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Original poster

Yearly warning not to take A-level maths with less than a 7 at GCSE

463 replies

noblegiraffe · 20/08/2024 14:49

GCSE results day and therefore A-level sign-up day is coming.

So with that in mind I just thought I'd post the table of conversions from GCSE to A-level results for maths to show that there is a strong correlation. This is because A-level Maths basically starts with a quick review of grade 8/9 GCSE algebra content and then gets more difficult. Students starting with a 7 will have to work very hard to keep up, students with a 6 often flounder.

There are sixth forms and colleges that will accept students with a 6 onto A-level maths, but from many years of experience, this is not a good experience for the student. Many will drop out and switch courses early on (and therefore not appear in the results table), but some will struggle on for 2 years and then come out with a grade that really doesn't help them with university applications.

If you take A-level maths with a 6, even if you manage to complete the course (and a lot won't), about three quarters will get a D or below, with E the most common grade.

This data is from 2019 because obviously more recent data has been screwed up by covid.

If your child is keen to do maths, but gets a 6, please consider Core Maths which is designed to be taken alongside 3 A-levels and provides supportive maths content for A-level sciences and social sciences (e.g. psychology, geography).

If your child is going to do A-level maths (particularly if they are on a 7 but also 8/9), check that they have done summer bridging work so they hit the ground running in September.

Yearly warning not to take A-level maths with less than a 7 at GCSE
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FantasticFox27 · 22/08/2024 06:58

Can I ask where you got the table from @noblegiraffe? Ds doesn't want to do maths, but wants to do biology - I wondered if there was a similar table for other subjects?

TeenToTwenties · 22/08/2024 06:43

bicky · 21/08/2024 23:47

My son got a 6 at gcse maths and a b at a level, it can be done

It can be done, see the table, but the stats are against it. Anyone going against the stats needs to accept the probable outcome or have reasoning why they will do better.

@elliejjtiny The bridging booklet noble linked to looks really good. If your DC hasn't been set bridging work get them to do that to see how they get on. I think maths A level is a big ask from a 6, which is why most places ask for a 7 even our local large colleges which accept 5/6s for many other subjects.

bicky · 21/08/2024 23:47

My son got a 6 at gcse maths and a b at a level, it can be done

MortimerBeQuiet · 21/08/2024 23:45

I don't know if this will make sense, but I think you have to really understand maths and have a fluency - like a native tongue - to do well at A level maths.
My son has always " got" maths. It's like he can see it. They used to call him the human calculator at primary school; their hardest task was persuading him to show his working as he didn't always know how he knew the answer.
He is doing brilliantly at A level, loving it (for the first time, I think he always found it a bit simple before) and getting scores in the high 90s (and once, 100%) on mocks.

My daughter on the other hand is " good at maths" in that she has responded well to good teaching and enjoys maths. She has a good recall and can apply algorithms correctly. She should do well at GCSE, I imagine a 7 or 8. But I think A level would be really hard for her despite that score, because maths isn't her natural language, her native tongue, in the same way as it is my son's. I think she might consider it...and I will try to steer her elsewhere.

elliejjtiny · 21/08/2024 23:44

This is worrying. Ds2 is predicted mostly 4's and 5's in his gcse's with a 6 in maths, 7 in music and 8 in geography. He hates geography and is hoping to do music, maths and physics at a level.

StressedMumOf2Girls · 21/08/2024 23:31

A Level maths shouldn't really be underestimated. DD1 got an A in GCSE maths (old GCSEs) but ended up with a C at A Level. And that was with weekly tutoring. DD1 is neurodivergent, which we didn't know at the time. So maybe if we did she would have done better. But who knows. Either way we are proud of the effort she put in at school in general.

A lot of her friends easily walked out with A stars at GCSE but walked out with D/E/U in Year 12. A lot more than expected ended up dropping Maths instead of their planned 4th subject.

namechanged221 · 21/08/2024 23:21

Please do come back on this thread and tell us how your DC got on with the maths results tomorrow!!

TeenToTwenties · 21/08/2024 10:08

Really interesting and useful looking booklet @noblegiraffe

(No use for it in our house except maybe me for fun, but DD having done no maths for a year has delighted me with how much foundation stuff she can still do in warm up for returning to college and another GCSE resit attempt.)

Original poster
noblegiraffe · 21/08/2024 09:33

For those who haven't been set any bridging work, there's a booklet here:

https://www.aesessex.co.uk/assets/Images/Uploads/Summer-Bridging-Work-2024/Maths-AL.pdf

https://www.aesessex.co.uk/assets/Images/Uploads/Summer-Bridging-Work-2024/Maths-AL.pdf

OP posts:
Hellohah · 21/08/2024 09:33

Hoppinggreen · 20/08/2024 17:25

Thank you for this info
DS is going into Y11 and DH keen for him to do maths at A level the year after but I have heard that you need to really love Maths to do well at A Level and while DS will probably get a 6 (maybe 7 on a good day) hes a bit "meh" about it (although he's meh about most things to be honest). I have urged caution and DH has told me I am being negative, I have kicked the can down the road by suggesting we see what DS Maths teacher thinks

I would advise against it.

DS got a very easy 9 at GCSE Maths.
He went to college and had a very meh attitude. He stuck with it because everyone (teachers etc) always expected Maths to be his thing, he'd get an A*, go to Uni to do a degree, but he didn't enjoy it. He did zero homework for 2 years, didn't revise at all. Came out with a C (he was one mark off a B), but his teacher told him every week, to be good at Maths you have to do Maths. They only let him carry on because they knew he wouldn't fail, but they were as disappointed in him as much as he was disappointed in himself and he knows he just wasted everyone's time really.

Plasmodesmata · 21/08/2024 09:21

I used to teach A level Biology and had similar conversations with students wanting to start from a lower GCSE grade, and then being surprised at scraping an E. That table is really useful for maths.

On a personal note my son can recommend the Core Maths course he's just got an A (from a 6 at GCSE) he found it useful to support Psychology A level and also it got him a reduced offer from university (bbb to bcc with b in core maths)

Spacecowboys · 21/08/2024 09:19

Ds is doing A level maths. He also did further maths gcse and has completed bridging work. I really hope there are no nasty surprises tomorrow.

Perpetuallydaisy · 21/08/2024 09:11

WinkyTinky · 20/08/2024 17:32

I got an A at GCSE (many many years ago, admittedly) and always got top marks in my class, but at A-level I only just scraped a D. It was a massive leap and I could not cope. Unfortunately the spiral continued and I did a physics degree on an extremely shaky maths foundation and I only narrowly avoided failing the whole thing. Why the university let me in with D in both maths and physics I'll never know! Maths is hard. Be prepared.

Yes, back when I was at school, pupils who got As in maths GCSE got Ds and Es in A level. A few got As and Bs too, but it was rare. That was at a small private school, too, where there were resources for good teaching in very small classes.

newmum1976 · 21/08/2024 09:10

bluefineliner · 21/08/2024 06:59

Maybe I can get a bit of advice here for DD16. She got a 9 in her maths mock (along with mostly other 9s) and has worked at a 9 consistently for the past 2 years. Loves maths.

However, she fell apart on paper one and missed a few (big) questions, which will have a huge impact on her grade now. She said papers 2 and 3 went very well, but nothing will pull her grade back to a 9, or even an 8. We are trying to work with her on this as she is adamant she still wants to do A level maths but I think she may get a 7.

I have read these posts to her, talked about how hard it is etc etc but she is so upset she messed up on her favourite subject she is reluctant to not take it at A level. She is also taking chem and bio. Should I continue to put her off maths if it is a 7 tomorrow? We will obvs speak to her school about it at enrolment too.

I’d be very surprised if she gets a 7 just by missing the last few questions on one paper. My DD always leaves the last few questions and is on track for an 8.

Original poster
noblegiraffe · 21/08/2024 09:07

@bluefineliner your dd absolutely sounds like she should be doing A-level maths, regardless of the messed up paper 1. If she loves it, was on course for a 9 and is doing Chemistry and Biology, then maths goes very well with them - it's the most popular combination of subjects at A-level.

OP posts:
Original poster
noblegiraffe · 21/08/2024 08:59

StarsInTheSkies · 21/08/2024 07:21

@noblegiraffe What do you think if someone does get an 8 (I hope…) but has always had a bit of a block with mental arithmetic. Has found a way around it and worked really hard but is still quite slow on basic calculations. Will A level maths be ok for someone like that?

That'll be fine. They'll have a calculator for every A-level exam. The further you get with maths, the fewer calculations you have to do!

OP posts:
Pythag · 21/08/2024 08:44

Stopsnowing · 21/08/2024 07:32

Dc school will only let you do a level maths with a 9 at gcse

Which school is this? I am really surprised that any school has a grade 9 requirement in GCSE maths to sit A-level maths. I’d be less surprised if it is A-level further maths that you are talking about.

Stopsnowing · 21/08/2024 07:32

Dc school will only let you do a level maths with a 9 at gcse

bluefineliner · 21/08/2024 07:28

TeenToTwenties · 21/08/2024 07:10

@bluefineliner Have you looked at usual grade boundaries? You may be surprised at how many marks can be dropped.

It sounds to me that yours would come under the 'exception' criteria, perfectly able but had a bad exam.

The grade is only acting as an indicator for ability and work ethic. An 8/9 brought down to a 7 by one bad exam isn't an issue.

Someone who needed tutoring to pull up into a 7 (not due to illness or appalling teaching) is much more of a problem, as is able but lazy who slipped to a 6/7 as that would show they haven't bothered to master GCSE content. You can get a 7 with a lot of missed marks.

Thanks, I just had a quick look at last years and there is a chance she could get an 8 but it really does depend on how bad paper 1 is. DD is very dramatic but she literally did not answer the last few big mark questions so I have no idea.

I don't want to knock her confidence by putting her off, so I am waiting for tomorrow's result to see how to play it from there! I dropped out of A level maths, as did my older DD so I know how hard it is. I did think DD2 was a natural but we will see tomorrow!

Gosh waiting for results is awful 😂.

TeenToTwenties · 21/08/2024 07:28

@StarsInTheSkies The higher up you go in maths the fewer numbers there are. ( Also I don't know but guessing, there presumably isn't a mon calculator paper at A level.)

@bluefineliner I just looked up the trend of grade boundaries. You can drop 80 marks, which is a whole paper's worth and still be in with a chance of an 8 some years!

StarsInTheSkies · 21/08/2024 07:21

@noblegiraffe What do you think if someone does get an 8 (I hope…) but has always had a bit of a block with mental arithmetic. Has found a way around it and worked really hard but is still quite slow on basic calculations. Will A level maths be ok for someone like that?

Cyclistmumgrandma · 21/08/2024 07:13

I took A level maths at evening classes as an adult. 20 people started the course.. By the end 3 of us remained and took the exam. I got a B.

Pleasealexa · 21/08/2024 07:13

some will struggle on for 2 years and then come out with a grade that really doesn't help them with university applications

I know many in this situation. They love Maths at GCSE but by end of Year 12 they are struggling. It's very damaging for your confidence to sit in a class and know you are not keeping up. I think with Maths it's very noticeable as you often work through problems in class, unlike essay based subjects.

Dragonsandcats · 21/08/2024 07:11

Our school don’t set bridging work- has anyone any suggestions for what they can do to prepare?

TeenToTwenties · 21/08/2024 07:10

@bluefineliner Have you looked at usual grade boundaries? You may be surprised at how many marks can be dropped.

It sounds to me that yours would come under the 'exception' criteria, perfectly able but had a bad exam.

The grade is only acting as an indicator for ability and work ethic. An 8/9 brought down to a 7 by one bad exam isn't an issue.

Someone who needed tutoring to pull up into a 7 (not due to illness or appalling teaching) is much more of a problem, as is able but lazy who slipped to a 6/7 as that would show they haven't bothered to master GCSE content. You can get a 7 with a lot of missed marks.