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Original poster

Btec science - URGENT HELP PLEASE!!

59 replies

verybored · 06/01/2011 18:31

DS 1 is in year 9. Loves his science and has always hoped to do it at A level and then something science related at uni. He has come home from school today saying that he has been told they are only doind BTEC science and not GCSE.

The way his school work is they are banded into three bands and you are in this band for every subject, so you cannot be in top for English and middle for maths if that makes sense.

DS1 is in middle band and I have always been told he is at the top of that band and is only not in top band due to his attitude - which has improved massively since the beginning of year 9.

So today he has come home and told me that his band is only doing BTEC in Science. Now am I right in thinking this is not a good thing for him. I will be ringing his head of year first thing tomorrow and firstly checking the facts, then secondly asking for him to be moved up to top band, where they are apparently doing GCSE. But I'm pretty sure I will be fed the' they are GCSE equivalnets and just as good etc etc' line

If they refuse, can I do anything? I am absolutely fuming! This is his best subject, he's bloddy good at it and he's going to be lumbered with a BTEC Sad

OP posts:
TheFallenMadonna · 06/01/2011 20:22

BTEC won't count in the new style league tables, so that is unlikely to be the reason for him doing BTEC I would have thought.

I suspect it's the English baccalaureate thing (which is going to be the new measure by which schools are judged). So the top band will have a restricted choice of options (to include all the relevant subjects).

We are doing something similar, but we have 5 bands, so there is room for anyone we think could get a C at GCSE to do GCSE.

You need to ask what his target grade is for Science. If it is a C (and IME FFT targets are generally generous!), then you should be pushing for GCSE.

coastgirl · 06/01/2011 20:20

Yes, kick up a stink if he wants to do A level sciences. But there is no point his arguing with his teacher (I know you said "almost"!) because it is almost certainly not her decision and if she is anything like my DH, who is a science teacher, she will be against the idea of GCSE-capable students doing BTEC.

Original poster
verybored · 06/01/2011 20:16

Yes, I will give them the chance to sort it as he does not want to move, as you can imagine. I am just shocked they are doing this for a lot of very bright students - the top band is the smallest band, the middle band has the largest number of children in.

DS actually had almost an argument with the teacher about it today when she told them, as did his friend. It stinks of getting their numbers up for league tables, just as them doing 2 and a half GCSE's this year, without telling parents, in crappy little subjects, just to increase their pass rate.

OP posts:
roisin · 06/01/2011 20:10

Yes, it is important.
BTEC is a very different course to GCSE Science.

It is an appropriate course for some students, but certainly not the majority. (But currently can result in higher results for the school... Hmm)

Can you at least warn the school that you are considering moving him, as this is important to him.

Tbh I think the banding across subjects (ie streaming) sounds pretty grim as well and inappropriate.

Original poster
verybored · 06/01/2011 19:48

Thank you. I am bloody fuming TBH. He has worked so hard lately and only this morning showed me the results of his science test in which he got 82% with no revision and no warning of test and was by far the highest in his class.

If they won't moved him, we'll have to move schools Sad

OP posts:
GiddyPickle · 06/01/2011 18:58

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GiddyPickle · 06/01/2011 18:58

This reply has been deleted

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floweringrose · 06/01/2011 18:52

It's absurd to put pupils in the same band for each subject - their strengths will vary across the different subjects.

Personally I'd be pushing for him to be moved up. If they refuse, I'd consider looking at the possibility of doing science GCSEs elsewhere, e.g as an external candidate/evening class/distance learning.

I did a science subject at university and it's absolutely essential to do science GCSEs in order to do A levels (preferably the single sciences, but at the very least double GCSE). Even then, GCSE to A level is a big jump so it would be even more of a struggle with a BTEC (if he could even find anywhere which would accept him).

Original poster
verybored · 06/01/2011 18:32

Apologies for crappy spelling. And so fed up with schools, it's one thing after another Sad

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