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Original poster

GCSEs friends son wants to do more than nine school won't allow it.

96 replies

megcleary · 31/01/2014 17:52

Is there anything they can do? My children are much younger so not in that position. Advice appreciated to pass on.

OP posts:
Shootingatpigeons · 02/02/2014 12:43

By the way doctor I am very supportive of the state system but one thing I am very sceptical about is the way in which some encourage their pupils to do lots of unnecessary GCSEs and A levels. There really is a danger that students will spread themselves too thinly and it is the school that benefits from the silly numbers.

curlew · 02/02/2014 12:43

"But with 10 GCSEs you don't have to choose between specialisms. My DD is a Scientist but she did two languages, History and Geography and Resistant Materials technology at GCSE,she was more than able to demonstrate she had breadth as well as depth"

So did mine doing 9. Not sure how much extra breadth doing two languages rather that one shows!

VelvetSpoon · 02/02/2014 12:45

My son is doing 9 GCSEs, that was the maximum allowed - when I did mine (back in 1988, the first GCSE year!) we only did 8.

He is applying to selective 6th forms (one of which is in the top 5 state school 6th forms in the country, am not expecting him to get in so it's not a stealth boast!) - ALL base applications on 4 AS levels dropping to 3 A levels.

DoctorDonnaNoble · 02/02/2014 12:45

Curlew - why is it stupid if it's what the student wants to do and they can cope with the workload. It's a rarity, obviously, usually one student every two years or so. And it usually includes Maths, Further Maths, Economics and Business Studies (FM is studied in lunch time, Business Studies in one after school session a week). It works for us and our students.

Shootingatpigeons · 02/02/2014 12:45

My DDs school offers Ancient Greek, Latin, Classical Civilisation, mandarin , French, Spanish., Italian. It still won't allow a pupil to take more than 10 GCSEs.

DoctorDonnaNoble · 02/02/2014 12:46

Shooting - if our students can't cope with it, we adjust to fit them. We are not monsters. Just a very academic school.

Shootingatpigeons · 02/02/2014 12:48

curlew I was just illustrating that 10 isn't particularly restrictive. And actually the second language she decided to keep on German got her an offer of an internship in a German lab this summer, we really didn't ever anticipate it would be so useful!

curlew · 02/02/2014 12:49

It is stupid because there will be no time for doing anything else. 6th form should include sport, drama, music, debating, volunteering, learning about how to manage an independent social life.........

And it has no benefit whatsoever to the student concerned. It just means they haven't learned/the school hasn't taught them how to make difficult but intelligent choices.

DoctorDonnaNoble · 02/02/2014 12:49

Seems strange to me. My year 9s are moaning about having to drop subjects at the moment!

Shootingatpigeons · 02/02/2014 12:51

Doctor and you can be a very academic school and set sensible limits on the. Number of exams taken. The Heads at all the West London selective indies are very strict on that and you cannot accuse schools like St. Paul's of not being academic.

curlew · 02/02/2014 12:54

My dd's school is very academic too. Fortunately it also realizes that a 6th form is more than an A level machine.

Picturesinthefirelight · 02/02/2014 12:54

Ds will go to that school

At GCSE they offer the usual core subjects including separate sciences. French German Spanish & Latin, music, art, DT, history geography RS Art Home Ec Textiles, PE

At a level there is also Govt & Politics, economics & business studies

Picturesinthefirelight · 02/02/2014 12:55

9-10 is plenty

Shootingatpigeons · 02/02/2014 12:56

Your Year 9s are only moaning because they think it is an arms race. I have seen parents post on here accordingly. They have been misled into thinking more is better rather than less is more and enables pupils to focus on doing well in the number of subjects that actually matter and have time for all the other activities that will broaden their minds and give them life skills as curlew highlighted.

Ghostsdonttalk · 02/02/2014 12:57

Cardiff and Queens in Belfast consider only your top 9 for Medicine. Not sure about other subjects. They must be taken in same year.

I live in Northern Ireland and things are very different now to a few years back when lots of schools would have done Maths and English language at end of 4th year ( year 10 in England I think) and then further maths and English literature the next allowing more than nine.

If you wish to apply to University in the Irish republic you need a foreigh language GCSE. This is a good way of extdnding your options as you can have UCAS offers and Irish offers.

DoctorDonnaNoble · 02/02/2014 12:58

I'm going to withdraw now as I'm likely to start outing myself if I continue. My school has a different approach and we're very successful. It's right for our students; but not for everyone.

Jux · 02/02/2014 13:16

Well, dd is doing 13. It's ridiculous. I asked the school if she could drop some - at least one - they said no. She's OK, but Y10 is proving to be an absolute killer year for her. I expect Y11 will be worse.

Trouble is, she wants to do them all (except maths!), especially the two which only started this year and which therefore entail a huuuuuge amount of work.

LauraBridges · 02/02/2014 13:31

The better private schools which are very academic seek to limit the numbers children do but more likely to 10 or 11, so they have more time for hobbies etc. I think that is very wise. There are too many state schools trying to push up their exam rankings with loads of GCSEs which just burden pupils.

I think mine are doing english lit, eng lang, French, 3 sciences, geog, history, maths and music - which is 10 (and 10 or 11 is not uncommon). I think 11 is too many and mine might do 9 if they drop down to 2 sciences. I did 8 with a 9th in the sixth form.

VelvetSpoon · 02/02/2014 13:58

DS is doing English lit and lang, maths, physics, chemistry, biology, history, French and RS.

I did English lit and lang, maths, physics, history, economics, french and drama - and despite only doing 8 still managed to get a place at Cambridge to study law!

EvilTwins · 02/02/2014 16:47

Posters claiming that some state schools try to push themselves up the rankings with doing more GCSEs need to stop and think. We are judged on a number of ways, one of which is the number of students getting 5 GCSEs at grades A-C, another is 5 GCSEs at A-C including English & Maths. Another is the number of students achieving 8 GCSEs at A-C, another looks at the number gaining 8,5 and then 1 GCSE at A-G, and then finally there's the number achieving EBacc. The published league tables don't have a spot for unnecessarily high numbers of GCSEs taken, and the average point scores only take into account the top 8 grades for each student.

Muddiboots · 02/02/2014 17:02

mine go to an indie with fantastic league table and Uni admissions results. A few years ago new headmaster cut length of the school day and dropped GCSE max to nine (though top sets do maths a year early then furthur maths and can do latin and greek in one timetable slot). Since then they have rocketed up the tables and oxbridge admissions have gone up year on year, so something must be working.
DS1 did 6 a levels and his uni offers were based on three of his choice (though a few unis ruled out one of them being drama), if that helps.

Shootingatpigeons · 02/02/2014 17:24

Evil Twins And they don't want to publish details of pupils getting 15 GCSEs on their websites and other publicity?

It really is where the private sector and state schools diverge. Is it not possible that it really is not in the pupil's best interest if so many private school Heads are so adamant about limiting the number of exams sat, often in the face of parents who want it to be an arms race? In both my DDs years there were parents trying to challenge the policy and the Head would have none of it.

Why do you think that so many state schools are allowing pupils to take these crazy numbers of exams? So far no one has come up with a robust child centred defence.

banania19 · 02/02/2014 17:30

My dd is at indie single sex best results in county

They recommend no more than 10 or 11

She is English x2, rs, triple science, french, maths, history, art and maybe sports studies

They send many to oxbridge

I had 8 o levels, an ao level and 3 a levels and went to Cambridge

banania19 · 02/02/2014 17:35

7 a levels and 15 gcses Shock Shock

What a waste of time

How can you ever be in a play/sports team/have a meaningful hobby /a life?!

banania19 · 02/02/2014 17:37

I am sorry but the poster who said her dd needed 5 a levels for natsci is wrong

2 went last year and both had 3 a*