To be livid that year 11 DS thinks 4-5 hours/week homework/revision is enough for GCSEs?

[Hotdaisies22]

DS in year 11. Bright boy but has always been poor at doing homework at home despite being well set up for it at home (quiet desk space etc). Does his homework at homework club after school -Mon - Thurs max 5 hrs week (thats only time homework club room is available at his school). We're having conversations that he now needs to up his game these next few months before GCSEs and start studying /revising at home extra time. Getting massive push back and causing a lot of friction. He thinks what he does is enough and no intention of doing more "at the end of a tiring school day" (he only has a 20 min journey to school). What are other year 11s doing? (I'm trying to have conversation with his school on this but so far they've been rubbish - no reply!)

It sounds really bad but the last minute cramming is what worked best for me

This is terrible advice. By all means do some last minute revision, but the problem with cramming is that it goes in your short term memory and then falls out almost immediately, so if you need to recall the same info for another exam, you have to relearn (and a disaster if you need it for A-levels). Slow revision repeated regularly at intervals puts the knowledge into long term memory.

The other risk with relying on cramming the night before is what if something happens the night before? You feel ill, or there’s a power cut, or some other thing prevents you revising? You are screwed.

My son’s GCSEs were teacher assessed thanks to covid 🙄 Whilst out of school he did bugg@r all work, his Dad and I were both still out working, so I could not enforce / supervise him daily. The work provided was poor anyway, but that’s a different story. He didn’t qualify for a school place, and school literally could not have cared less about his education. This was an “outstanding” school in Cheshire. He managed (by the skin of his teeth) 8, A-C equivalent grades.

If your son is revising daily count yourself lucky. An hour a day is better than nothing, and more than a lot of kids will be doing!

Silversaxo I'm not sure how you can accuse the school of not caring about your son's education, when you were the ones he was living with and couldn't get him to work!

They didn’t set work up for any child for 5 weeks, then it was an hour pre recorded lesson three days a week. I asked for a place for him in school given we were forced to work throughout covid (whilst the majority sat at home) but as he wasn’t “vulnerable” they wouldn’t give him a place, and even I can’t be in two places at once - saving lives and home schooling. But school wouldn’t budge. So yes, yes I can accuse the school of not giving a hoot.

@Silversaxo did school refund the parents for the lack of education. Friends DS had it sorted in a month. He had to be sat at zoom screen in uniform by 8.30 am Monday to Friday, remote lessons as per the timetable.

If your son is revising daily count yourself lucky.

Lots of people seem to think that the OP's son is doing 5 hours revision per week, even though she's said a couple of times now that this is not the case. He's doing 4 - 5 hours set homework a week and no revision at all (unless it's included as part of the homework).

If you were both keyworkers they should absolutely have given you a place, all of ours were accommodated at school. That's not right.

They didn't offer school places past Y8 at DC state school - older than that it was judged they were fine at home even if there was no-one else there for bulk of the day.

It only started to change after a very long time for individuals on case by case bases when it became clear that some GCSE students had no internet access at home or who were deemed vulnerable.

I don't find Silversaxo experiences are that unusual - it was a very mixed experiences with friends and family in other bits of UK - some schools and teachers going above and beyond and others finding it much harder to get going with the new conditions.

@Rainbowandbirdhouse

That’s because this thread has become a support group for parents of DC who are not working hard enough.

Meanwhile the DC’s school is running a competition across all year groups with prizes for DC who complete the most hours of revision in the run up to their winter exams/mocks.

Meanwhile the DC’s school is running a competition across all year groups with prizes for DC who complete the most hours of revision in the run up to their winter exams/mocks.

I agree with doing revision regularly, but somehow hate this idea. More competition and pressure...and students can technically be 'revising' for hours without getting too much done. The quality of the revision is most important imho.

The thread is fascinating.
In my DCs superselective grammar (London area) teachers have actually commented that DCs this year (Year 11, 12, and 13) seem to be working far harder and much more worried than past years about grades. The comments have been made primarily by extra curricular heads because of lack of full engagement in drama, music and sports as compared to pre Covid years. So in this school they have the problem that the DC themselves are so worried about getting top grades they are working extremely hard. Sounds like they will all do incredibly well (in their academic exams, that is). They appear worried about uni places etc and not getting jobs in a recessionary environment. They are worried about GCSE and A levels being harder and they think they need to get top grades so as not to compare too unfavourably to the Covid cohort.
So there is that side too in some schools. I have heard the same from friends who are teachers in the top selective private schools. All grade focus coming from the kids themselves. The teachers being confused why these cohorts as so incredibly academically focussed.

@Aleaiactaest

That sounds fantastic and very much like the DC’s school. The vast majority of DC working extremely hard and trying to get the best grades they are capable of.

The 4 hours a week, GCSEs don’t matter crew are going to find it incredibly difficult in future.

Tbf you don’t don’t take your job home but your is doing 42 hours schooling a week including those five hours

@PalmTrees7 - I think a hardworking DC is good provided that they also have time to see friends (whether in person/online) and do a bit of a hobby, ideally some exercise or something creative to balance out.
However, a DC driven by fear working all hours is a recipe for disaster. So some teacher friends are worried about this side too.
My own theory is that due to the internet access all kids have they are far too much in the loop on the scare stories in the media, things like Oxbridge bias against grammar schools, med school competition, recession, war etc. So for some of the brightest the motivation is fear and that really is not good for their mental health long term. They are worried about how expensive uni has become etc and really feel the burden to get into a top course of top uni.
To me life is more about working out at a key age where you real passions and talents lie and putting your mind to what you want. If it changes, that is fine but find out who you are and where you would like to go.

My ideal exam DC would be doing about 8-10 hours a week, still fit in 3-4 hours of exercise (ideally with friends) and some reading/drawing or music etc and take proper time off in the holidays to catch up with friends. Take good notes, good quality revision in a calm frame of mind. So basically calmly keeping on top of things but having a good balance. No different for adults. Healthy friendships being the most important thing.

DT’s school’s approach which we supported was four hours a week in a homework club. The school and parents - high achieving international school- supported the students through their GCSE’s and A levels. DT’s got all A’s at GCSE and A level and 1st class degrees. Students went onto study at top universities across the world.
DT’s both completed grade 8 in their instruments and played sport at a high level. I have 100% no interest in them participating in schemes to reward for how many hours of study they completed- a stupid idea imo. If your DC’s need such an excessive amount of study time I think they are on the wrong course.

@Parker231 - that sounds like an amazing school for the DC but is it private with all musical and sporting bells & whistles? And teachers who feed perfect GCSE etc notes? Amazing science lab and lots of kids willing to learn and not disruptive in class?
Because in that kind of environment it is much easier to “thrive”, have a great balance etc and still do really well with less work put in.
Not that this applies to the OP DS, but in many comps in England now kids have cover teachers for subjects like Maths/Physics etc and it can be soul destroying, including for very bright talented DC. Who would have thrived in a top independent or grammar but instead end of disengaging or working all hours of the day to plug gaps.

If DS had got all As at GCSE and A levels he would have been rejected by all the unis he applied to. As it was, he was still rejected for his top 2 picks. Uni applications have been very competitive lately.

@Lentilweaver university applications are very competitive, but not everyone 1) needs to go to a top flight uni to become a productive member of society or 2) wants to study those very competitive courses. Society doesn't run exclusively on doctors, lawyers and investment bankment, for which may we be truly thankful.

True. But most 15 year olds don't know what they want to do. That's the problem. I guess you can only move forward with what they don't want to do. That was our approach anyway. But then you can't go back easily.

It's another way in which our education system is problematic - there's no worthwhile and valued vocational pathway and people are forced to specialise early. I'm lucky in that my two both had very precise ideas of what they wanted to do and how to get there and that they were both academically inclined, but it's hard for a lot of young people.

From reading this thread there seems to be parents with unrealistic expectations of the results their DC’s will get - it’s not a failure to get a 4 or 5. A levels and Uni are not for everyone and shouldn’t be. If so much revision is needed at GCSE level, A levels are probably not appropriate and an apprenticeship or vocational path would be better for the DC.

@Parker231 I couldn't agree more. When DD1 was doing GCSEs we had a school friend of hers living with us during the week - parents forced to move over the summer before Yr11, school in new area couldn't accommodate friend's options, so we had her live with us so she could carry on her GCSEs. She got a range of 4s and 5s plus very high grades in her BTECs and a 5 in maths. She was the first in her family to pass any GCSEs at all. She worked her bacskde off for them (but also managed to have a life). University was never going to be for her.

I advise mine 10 hours a week on top of school shared between their subjects but make sure you have one day of the weekend properly off and don’t give up your hobbies. (Teacher and private tutor)

How to damn a child with low expectations.