My dd is year 10 secondary education.
During year 9 assessments took place in order to allocate placements for relevant GCSE subjects. In May 2013 straight after these assessments the sch decided on whom who be in the btec class and who could be in the gcse class. My daughter scored below the threshold to be able to be out into the gcse class so was placed onto btec in this particular subject.
The classes were made up and started to learn in separate classes of btec and gcse before they broke up for summer in July 2013. They have now been running for 8 weeks in total.
At the end of the year July 2013 further assessments were carried out and my dd scored a much higher mark , a level that was sufficient enough for her to be in the GcSE class.
My dd has only been at the school since oct 2013 ,therefore it is possible that as she wa not fully settled and that she had previously come from a full time drama school where the academic subjects were not prime concern in some ways that her true ability was not realised in the first round of assessments in may 2013. By July her level had improved greatly.
As I was not aware of her new levels until the test marks were sent home In july i did not voice my btec concerns to the school during end of year 9. It was not until then that I realised and so did my dd that she was definately cabable of being in gcse class. Fellow pupils scoring lower marks had been placed into gcse.
At this point after a discussion with me at home and upon my advice My dd went to see her subject teacher twice and told her that she didn't understand why she was in btec , and that she wanted to do gcse and that she should be able too as she had scored above the level threshold in her more recent test. My dd tells me that the teacher agreed and said she would look into it. It was then the end of term for summer.
In sept at start of year 10 I asked dd what was happening and had she heard anything. Then as she hasn't I called the school 2.5 weeks ago to investigate myself. I spoke to the head of the subject whom said he knew nothing about DD wanting to be in gcse and that it was too late as the class was 5.5 weeks in.
I informed him that she had scored highly enough to be in that class and that he should move her immediately. He asked me to write in. I did.
Two weeks later I contacted the head about not hearing back and now 8 weeks in he finally writes back to me still saying that dd can't be moved as too much time has passed. He stalled for 2 weeks. Also because I should have contacted him back in may and that the teacher whom DD spoken too says she has no knowledge of this conversation whatsoever.
This is not true and the discussions where in front of the whole btec class whereby my dd clearly asked to go to gcse.
Over half the btec class has now been moved up to gcse because their parents complained before the end of the summer term. I did not because it was not until July that I realised they had been wrong and that dd had scored much better in tests and I asked my dd to talk to teacher.
I feel that my dd has the potential to be in the gcse class and te school know this as her level reflects it. They have fobbed me off with a letter to say that she will achieve a distinction in Btec, that no concerns were raised a d that it is too late.
My dd needs her science gcse in my eyes it is a basic core subject that nowadays a student cannot afford to leave school without if they are cabable of doing so. If there was a good reason for her to be in btec science I would understand.
Sorry for the essay please let me have any views thanking you in advance. I'm going to call an urgent meetingg with the schoo tomorrow.
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Dd refused GCSE class need urgent help
47 replies
Izzywizzy75 · 25/09/2013 20:22
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