Active discussions

Please or to access all these features

Talk
Secondary education

Connect with other parents whose children are starting secondary school on this forum.

Original poster

English GCSE advice on predicted grades please

28 replies

Dancingdreamer · 19/01/2014 23:44

We recently attended my DD's GCSE option evening. We were advised by the English teacher that she is not capable of getting an A in English language and is firmly a B level. However he did believe she could get an A or A in English literature. She has to take both for GCSE at her school. For all other subjects she wants to study she is predicted As or possible As. (This includes another languages and history). We were bit surprised as up to now no one at the school has raised any issues about her English language.

Couple of questions please:

  1. Why would there be such a difference in the prediction between the two English GCSEs? What skills would she be lacking in English language? Is it posssible 2 years from her exams to improve these predictions and how?
  1. Why does she have to do both GCSEs? Would it be better to try and drop the weaker English and do another subject instead to try and get full set of As and A*s? Would that look better when she applies to uni?

Any advice appreciated please.

OP posts:
noblegiraffe · 20/01/2014 07:11

She has to do English language, there is no way she can drop it.

Yes, she can improve on predictions, teachers can't actually tell the future. You could think about getting a tutor if an A is that important.

PollyCazaletWannabe · 20/01/2014 07:09

English teacher here. You certainly can't drop English language- she won't be able to do any further study without it. Students often have lower levels in Lang than Lit due to the requirement for accuracy if punctuation, spelling and grammar, which is marked for lit but only worth about 10% of marks, whereas the marks for accuracy for Lang are roughly 35% of the total. If she is in year 9 at the moment she has time to improve this though.

Eastpoint · 20/01/2014 07:04

I have been told that it is easier to teach English Lit to an A or A than English Language. Does your daughter read much? If she doesn't it could be that she is unaware of more complicated phrasing & punctuation. I think if the rest of her grades are all As & As her lack of English language would raise flags as she is clearly able & industrious.