Science BTEC compared to GCSEs - I don't believe it can be worth 4 GCSEs

My sons school put him on BTEC with no consultation - I thought it was higher as it was said to be =4Gcses. I was not given option of GCSEs, now he is interested in Medicine and they are saying he is not elligible for A level studies. I think it is clear - BTECh equivalence is a complete lie. I have a battle coming with School. Has anyone else been through this? I believe BTech provide an advanced course to bridge the gap in Year 12. I think schools can either choose or refuse to allow BTech students to study As.

Yes, I agree southeastastra. Schools should tell parents that some qualifications are more 'acceptable' for university admissions. Some children are ruling themselves out before they have even started, by taking the 'wrong' courses.

Obviously there is a need for different qualifications and not everyone is able to take the higher level examinations but parents must be informed of the reality of how these qualifications are perceived by the universities.

As muddleduck says it is the weaker schools whose pupils presumably need proper advice more than those pupils from high achieving schools (and who usually have pro-active parents, and who are generally more informed), who are being let down.

To the OP your son should probably stick with the higher level now!

To the OP, don't close any doors re A level science in YR 10. DS(1) had no intention of doing a science at that stage and in fact dropped Physics ( did single chemistry and biology). He is now doing Biology A level and loves it (got A in all AS modules).

If your thinking re university check the UCAS website for entry requirements and see how Unis regard BTECs.

sorry but you know what i mean hopefully! i even asked on here when he was taking his options but even on here people seemed confused by it all.

not sure what you mean by "degrading" but I agree that there is a lack of clarity about the different qualifications. Parents and students need to be able to make informed choices based on accurate info about what options will be open/closed to them in the future. I work in uni admissions and sadly it is often the students from the "weaker" schools who seem to be getting bad advice that comes back to haunt them in a few years time.

my ds is doing a btec though not in science. shouldn't schools be sorting this out if they're meant to be so degrading then?

FYI some unis do not currently accept BTEC science in place of gcse science.

i teach btec science as well - we would not accept a child onto AS/A2 courses with BTEC science - end of - they could do a BTEC level 3 but many of the better universities will not see that in the same light as A2's. And not unreasonably - i've taught kids(lots of them) who wouldn't have got more than c at very best push in core and additional science who end up with the equivalent of 4 A grades at 16 - with the best will in the world, in science they are not equivalent qulaifications.

Sorry, I'm just a dance teacher talking science and possibly have got it wrong, but my point was just to back KembleTwins up about it not leading into the A level syllabus.

But the applied science course doesn't prepare for A level either. We've replaced our Applied GCSE with the BTEC First in Applied Science. We've kept triple and dual award for those who might conceivably do Science A level. I much prefer it to 21st Century Addtional Applied - that really was awful.

I teach the Performing Arts Btec First and as a course, love it! Brilliant for the kids, great to teach. However my friend is head of science and was considering it for those who struggle with the applied science course - she was told on a course by the Edexcel tutor that (as KembleTwins has said) it DOES NOT equip students for A level - despite the 'equivalent to 4 GCSE's' statement. She has disregarded it for this reason. Make an appointment with his teacher!

True.

To be fair, they are much-loved of SLTs for that reason...

Fair enough. Just got about the posts which seemed to imply that BTECs are for numpties. Or just so schools can try to artifically up their A*-C figures.

It isn't a good course for students targeted an A because it doesn't lead well into the A level Science courses. Now of course that might not matter if a child is absolutely certain that they don't want to take A level Sciences. But that is a big ask of a child just starting KS4. I know that in my school the situation with Art is quite different, and so am not surprised that Performing Arts would be the same. But the OP was talking about Science.

I disagree that it's not a great course for A graders. Not if you're talking in general terms. Again, I admit I do not know the ins and outs of the Science course.

I think its a great course for many students. But not for a child with a target grade of A. Not in Science.

I teach BTEC too - but Performing Arts not Science, so perhaps my experienes are different. I think more and more schools are moving towards it, though, for a variety of reasons, and therefore really do think that parents have to get away from the idea that it is a sub-standard qualification. Several of the students I have taught BTEC Higher PA to are off to perfectly credible universities this week or next. It didn't seem to affect their ability to get in. I will say again, though - I fully accept that Performing Arts may simply be a more appropriate subject for BTEC.

I teach the BTEC. In fact, I've introduced it to my school. I'm not 'down on it'. It is not the right Science course for a child who has a target grade of A, because it isn't good preparation for A level Sciences, and the beginning of year 10 is early to be closing those doors unecessarily.

I find this all a little distasteful - it's no wonder that newer qualifications have such a poor reputation when supposedly educated parents are so down on them. Is this how it was when GCSEs replaced O Levels? BTECs are assessed in a different way, but are not for thick kids who can't manage GCSEs. How helpful do you think it is for your own children if parents are condemning the courses they are taking? It's the sodding Daily Mail exams-ain't-what-they-used-to-be crowd.

a Btech first diploma is worth 4 GCSE's at A-C level. The qualifications are just as good as GCSE's. They are not just for pupils who can't pass GCSE's but may be better suited to those who struggle with exams. There is still a lot of work but it is on going assesments rather than big exams at the end.

What group is he in now BTW. You said 'low ability', which someone targeted an A certainly isn't, but I do know from experience that that can mean quite different things in different schools. What is the range of target grades for the group he is in?

If he is getting As then BTEC is not the course for him. I wouldn't necessarily insist on separate sciences (although someone with As predicted should certainly give it consideration), but certainly dual award GCSE, and not Applied anything.