About sons a level decisions

[ginorwine]

Our ds has just done his as levels . He did not enjoy English at all - one of the books was Austen and it was totally not his bag and he struggled to be intrested!
He is now saying that he has learnt a lesson and he wants to do b tech in outdoor ed then a level geography and travel and tourism . He was prev asked to do three sciences at g c s e by the school which was not his thing so it is his second experience of this.
The school have said that the curriculum set up means that he would not be able to do a level geography as it clashes so he would have to do the b tech and travel and tourism . He has just done a young leaders course via a bursary from a charity and that was outdoor ed as well as public speaking group work etc. he loved it. He has no idea what he wants to do after sixth form and thinks maybe uni or maybe appreitiship - he loves school and that's why he struggles to think beyond it I guess.
The school don't want him to do the b tech as they say it will limit his options and feel he shd be aiming for an r g uni . My gut instinct is to support him to do what he wants as if happy will enjoy and do well but others like a relative who employs people say you have to think of future .
We have appt with school later this week. !!! Any advice or experience please? !

I would say let him decide and support him with what he would like to do. It looks like he has made his mind up about the English and to force him back into it won't get the best result.

As long as he is well aware that a vocational qual can narrow his uni choices down, I think the decision should be his.

Good luck for thurs, maybe he will do better in his English than he thinks and it will make him reconsider.

he loves school and that's why he struggles to think beyond it

^ this is what you need to overcome. And one of the reasons IMHO schools should not have VI forms, but that's personal opinion and not much help.

If he does really want to stay there then looking at other options (FE colleges / other VI forms) just with an aim to walk in and say, "At XYZ I can do this combination" and see if they can change things.

He also might be impressed by the facilities available in an FE college.

He does not need A Levels to go to uni unless he is doing something like medicine, or he wants to go to Oxbridge, BTECs are a better prep for doing something like Outdoor/adventure education.

But where does he want to be in 5 years time? If it is sitting in an office then this is not his best option, if it is running an outdoor centre for school trips it will be.

I suggest he looks at possible jobs and works back from there.

If he decides to do BTEC at his VI form with an A Level alongside then it will look better on his CV,

Honestly, please support him!! My dd is a similar age to your ds Thread here and has had the same issues re school trying to push her towards university! to the point where it's actively turned her off the idea. We have no issue with this, as she has no idea what she wants to do, and of in a few years she decides she wants to do something that requires a particular degree, then we'll support her in that.
I get what you're saying about not wanting to limit his options, but if he does something like he's speaking about and does it till he's say 25, then looks to do something different, I don't see it as an issue.
I'm learning that the whole job/career market is SO different form how it was when I let school (27 years ago) and very few people stay in their initial career choice all their working days now.
You spend a lot of time at work, if it can be enjoyable whilst earning yourself a living, then that can only be good surely.

Oops cross-post - had no diea there was an Alevel in Travel&Tourism! (We get some BTECs coming through in that.)

I would very strongly recommend keeping at least one traditional A level subject alongside a BTEC & T&T. Otherwise it looks like he couldn't really handle the 'rigour' of 'proper' A levels and took the 'easier' vocational option instead. But again, he should talk to people in his preferred degree options.

Schools get very hung up on RG universities - they have the notion that the more pupils who are guided pushed that way, the better they, the schools, will look. Could your son investigate doing some outdoor education work (realise there are issues with age/checks etc) as a volunteer or even as a job for a while? There are outdoor education degrees - could he investigate the availability of one of those with a foundation year. I think Teesside University may offer one but not sure.

Think Stirling University may offer a degree in Outdoor Education with Environmental Science or something like that.

There are people for whom the only degrees worth having are from RGs. It is simply not true. Tell him to get on the phone, get on the internet and look at courses, colleges and find a local outdoor centre where he can talk to instructors there for their advice. There is also an Institute for Outdoor Learning. Perhaps he can find help there.

If he loves outdoor activity, adventure etc it will be in his blood. He should follow his heart. Good luck to him.

In order to make this decision he does need to accept that time next year school will come to an end whether he's ready for it to do so or not. Planning for the next transition now (whatever he decided to do) will make it easier rather than sticking his head in the sand.

Oh, I bet he hasn't failed it if he's predicted a B! And if he has form for catastrophising over results.

I completely understand you wanting to give him his decisions but do get him to hold off until Thursday - it's so close, and he might get a pleasant surprise.

It's hard to know because none of us knows him, but is there an element of him being a bit scared of doing badly, and wanting to stay in his comfort zone? I don't mean that as a bad thing, because it's very natural, but I guess it's a slight worry he can't do that forever, can he?

Little bear - you are right in that its pre results stress ! But he had been talking about dropping English for several months.! Really does not like it . I agree up post we need just to check what book s he wd do this year but I'm still pretty sure that he does not want to take it.
He is good at exams - he had several a and a star at g c s e but struggles to apply himself unless he is intrested . He loved gcse English = a star - hated a s due to the books= anticipates failing . He says what's the point studying what he doesn't enjoy .

Hoboken - yes he has just been given a bursary for a you g leaders course via the Lyons which he loved . He had to be interviewed as only two places given . He loved it.
There is a element of him putting his head in the sand tho alongside this as others just up post have said - this is a pattern for him . I will look with him re courses thanks for the info !
Ps he had always loved sport . He think s it teaches a lot in life and was most offended when his eng teacher told him sport was not important cf English . He is for eg v well mannered! I'm not sure if its outdoor ed he loves but sport !

That isn't good of his English teacher to say. I wonder if they have a bit of a personality clash? Does he only have one teacher who'll be the same next year?

L r d - yes he likes to stay in his comfort zone ! He his his own worst critic ! We always tell him he is v much loved and reassure but he gives self hard time and fears failure ! Has been not sleeping much this week !

Just wanted to reiterate what other posters have said, you CAN to to uni with a BTEC! My DB recently completed a BTEC with starred distinctions, and has ended up with the equivalent to 3 A* grade A Levels. He is now off to a really good Uni studying something he loves in September! He sounds a bit like your DS- did AS levels because they were the 'thing to do', hated them, and so did really badly, which messed up his confidence totally! He was much happier doing the BTEC in something he was genuinely interested in. Just be aware BTECs are BLOODY hard work, I know many people see them as a soft option, but there is a lot of independent work involved which IME is good prep for Uni!

As an English teacher, please support him in giving up English if he struggled with Austen. If his course is anything like the OCR one, we had the nineteenth century novel at AS but at A2 we have pre-19th century poetry and drama to contend with - our lot will be doing Chaucer! So if he found Austen difficult...And the A2 lessons work best when everyone in the set is really committed to the subject and joining in the class fully - which it sounds like your DS wouldn't be.

Aw, poor lad. It is horrible waiting for results.

I'm only pushing the 'try to make him wait and see' because I'm thinking he might have done better than he thinks. But anyway, good luck to him for Thursday, hope whatever choice he makes works out.

L r d - you are correct - there was personality clash ! And my son is v proud of his sport and found the comments offensive! Also he cd not let it go . The teacher also said b grades are no good to me I want a s : this put him off and he felt that she was not intrested in him! He then withdrew from her somewhat ! There may be diff teachers next year but even so I think he wi ll not do English .

And I totally agree with a PP about RG not being the be all and end all; I'm at Oxbridge, as it is the best uni for my course, I did my undergrad at a RG uni, simply because the course was better suited for me than Oxbridge. My DB is off to a uni which is ranked one of the highest in the country for his particular subject, and it's not RG! The only people who really care about RG/Oxbridge are schools and academics in my personal experience.

Thanks le bear! I find I did a level English and did persuasion and loved it with a passion!!! - I find it hard to see why anyone could hate it ! Just had to mention that! Of course I have not mentioned that to ds .

Thank you all so much for your collective wisdom . It has helped me to look at the issues more calmly - from a birds eye view -rather than from the eye of the storm !

he needs some good careers guidance - the school is responsible for providing this (from an independent qualified adviser - not a member of teaching staff btw)

No one should be telling him what to study - it should be his choice - if the school can't accommodate him can a local college or another 6th form?

try looking on UCAS Progress for local options

Sadly Connexions as a national organisation no longer exists although many local services have kept the name. Few careers services are funded to work with young people IN education as that is the schools job.

The National Careers Service might be able to provide some online and phone support but that is information giving on the whole rather than guidance

It has to be his choice - as you have seen if it's not or he's not well informed about the subject it will struggle to hold his interest

nationalcareersservice.direct.gov.uk/Pages/Home.aspx

www.ucas.com/progress

www.plotr.co.uk/ is good as well

and www.apprenticeships.org.uk/

Slightly controversial, but I'd advise him against uni.
There are too many graduates who so a degree because its expected of them. Me included.
And the debt is now ludicrous.
Work out what he wants to do and work backwards.
Are there apprenticeships which lead to the career? Could he start at the bottom and work his way up? Volunteer? Holiday work?
Talk to people who do the job ask about their background.

Loads of skills are transferable so he won't be backed into a corner by doing something specific for a role. People don't work in one place for 50 years anymore, they move, progress, take a side step etc.

but lots of graduates DO find work and graduates earn more, have more opportunities and fewer periods of unemployment than none grads

it depends on the subject and his career aims

I think he needs to sort out what he actually wants to do

Forgot to say. If he wants to do a degree he can do it at any stage. Its not restricted to 18/19 year olds.

I wish I could say this to 16 year old me.

For outdoor ed, he should be looking at gaining as many practical qualifications as he can. I am a Gold DofE leader, and we love anyone who is a Mountain Leader, has canoeing quals, first aid certificates in remote emergency care, is a Gold assessor for DofE, etc etc. You can't beat the practical experience in Outdoor Ed. That's what will make him highly desirable as an employee in that field, not a degree.