JCQ information for candidates and JCQ social media guidance.
