GCSE Options Problem.... Choices Blocked!

[IJustWantAUserNameThatDoesntExistAlready]

Hi there, looking for advice from anyone who may be in a similar position with a bit more knowledge. My first post here, so apologies for any presentation errors...
My son is about to select GCSE options. He has the core, plus 3 optional.
Core is English Lang / Lit, Math, Combined Science and MFL (French). All good so far.
For his options, he needs to select one from each of the following blocks:
Block 1: Geography, History
Block 2: RE, Sociology
Block 3: Triple Science, Art, Geography (only if History chosen as Block 1), Computing... plus a bunch of vocational stuff.

Here's the problem. He's academic, and is determined (since he was 4) to make a career in the historical sciences (details don't matter). As a result, he wants to take Geography, History and Triple Science. All 3 would be very beneficial to him, and allow him to select the A-levels appropriate to progress into a degree in the appropriate area.
But because of the structure of the options, he can't. He has to drop one of these in favour of RE / Sociology, both of which are utterly useless to him (I'm not knocking them as subjects - I personally took RE to A-Level - but they're not suitable for his purposes).

Does anyone have any experience in how to approach the school to try and get this limitation changed? I'm quite happy to play softball or hardball with them to get the options he wants. Or does he just have to do a subject that is a waste of time for him, and get whichever of the preferred subjects we can't get through school privately (he already has private tutoring, I'm not bothered about the cost, but the additional schooling on top of what he already does might be too much?) If I say to the school "fine - force him to do a subject he doesn't want to do that will be a waste of time for all concerned, but don't be surprised if this straight-A student lands an F and brings down your school when he could get an A in his useful subject" - will this bounce back on him?

So frustrated that we're being blocked from GCSE options that he wants that could hinder him through the rest of his education!
Grateful for any advice...

Posts like this show why it is important to inspect GCSE options when applying for secondary schools (although things can still change between applying and making GCSE choices)

Those block 2 choices are crap and a combination of triple science, history and geography is academically strong and well rounded and should be available for high achieving kids.

Yes, specifically in the areas of evolution, fossil records etc - which is the specific area he's wanting to focus on for his intended career pathway. Apparently this element is covered in Triple Science.

Double science is normally all that is required to sit A levels in Science. Especially if you get a high grade and do well in maths. It can be a little bit of a stretch compared to going from triple science, but its perfectly doable.

I think you need to make an appointment with the Head of Science and hear for yourself the difference between Combined and Triple Science and who will be teaching what etc. If you are concerned about them being “light on Biology teachers” then you need to raise that, especially if your son wants to do Biology A-level (presumably at this same school?)

The reality is the sciences are equally weighted and the school should be treating it this way, regardless of whether a biology specialist is teaching them. If schools just didn’t focus on the curriculum of subjects where they didn’t have specialists then there wouldn’t be much maths teaching going on !

I would also speak with the Head of Year and raise your concerns about the lack of options in band two. I’m sure you are not the only ones with this issue. Not being able to do music and drama must be a big deal for lots of students too.

Is this a state school? Independent?

Can be difficult being key, and it is possible at the OP’s school just not in the combination that he and his ds would like.

OP hopefully you can find a suitable resolution for you all, it is frustrating that block 2 only has only those options available.

Combined science for both my dc involved all three subjects with just the final mark being combined as an average producing 2 GCSE’s not 3. It sounds like your head of year needs to clarify what can and can’t be achieved. Good Luck

The re or sociology is the "compulsory re slot"

I'm surprised that he doesn't get more options, both mine did 11 GCSEs (2x English, maths, triple science, French, history/geography, music/pe, re, German/food tech and it was not overly taxing work load wise.

Maths is the one he would drop if 4 was too much. He's good at it, he enjoys it, but that would be his "bonus option if available". Geography and biology are essentials for palaeontology, Geography and history for archaeology, so those are the 3 he wants to focus on.

Not "small", but surburban. About 3,000 pupils I believe.

Is he at a church school? I know our closest catholic school makes everyone study RE. It's a bit rubbish, and as someone with kids at a large secondary who have a free choice I'd not be happy at all. Neither of mine would have been able to do their choices at your school.

FWIW I agree with him that he should study triple. If he doesn't do triple then history, geography and RE/sociology is far too humanities heavy for GCSE IMHO. I'd check the requirements for palaeontology, does it need one or two science A levels to study it? Biology plus geography would be considered two sciences for these purposes which might push him towards geography. Then I think RE is the better option than sociology which is perceived as a softer subject.

It's worth complaining to school if only so they realise how restrictive their choices are, looks like they want everyone to do the English Baccalaureate which is fair enough but why not put more options opposite RE/sociology? And what do the less academic kids do?

It does sound like a frustratingly inflexible set of blocks, although there will always be limitations somewhere when you're dealing with GCSE students who take a huge number of subjects and all need to have a completely full timetable.

In your shoes I would:

1. Organise a meeting with the school and explain the problem. Many schools don't allocate extra lesson time for those doing triple science over those doing double science, they just cover more content, more quickly, so yours is a bit unusual in that regard. But accept that they may not be able to change the blocks unless a lot of kids are in the same boat.
2. Look at other schools locally - History/Geography/Triple Science is a fairly common combination so I'd be amazed if you couldn't find somewhere else where your DS could study all three options.
3. Be prepared to compromise - as others have said, studying combined science rather than triple science isn't the end of the world if your DS only wants to do 1 science at A level. Combined science will cover 80% of the same content as the three individual sciences, and anything not covered will be able to be picked up quite quickly at the start of the A level biology course.
4. If you and your DS aren't prepared to compromise, look at doing an extra GCSE outside of school with a tutor. But it would be a lot of extra work, and might well impact on grades in all subjects because your DS will be spread more thinly. Getting a tutor for the extra science content could be an option if the school would agree for him to be entered for triple science whilst only studying combined science in school, but they may well not.

Good luck! It's frustrating when these road blocks occur (still having flashbacks to last summers GCSE results day when we were suddenly told DD wouldn't be able to take both English Lit and History A levels because of timetable issues) but it usually works out in the end...

It was a while ago now…this scenario happened to me, can’t remember what I was forced to take, but I couldn’t fit music into the available options. School allowed me to do an extra GSCE which I had an additional lesson for every Monday after school. Yours may not be able to provide tuition, but if you’re happy to pay for that element they can and should enter him for the exam.

3,000 is NOT a small school.
ds did have to do compulsory RE.
It was their 10th GCSE on top of 4 options and the core.
Their school is about 1,000 which includes sixth form.

If this was a core subject, I would agree. But it's not, it's one of the 3 that he can pick as additional, that he's supposed to have control over. It comes after 6 months of the school constantly telling the kids how careful they need to be with their options selections, how much thought they need to put into it, how serious this is. And when a kid does that, they reply with effectively a "nope. lol."

Besides, he gets that lesson you talk about in plenty of other ways. He's free to explore his interests and passions, but he knows damn well he has to do his chores first. He gets generous allowance - as long as his grades stay good. He gets martial arts and guitar lessons - but not if his homework isn't done. He knows all about "if you don't eat your meat, you don't get any pudding"!

Blimey OP 3000 students!@ That's a huge school!

Seriously, everyone has to opt for either sociology or RE?

I was assuming it was a small (private) academic grammar but 3000 students???

OK you need to disabuse yourself of this nonsense wrt double science - it's equally weighted and it's fine to take A level biology with double.

Probs would be easier to mug up the extra bio content outside school than take the whole of history GCSE.

I am amazed at the blocks tho.

3000 pupils is huge! Average secondary school numbers are around 950/960 so I can imagine the logistical nightmare of trying to timetable options.

I am going to address your Combined Science/Triple Science issue. At my children's state secondary they offer combined science for everyone but if you excel then they do an accelerated triple not offered as an option. As my son was affected by lockdown in year 9 it meant this accelerated triple didn't happen in year 9 like it is supposed to.

Instead they accelerated the learning in year 10 and by May half term had finished all of the combined GCSE content, biology, chemistry and physics in 1 year rather than 2. They contacted the parents of the students who would benefit from triple science and Ds was one of them. That meant for the other students they went back over combined in year 11 whereas my son and 29 others in his side of the year did the extra triple content over year 11 in their timetabled "combined" science lessons plus an hour after school each week which was normal for revision sessions anyway. They also were all put in forms to support their GCSEs in year 11 so my son was with a biology teacher and every morning they did 20 minutes or so of triple science content plus back over the topics they covered in combined science. Ds would have got 9,9 for combined and got 9, 9, 8 for triple.

What I am trying to say is that it is entirely possible to do triple content in your own time on top of the combined elements. Ds did 10 GCSEs. I will say that the content is heavy for History, I assume Geography is a heavy topic too. Whilst your son may enjoy learning about History and Geography this doesn't have to be in school and for GCSE. Look ahead to A levels to see what the school wants for those A level subjects.

I still think he should pick geog, sociology or RE and triple tho and pick up history A level afterwards.

Highly unlikely that uni courses specify with three A levels tbh. Do they all ask for history for the course he fancies?

This. It will be down to timetabling. They will not be able to out on classes at different times. It affected me in the 90’s so the school did put on a class of four of us for history gcse. Chances of anyone being able to timetable that these days with school budgets are slim.

Sorry which three A levels not with!

I am still amazed that such a big school cannot be more flexible. It’s not as tho they will struggle to fill a history class with 500 pupils in a year.

Maths is the one he would drop if 4 was too much. He's good at it, he enjoys it, but that would be his "bonus option if available". Geography and biology are essentials for palaeontology, Geography and history for archaeology, so those are the 3 he wants to focus on.

That isn't the case though - you've assumed. Check some uni websites. And don't drop Maths!

I'd go for History Geography and Combined Science. Then he gets the skills of all 3. The missed biology content can easily be picked up in the summer post y11 if desired. Easier than trying to do a GCSE independently.

GCSEs are meant to be general . As long as he keeps his options open for his expected A levels, it doesn't matter too much. All schools have some restrictions, at my DD's school in her year if you were doing triple science you had to do an MFL. Especially now with funding/teacher shortages, schools need to be careful they aren't paying a load of teachers to teach to just 10 in a class.

i feel more for the less academic kids apparently having to do an MFL AND Hist/Geog AND RE/Sociology.

Just ask. If he is really good at both, plus all sciences, they will likely they him do both Geography and History and triple sciences and try and timetable it.

Why is a geography A level essential for paleontology or archaeology? To me chemistry would be better to give more practical science method, and leave the door open in case he decides to study geology and then specialise in paleontology.

But anyway, not being able to do 3 sciences, history and geography is ridiculous.

Or does he just have to do a subject that is a waste of time for him

If this is your attitude to it, it will be his. And it's a poor (and incorrect) way of thinking.

They're GCSEs not final degree subjects. NONE of them will be a waste of time. They'll increase his breadth of knowledge and help instill and cement important skills - reading, writing, research, summarising etc. Expanding the brain basically.

As someone who did RE to A Level you should surely know this? Unless you're a minister then I highly doubt you're using the content of that RE A Level very often at all - but the skills you learned would have been likely to stick far far longer.

In your sons circumstances I'd just do Double Science because lack of Triple won't hold him back and it's not then the complete dropping of a subject.

But honestly, at GCSE level you can't really go wrong anyway. No need for such stress and drama.

Such a large school will have more teachers than a smaller school and the timetabling is done using specialist software so much easier than it was back in the day (the deputy head in my school had an enormous chart on one wall of his office with the whole school timetable on it and he worked it out empirically). So it should be easier to offer more options, they are choosing to be restrictive which means they are likely to not budge when the OP complains.