Year 12 preparing for AS levels

HSM, DD keeps mentioning criminology. And I keep suggesting sociology!

Liney, STAY CALM AND DO NOT PANIC! You have no idea of what grades he will get - encourage him to look at a range of courses and universities, and he can make a decision about what to do next when he has his results And as SugarPlum says, if he doesn't get the grades, although it may seem awful at the time, he can redo/take a different path if necessary. Life will go on

Maybe have it in the back of your mind as a plan. He might have done well and you have a lovely surprise on the day. DD has dyspraxia and was on her 3rd course by the end of September adjusting to things, it is a big change.

I think you're right, Sugar. Maybe an extra year will be the best thing. DS has dyspraxia so this whole year at a new environment of sixth form college has been a challenge anyway.

Apologies, not for one moment suggesting he'll get U's.

Liney I feel for you. Last year results day for AS and A2 was a bit grim where I was. Friend's DD did badly at A2 and missed both her offers. Other Friend's two children had AS disasters including U's. All 3 did well at GCSE.

A year on the girl who missed A2 results had a go at an apprenticeship, has decided she wants to have another go at university so is resisting. One of the AS boys continued with year 13 as was also doing a double BTEC along side his 3 A levels. He dropped things and this year has gone well with offers from various places including Loughborough for sport. The other is doing an extra year, dropped a couple and took up some new ones and discovered a flair for engineering. He's having a long think about where to go from here and has said he doesn't think what has happened will be a bad thing in the future.

I think until he gets his AS results you can't really know . But if he does end up doing another year it can sometimes be a positive thing in the long run, though tough at the time.

Biomedical Sciences, Littleham.

HSM she might like to have a look at Sociology too. Some of the courses do psychology modules as part of it.

What subject does he want to take at university Liney? There is more leeway with some subjects than others.

Thanks, Littlehum.

I feel a bit bewildered with it all. Last year my son was being shown round Oxford. This year he's on for oblivion. I'm not kidding.

I don't know what to do. Extra year at A level? Foundation year at university?

I've known a few people who are the same as your DD in liking to know how people tick and why they do things and they have said much the same as her about it being dry and tedious. I am very out of date but don't think the degrees will have changed hugely. They do go into more detail but it's kind of the same in greater depth. You have many many names and dates to remember as any argument has to be backed up.

Then there is the practical work plus stats and lots of drilling about hypotheses, abstract, methodology etc. Some courses are more science based than others but if the neuroscience caught her eye I guess that is something she'll be fine with. We used to share neurophysiology lectures with some of the medics and they were quite intense.

Cognitive psychology is the one that a fair few people on my course didn't enjoy much. . Things I personally didn't enjoy much was the visual perception and cognitive stuff but the health, social, criminal psychology plus sociology floated my boat.

HSM, DD has had the same issues. However we have both heard separately that the second year of Alevel Psychology is more interesting. DD is waiting on results to decide what she drops, plus they have 3 weeks of starting the Y13 courses before the summer. And no doubt a pile of homework, knowing her school.

Yes SugarPlum, the changes have been rushed through way too fast and teachers are practically making it up as they go along. Awful

www.thestudentroom.co.uk/showthread.php?t=4084445&page=21&highlight=ocr+physics+as (hope this is correct exam Liney)

One comment from a teacher -
Ive done the paper and I'll post up my answers and mark scheme later today. Its quite a tough one - still that means low grade boundaries.

twitter.com/search?q=ocr%20physics%20&src=typd&lang=en-gb

It makes me incredibly cross the amount of changes our lot and their teachers have been subjected to, really there aren't words.

HSM can she articulate what she doesn't like about the A level and which courses she is looking at ?

I think we might be looking at Foundation Lentil Weaving at the University of Trumpton at this rate.

To think he was once on the Gin and Tonic strand.

So sorry to hear of despondent teens. It's crap for them at the mercy of the government whim, isn't it?

Littlehums have you got a link(s) to any social media comments?

Yes, Maths again tomorrow. Then Biology on Thursday.

Social media is giving a resounding thumbs down to OCR Physics Liney so tell your ds not to be too despondent.

OCR maths tomorrow.

Dd did edexcel physics and said it wasn't too bad. Probably means she's done badly!

I'll try and talk him into sticking with Physics but I'm getting quite despondent myself.

I don't know what the general verdict is on today's paper.

Oh dear Liney, maybe he will feel differently once the results are out. They are all in the same boat at least.

Ds has finished exams for now. He has one more in fifteen days and remains on study leave so plenty of time to revise. He's going to have a few days just doing nothing now.

DS did OCR Physics.

Says it was a nightmare, so far divorced from the spec (syllabus, teaching, text book etc) that it was impossible to excel.

He's now thinking of dropping Physics.

Well done, British Government. Way to drive bright British kids out of science.

BTM just catching up - wow your poor DD! You must be so proud that she gathered herself back up and did the new paper. She must have been exhausted after 3 exams in a day. Similar thing happened at DS's school a few years ago when they gave the A2 Biology paper to everyone....even those sitting A2 Human Biology and no-one noticed until afterwards. Shocking!

Noooo. Dont tell me some of yours have finished now. dd3's exams go on until 24th June.