GCSE reduced subjects advice needed

@TheBestThingthatAlmostHappened I think self-esteem issues and a disengagement from learning are major problems, if someone has an undiagnosed, or unsupported SEN.. especially with adhd (diagnosed or undiagnosed) - the proportion of interactions that are negative, critical, angry or frustrated massively outweighs those that are positive.

I have to keep a close eye on how I speak to / what I speak about with one of my dc (who has other diagnosed SEN, but likely has adhd as well) - as it can all just be very negative if you are not careful (and can really damage self-esteem.. (why is your room so filthy / messy, I just tidied and cleaned this morning? Why have you left all your dishes on the table? Get on with your work… stop looking at your phone… Sit down, we’re eating. Sit still. Try and focus. Have you finished that yet, you’ve been doing it for ages? Please don’t tease your sister. I can’t believe you have lost another coat this week.. why aren’t you ready? I told you we were leaving 20 minutes ago and you are not even dressed..).

@Delatron I belive exam acess arrangments are normally either rest brakes or extra time not both but I maybe wrong. Dd was offered either or.
@Arizona29 I do hope you get this sorted , it is a struggle. We had to really fight for Dd as she was bright enough to cope untill year 9 when the wheels fell off so to speak. We pointed out to school they had missed her brothers issues picked up in the 1st two weeks of another 6th form. The senco did appologise to us when the results came back. With the right help she got straight 7,8,9 in her GCSE's btw including 3 sciences, history& geograhy instead of French, she could speak but not write it! Bright kids cope untill they cant, schools are really not designed to pick up issues especially if the kids are on target.

Sorry if this has already been mentioned as i’ve only read OP posts but could you get him tested for, I don’t know the correct name, but essentially his processing speed. I know of 2 at my dc’s sixth form where this was tested and they got extra time as they basically were getting questions right but completely running out of time. Good luck OP. Just to agree with other posters, that selection of GCSEs won’t harm A level choices but they will obviously need to pick their humanities/language option wisely - history to show essay abilities, geography may complement sciences, etc

My French teacher was also the SENCO at my independent secondary school. She wrote the same things on my school report as everyone else. Potential but lacks motivation and attention to detail, makes careless mistakes, disorganised and forgets to hand work in on the right date, frequently late for lessons. In person she got very irate that it took me forever to try to organise myself to leave her classroom and told me I was a "naughty, disobedient girl". She also told me to stop making excuses and being so lazy when I tried to explain that I'd done my homework but forgotten to bring it in. She made me go without a textbook for most of a half term and I had to copy down my homework tasks from a school textbook during breaktimes (which made her angry because I was in her classroom) after I lost it. Even though my Mum asked to buy a new one, and also asked if she could not just buy a full extra set of textbooks so I didn't have to carry them to and from school which was to help my organisation but also because I had a growth delay and my consultant had said it was damaging for me to be carrying the amount of weight that I was. It was her decision and she said no because things had to be "equal". She wasn't even the worst teacher and I was basically told I was an awful child by teachers and students alike throughout school.

I got my ADHD diagnosis at 24 and my self-esteem was absolutely rock bottom.

I feel really angry thinking about it.

Neither me nor my DS’s teachers picked up on his dyslexia. He was going to a maths tutor who said she wanted to run some tests then recommended he get formally tested.
So it presents in different ways to you think.

His ADHD (inattentive type) was spotted by his English teacher in the first year of GCSEs. These kids can fly under the radar. Especially if you are looking for a hyperactive naughty child. That was never DS.

Though despite dyslexia and ADHD he still didn’t qualify for extra time! He gets rest breaks and that’s it.

I trained in 2012. Dyslexia wasn't even mentioned...

As a teacher and SEND mum -- yes! This!!

A further thought - I believe the average number of GCSEs achieved each year is something like 7.7/7.8 - so if your son does 8 (the 5 I said, plus 3 others which includes an essay based one) and achieves Grade 4 or higher, that is above average! Finally (sorry) don’t dismiss DT and Art - the former is very technical and well respected, as is Art for the sheer volume of work required. They are not ‘easy’ choices - we have experience of both. If they’re not his ‘thing’ then fair enough, but they’re not soft options.

..or it might even have been something as ridiculous as only 30 mins learning about dyslexia during teacher training - it is that outrageous!

The consequence of this is that you essentially have to become an expert about it yourself, as you have to advocate effectively for your child.

I have heard from various teachers / Sencos / dyslexia association sessions over the years that standard teaching training actually only spends something like 2 hours on learning about dyslexia / SPLD… so, to be honest, schools / teachers often do not know best, unfortunately…

Me too! I was lucky for my MA that it was entirely coursework based (thesis) so I could take as long as I wanted in my writing.

But I definitely have slow processing. I'm useless in verbal interaction on challenging topics. I just can't think quickly enough to provide responses. I need to cogitate.

I have a masters degree
I needed extra time with my exams
I have extra time for tasks in work

Processing speed is not a mark of your overall ability to understand ideas.

Be guided by the school. They are professionals who have the child’s interest at heart. That said, my son in law-now a solicitor, was only diagnosed as dyslexic at university. His mum was a primary school head and he went to a fee paying secondary school.

A lot of these conditions don't have specific diagnostic crtieria. It doesn't actually even matter because what you suspect it seems is that your son has low processing speed and low working memory but performs well in other compoinents of intelligence. It may not even be anything beyond that. But the main thing is to make sure that whatever path your son takes is the one that allows him to fully meet his potential. At least if you have an assessment and the Ed Psych says that the reduced pathway is the right one, you will have a much better understanding. Or they could say that you son can access the full pathway but needs x,y,z support to do so.

You could request something like the WISC-IV test whcih would look at working memory and processing speed among other things.. But if you consult with an educational psychologist about your son's profile they could advise the best assessment for him.

One thing to note OP is that while you are seeking an assessment from an Ed Psych you should also get the ball rolling with the SENCO and/or head of year for access arrangements, if you think they’re appropriate.

For example, if DS is diagnosed with dyslexia he won’t automatically be entitled to extra time, there’s quite a few steps the school must follow for this.

Something like rest breaks I think is a more straightforward arrangement to get though.

You also need to be open to the idea that your DS may just be struggling academically and does not have SEN, or that he does have SEN and this pathway may still be the most appropriate for him.

Getting a diagnosis of e.g dyslexia will unfortunately be unlikely to change much at school, unless your school is particularly good with SEN.

If he remains on this pathway and you can afford a tutor it would be worth getting one that specialises in exam and revision technique.

I second all the other points about using an educational psychologist. It sounds to me (from what you’ve said) he may have a processing issue - very bright, articulate boy who just takes a bit more time to work through exams. Couple that with (maybe) dyslexia or some sort of auditory processing issue and wham - he’s perfectly capable of the work, but just takes more time. Also, Eng Lit/Lang, Maths, Science (2) is 5 GCSEs even without any others.

OP I think the question you haven't answered yet that a few people have asked is how did your DS do on the year 6 sats? As these would be a useful indicator of how he's managing in a timed assessment which is more pressured?

Also may I ask, did you take GCSE's yourself? It's been the norm in the UK for many decades now to take 2 English GCSE's (English Literature and English Language) and to take double award science which covers the 3 main scientific disciplines of Chemistry, Physics and Biology and gives 2 science GCSE's. But most parents just know this as they remember it from taking their own GCSE's, since right back as far as the mid-90's this has been the norm?

Actually no they haven't.

They have put him onto the reduced academics pathway with no warning to the OP. This is different.
The reduced academics pathway is suitable for some DC (e.g. mine would have benefitted but that's another story).
But potentially all this DC needs is a screening assessment, possibly leading to extra time, and/or some strategies to resolve why he is running out of time.

The issue is school have done this with no prior warning to the OP so she doesn't understand the basis on which they have made their decision. Hence the panic.

Youve got some really good advice here - dyslexia presents in lots of ways one of which is slower processing or finding it hard to read long chunks of text or structuring answers and getting them on paper. Spelling actually is only a tiny part of it.

if you can get his books home and ask him to talk you through some. Frame it supportively - wanting to understand this decision. Is he finding it hard to finish work in class too? To get organised? Are there unexplainable gaps or gaps where his work is incomplete?

the comms sound appalling tbh - we e been talking options since September and how they work.

Does the school have a sixth form? I’d look at entry requirements for local places and see what he needs to target and if this offer will get him there. Ring several times today if need be and say you need an urgent conversation with head of year to help you meet their options deadline.

if your parents eve chats were all ‘he’s doing g well’ did they not mention grades at all? Because they could have meant he’s doing well to meet our g5 expectations but clearly that’s not his understanding. I’d be surprised he’s not had any feedback before now but it might not have been grade based

8 high grades would be fine - average state is between 8-10, but if it is 6 I would be concerned as it may make it hard to meet entry requirement for a levels. Creative options also aren’t ‘easier’ imo just different especially if they’re still GCSEs. Happy to dm if it’d be helpful

So therefore it sounds like he needs additional support with his exams, which the school have identified!

Not if he was running out of time due to slower processing, or getting distracted due to ADHD, or misreading complex questions due to undiagnosed dyslexia an having no strategies to compensate.

So why did he perform below average? A bright intelligent child would perform above average.

Yes, it’s a pain. Your starter by point should be an Educational Psychologist assessment for dyslexia. They do a whole suite of different types of tests as part of the assessment, some of which explicitly measure working memory and processing speed. If there is a deficit in processing speed then there is a strong case for additional time in exams, which sounds like what they need.

Then you should do some research on the other aspects - dyscalculia / dysgraphia / adhd / autism, just to see if you recognise any traits in your dc. And think if any relevant family history.

Especially re: adhd, if there is a problem with focus, which is causing then not to finish tests.

And / autism - where anxiety (or an inflexible way of doing things) may be causing a bit of shutdown.

But it would be a bit unusual (but not impossible, especially if you have traits yourself!) if you had no inkling that they may have autism by now - although if it is fairly borderline then symptoms can get much worse at times of stress / anxiety (and this is a very stressful time for year 9s).

So, start with dyslexia (Ed Psych assessment) and do some research. And ask the ed psych for further signposting as well. If they are worth their salt, they should provide a decent report with recommendations to the school for what accommodations there needs to be to allow your dc to thrive.

You book in to see an EP.

they do a whole range of assessments - they for my son took about three hours - and they give you recommendations and suggestions.

No advice @Arizona29 but just wanted to wish you all the best. Your anxiety is coming through, totally understandably. You want the very best for your DS and I hope you get things sorted.