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Original poster

Starting Year 12 again - terrible idea or good solution?

33 replies

rumbleinthejungle · 04/05/2015 09:59

DS1 has totally lost his way in Year 12. He made poor A level choices and has particularly struggled in his essay heavy subjects. He just got a U in his mock in one of these subjects.

He desperately wants to start his A levels again and change 2 of the subjects. We were very against this at first as we couldn't imagine him being motivated enough and he'd be out of step with his friends. However a turning point seems to be that he has decided he wants to be a Primary Teacher so now has a goal.

He"'ll probably come out with B, C/D, E, E/U in his AS levels so I don't know if it's even worth sitting 2 of the subjects. We've looked on the ucas site and there's very little that would be available to him.

Do you think starting again would be the best plan or can he salvage something from this year?

Thanks

OP posts:
SecretSquirrels · 04/05/2015 16:44

He wouldn't need A level maths to be a Primary school teacher though would he? It does sound as though he has picked the wrong subjects and actually I think it's quite mature of him to recognise this and be prepared to start again.

I have two DC and both have seen friends repeating year 12, as others say it's quite common.
If he does though, he should research the new A levels in his subjects. Some sixth forms won't offer AS and it will all be exams in Y13.

Original poster
rumbleinthejungle · 04/05/2015 12:16

Thanks very much. I think DS has matured this year and now has more of an idea where he wants to go in life. Last year he had no idea. I'm glad it worked out for your son.

My DS would probably go to a different college so hopefully the feeling of being left behind might not be as great as he'd be moving in different circles.

OP posts:
cricketballs · 04/05/2015 12:07

I would echo noble's post - we also have a number of students who repeat year 12, some re-taking same subjects, others who do something completely different but your DS needs to be happy that his friends will be off to uni etc a year ahead of him.

My own DS repeated the year - his AS year was a disaster as he didn't work hard enough, wasn't enjoying it so he started a BTEC and went to uni a year later than his peers. In the long run it has been better for him as I don't think he would have coped living away from home if he had gone at the 'normal' age as well as he has done

Original poster
rumbleinthejungle · 04/05/2015 11:17

Thanks noblegiraffe. I think one of the problems with his maths is that he didn't ask for help when he was unsure. Now he's getting support he's getting nearly full marks in the questions he's covered. He's just left it a bit too late for this year!

OP posts:
noblegiraffe · 04/05/2015 11:13

Every year we have a few students resitting all or part of Y12, he would need to discuss this with the head of sixth form as A levels are changing next year so some of the courses may be different to what he knows. He will also need to consider how he will feel when all his peers head off to uni and he's left behind.

I'm a maths teacher and I would say that it's extremely unlikely that someone who is predicted a C/D in maths would get this up to a B/C in Y13. The second year of maths is much harder than the first.

Original poster
rumbleinthejungle · 04/05/2015 11:07

Thank you for your input. DS is bright and got a mixture of A*, A, B at gcse. His predicted B is Spanish which seems an ideal subject for Primary teaching now KS2 are taught languages. Although he's predicted to get a C/D in maths everyone seems confident that he could get that to B/C by the end of A levels.

Ds3 is doing level 6 maths so I've seen how challenging the curriculum is! DS1 volunteered for a few days and helped with SATS boosters for both high and lower ability pupils - he loved it.

OP posts:
Millymollymama · 04/05/2015 10:15

I do think this would be a good idea as long as he is ok about being away from his friends in classes. Also do not assume primary teachers are lacking in educational skills. The new maths curriculum is challenging! What A levels are best for being a primary teacher? I would do some research to see what is required and be realistic about what he can actually achieve with so called easier subjects. What grades did he get at GCSE? If he is achieving such low grades, how academic is he? Have you looked at other routes to qualifications?

PurpleDaisies · 04/05/2015 10:12

This is more common than you might think and spending an extra year at sixth form is by no means a disaster. It sounds like your son needs to have a chat with the head of sixth form and see what his options are. He'll have some good AS grades in the bank if he does go on to get his B and C/D this year but if he's got his heart set on primary teaching and there aren't many courses that will take him he's probably better repeating. Primary teaching courses are often really competitive to get on to so it would give him chance to get lots of work experience sorted.

Good luck with whatever he decides to do.