GCSE reduced subjects advice needed

[Arizona29]

I started a different thread about this yesterday but am starting a new one here because I've got a new question and I know many readers never read OP updates on a thread!
DS year 9 had been put onto a GCSE pathway for additional support.
He has no SEN diagnosed.
He has never had any intervention classes at school.
School have never made me aware at any point since year 7 that they feel DS needs additional support.
I have not received any communication whatsoever about him being put on to an additional support GCSE pathway. It has been like a bolt out of the blue and I only found out on Monday.
Parents evening last week made no mention of it.
So I spoke to a member of staff about it today.
It is not a mistake, as suggested by posters on my other thread.
The member of staff has told me the following:
That DS has been put on a pathway for year 10 & 11 where he will study
Maths
English
Science
1 humanity OR 1 language (his choice but only 1 of these)
2 practical based subjects of his choice such as DT, art, music, cookery, dance, photography, etc.
3 extra Maths intervention sessions a fortnight
3 extra English intervention sessions a fortnight
He cannot choose 2 humanities.
He cannot choose 1 humanity & 1 language.
He cannot choose 2 humanities & 1 language.
it is 1 humanity only.
He is only 1 of 16 students who has been put on this pathway out of the whole of year 9.
The 'standard' Ebacc pathway is
English, maths, science, 1 humanity, 1 language, then 2 further options which can include a second humanity, even a third one, but DS had not been given this pathway as an option.
I was confused when I posted on my other thread yesterday, and I remain confused.
I still don't understand how DS has been put on this additional support pathway with no communication whatsoever about any learning delay or concerns whatsoever from school in the 2.5 years he's been there.
I asked this question directly today, and it wasn't answered. It was glossed over.
DS is really upset.
A. He doesn't want to do only 1 humanity and no language. He feels he's had all his choices removed from him.
B. He says nobody at school has talked to him about this.
C. He feels excluded from the standard pathway that all his friends are doing.
D. He is asking me do his school think he's stupid and incapable
E. He fears stigma about this amongst his peers, and feels he is going to get comments and 'jokes' about not being able to do what everyone else is doing.
He has never had a conversation with, or any input from, the SenCo.
I have never had a conversation with the SenCo about DS.
The SenCo has never contacted me about DS to discuss him.
Again, he has no SEN.
So.
My questions to people here who have knowledge and experience:

1. What the hell is going on here?
2. Can they enforce this? Does DS have any choice or any say in the matter??
3. What right do school have to remove his choice to do 2 humanities, or 1 humanity + 1 language? Without any prior conversation with him or with me?
4. AIBU to feel they are 'dumbing down' his options?
5. Why does DS have to choose 2 options from a list of practical subjects? This isn't the pathway he wants to follow - cookery, or DT, or dance, or drama, etc. But he's now got to pick 2 of these subjects.

The list of the 2 extra choices on the standard Ebacc pathway contains additional academic choices.
Whereas the list of 2 extra choices on the additional support pathway DS has been placed on contains no academic choice whatsoever.
If he only does Maths, English, Science + 1 humanity, plus 2 practical non academic subjects, is this going to exclude him from doing A levels and a degree??
DS most definitely wants a career that will require A levels and degree. Will this additional needs pathway block him from going on to do A levels & degree because he won't have enough GCSE subjects?
DS is an intelligent boy. I can't believe the school are restricting his GCSE choices like this and putting him on this pathway, having never once put him into any additional intervention measures since starting in year 7.
His year 9 assessment scores were all below the year group average. Not way below. But they were below. His results do not reflect his intelligence or capability. He said he knew all the answers but didn't get to complete the assessments as ran out of time. So the unanswered questions that he hadn't got to pulled his total score down, even though all the questions he did answer were correct.
Basically I feel like I've got an intelligent boy who hasn't performed well in the year 9 assessments and as a result has been placed on an intervention GCSE pathway that enforces a reduced number of GCSEs and being forced to take 2 practical subjects instead, yet with no consent from or discussion with DS or myself about this.
I have tried really hard to speak to the SenCo since Monday when I found this out, but I am not receiving any replies to the emails I have sent her requesting for her to contact me to discuss this. I've been told this has all been based on her recommendation, yet she's never even had a conversation with me or with DS.
I am really worried aboug the impact this will have on DS's options, choices, future success and I'm worried about this affecting his self esteem.
Only 16 kids out of an entire huge year 9 cohort have been assessed as unable to do the Ebacc route and my intelligent DS is one of them? He's in the bottom 10% of kids who isn't allowed to do the standard Ebacc pathway that the other 90% of kids are following and yet he has no SEN and has never been given additional interventions at school and who is really bright?
From what I know of his blunt and highly insensitive and never-endingly mocking peers, he is not wrong when he says he is going to get put downs and negative comments from peers about this.
He has such hopes for his future career and these restricted and limited GCSEs are going to block that, because his career hopes require A levels & degree.
Help😞

@OhDear111im not sure dictate is the right word, but DD was given options in Y9 which she chose and started to study for - and enjoy. She was then being told she had to drop 2 of them (history and french, business she could keep), in favour of additional maths and English. I pushed back given that a lot of work had already been done in the option subjects and that identifying problems in 30% of the students in maths and English so late in the day wasn’t great. For my daughter I believe it was the right decision to go against the school, given she passed 6 GCSEs with good grades. But that was knowing she was going to take a vocational course at college. I wouldn’t advise it for a student who is wanting to take the traditional a-level route.

@Carycach4it is indeed a cautionary tale. My daughter did really well in her other subjects, but these are the two that follow you around. But it’s also worked out in the sense that she’s at college full time, so not sat about (she works on a Saturday. She does 3 days hairdressing, 2 days doing maths and English. A lot of the things she didn’t “get” in maths she now can and I’m confident in a pass this time. English she was just unlucky by one mark, and it’s clear from her second attempt she just couldn’t be arsed. But she’s now got a tutor and he reckons she can easily get a 7 in English if she applies herself, so that’s all I can hope for.

The system seems so broken that they decide part way through year 9 what choices are going to be open to a child over the next few years! children change so much at that age.

@Isthisit22 I’ve asked that repeatedly. Of course he might not have taken them.

@thinkofsomethingdifferent Yes, your discussion with school was very late but she still only got 6 GCSEs. Your school was clearly pants at assessment! Clearly this is a discussion for y9. They must know who their lower group are! Plus what were her sats? Why do you think the OPs DS is capable of A levels? Your DD probably could not have managed them, so why can this DS? 5/6 grades are no use for A levies.

@OhDear1116 GCSEs is pretty decent for our area. I was pleased she got 6 really good grades and it was clear she put the effort into the subjects she loved. Technically science is a double subject so you could say she got 7. I don’t know the OPs son. I’m not sure if he’s capable at A-levels or not, my advice was to listen to the school and if he is wanting to do traditional a-levels then his focus may need to shift to maths and English.
And to add my daughter’s school has failed its last two OFSTED inspections. I still have another daughter there in year 9 who is (by all accounts) thriving. She’s always been more academic than her sibling. But given what happened to her sister, I’ll be keeping a closer eye on things.

You can take A-levels with 5s and 6s at GCSE, depending on the school/college's entry requirements for year 12 (it's obviously a good idea to know what those are).

If she took combined science triology and got a grade like 6-6 or 5-6 along with five other GCSE grades of 4+, then yes, she got seven GCSE L2 passes. Absolutely. Nothing about this is "technically" (which kind of implies "not really").

@clarynot that I should justify but she got History, French, Science, health and social care, business studies and RE. She failed maths and English language and English Literature. If we’re going into technicalities, health and social care and business weren’t even GCSEs they were Btecs I believe.

Yeh not asking you to justify, the opposite if anything. Science is two GCSEs is all I am saying.

Health & social and business can be taken as GCSE or Btec but if the latter, they are still L2 quals, so just as valid.

I agree with this. Perhaps school havent been informing you but I cant believe you had no idea of the pathways its on every school website generally. Or you had no idea throughout his sats exams of results, you suspect dyslexia but have never thought about assessment? It all seems like you expect the school to have done everything. Being in the pathway isnt always school informing you of issues because they may well be assuming should be aware of this.

SENDIASS are really helpful. I would contact them already tomorrow and not wait.

The real issue is the lack of communication from the school. You need a face to face meeting with senco and head of his year group (might be called something else on his school). They need to explain his difficulties and why they had never told you.

I’ve know my DS struggled with aspects of school work and was raising issues since year 1. He had a dyslexia screener in year 8 which showed he likely was but schools don’t diagnose. I paid for a private assessment, only way to get one, and he does have dyslexia. He’s a brilliant reader but doesn’t process all the information. When reading a paragraph of instructions, he’ll only do part of the task and think he’s finished. He has very poor handwriting, despite years of extra practice, so mostly uses a laptop. Poor working memory but excellent long-term memory. He should get longer for tests but I’m not sure if that is happening. He’s now year 9 and finally seeing an educational psychologist at school.

Unfortunately you do have to be a pushy parent. My son could scrape by but with right support and adjustments he could do so much better. Not all his teachers get that. Even getting lined paper for maths instead of blank paper has been a drama. You would think he was the 1st child with dyslexia.

@Needlenardlenoo Bums on seats schools will take dc with 5/6 grades to get the money. It’s utterly wrong and their A level grades won’t be great. It’s poor advice to say a grade 5 dc is an A level candidate.

That's a strong view. Some schools are inclusive and have high achievers and less high achievers on the same courses. It means the grade spread will be wider. It doesn't mean the A*/A percentage can't be decent.

Students are still developing academically at 16 (15 when they pick the subjects). Some really excel once they can drop all the GCSEs they didn't have so much interest in.

There are exceptions of course and entry requirements for e.g. Maths and the sciences are there for a reason.

7 GCSE (or rails ent - BTECs are just as good) and then 🤞🏻 getting maths and English this summer bring her up to the full set of 9. Well done her, this is a good set of level 2 results.

@Kepler22Bit is, but I thought it was worth flagging the options for OP. It’s a difficult one as perhaps if my daughter had dropped her options in favour of maths and English, she might have passed. But given she failed again in November after 2 months of extra tuition, I’m not so sure. So I’m pleased she got the others under her belt as something to show for her time at school.

@Needlenardlenoo it’s pretty well known that a 5 or even 6 at GCSE can be a real stretch to A levels and what do dc do if they fail? It’s better, probably, to do a BTec with maybe one A level. It’s not in anyone’s interest to “fail” A levels. Inclusivity has nothing to do with it. It’s about realistic, sensible, advice.

Depends what you mean by "fail" I guess - you don't mean "get a U", presumably.

Of course there's a relationship, on an average, between GCSE scores and A-level outcomes, but data isn't destiny and students mature (and some high fliers peak too soon and/or overload themselves).

Interest in a subject is really important, especially if you hope to continue with it at university. I'd always advise students to do subjects that truly interest them. It's about learning something, as well as a narrow focus on top grades at all costs.

Most of my students haven't even taken the subject at GCSE!

I actually got 3 As myself back in the pre grade inflation days, but I learnt the most from the A-level I got a C in.

@NeedlenardlenooSome dc don’t have great enthusiasm for any subject. Yes, they might find a new one but if they requires essays and English is a 4/5 it’s not going to be easy. A grade below C starts to give problems. Yes, some dc do get a U!

Yes I know this, I have taught thousands of sixth formers. Increasingly over the years there are fewer with the right skills for A-level and fewer with enthusiasm for that kind of academic study full stop! But government policies to send half of each cohort to university and downgrade and defund alternatives are not their fault.

To get back to the OP, her son does sound like he has some academic interest at least, but has run into issues with the national obssession the educational establishment has with the English & Maths "strong pass". Hopefully the OP can get some clarity next week.

In most countries, to access higher education, kids have to continue with study of maths and main language until end of secondary education. Skills in maths/main language are prerequisites to access of higher education. Strong pass in those at GCSE level is already a compromise.

Yes, it makes sense academically, but it's a fact that a significant proportion of English DC don't reach those levels at 16 (disproportionately ones from certain socioeconomic and ethnic groups) and they've got to do SOMETHING from 16 to 18.

I suppose on the plus side, although we're international outliers with our public exams at 16, at least we have rigorous data on it.

@Needlenardlenoo You do know that it’s “only” around 37% of school leavers who go to university don’t you? It’s never got near 50.% so that’s a total red herring. We are nearer to having 50.% with a HE qualification in the workforce but we also need to understand that HE doesn’t have to be a degree. Schools need to be far more clued up about what route is best for dc and not pursue A levels when the likely result is a low grade. Success in a more suitable exam is a better way to get into work. Yes, they need to do something, but there are vocational qualifications.

DC need much more guidance on how to build a cv too. We need to recognise volunteering far more and persuade dc to do it. They need more than study. I’m sure many pupils are not sure of what they went to do, and Saturday jobs have dried up. Msny only gets job because of who they know these days. Schools need to look at how dc get a better cv and advise accordingly,

I think we are fully in agreement @OhDear111.

Successive governments have certainly behaved like 50% was reasonable! But A-levels were never designed as a mass qualification. I find a surprising number of students don't know what the A stands for.

I have two dyslexic DS's and one was late to read, the other not but both are diagnosed and have extra time in exams awarded.