My DD failed her GCSE miserably

[bassmonsteruk]

Hi all,

My DD didn't get a single pass in her GCSE exams. She got all 3s which caught us off guard and now we're not sure which way to turn. She's not academic but she got 5 when doing past papers in maths, English and science. She's had private tuition for all 3 subjects for the past year and a half. Her school does not allow resits.

Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

Thank you.

The outdated thinking around A levels is amazing. Level 3, 540 hour BTEC qualifications attract the same UCAS points as 3 A levels. They are comparable, they simply tap into different skills. A levels are no longer the gold standard. They are a good way of assessing those who rote learn and have an ability to apply some critical thinking (in the main). Curriculum 2000 damaged them and they have never really recovered. BTECs are different, not lesser. OP, please talk to your local FE college. It will be a disappointment for her if they were her plans, but she needs to accept it’s not to be. She may well be capable and just didn’t perform, but there are L2 and then L3 options to get her to her where she intended the A levels to take her. Good luck.

Research apprenticeships, accounting/office/book keeping courses, small business front of house like wineries/tourism - all the while DD studies one subject (English, Maths)

In another three years look into her course options.

Reassure her that it’s fine. And find out what she does like. Nothing wrong with taking some time out to figure that out.

Why 3 years time?
She needs something for this September.
In 3 years time she could be going into a job.

Hi, this happened to me, apart from an A in art. I had all E grades. It was the end of the world at the time. My grandma had just died and I had adhd that wouldn’t be diagnosed for 25 more years.

After the initial shock I decided to resist GCSEs. I’m not going to lie, it was tough going as all my friends were on a levels but I decided I really had to knuckle down. After a year I passed all my GCSEs. Some with A grades!

I decided to do A levels it felt weird being the oldest. I passed my A levels and I hadn’t really taken uni into that much consideration. I applied through clearing and i now have a HND and a BA degree.

Tell her my story, even though today might feel like the shittest day in her life, it doesn’t have to define her xxx

I had the same experience and resat GCSEs and then went on to do a levels and a degree.

@Clearoutthecrap being able to retain information for exam purposes does not necessarily mean you are bright.
Being academic is completely different to being bright.
Someone that knows what their strengths are and plays to them to make a living in a role they enjoy is far brighter than someone who studies, passes academic exams to get a job they hate

"How can he be incredibly bright but not academic?" @Clearoutthecrap

Believe me, and I've met quite a few, some academics can be very dull.

Richard Branson anyone???! Loads of people are smart but not academic

This was my daughter a few years ago. She did terribly.
First speak to the sixth form and see what advice they have. Some sixth forms and colleges will still take them with lower grades.

My daughters sixth form said no so she went to the local college at a lower level course than she wanted but it got her in. She re took her Maths and English alongside the course and ended up wirh distinctions in the subject. She did an extra two years at college to get where she wanted to be.

She is about to enter her third year at uni and is working in the field she wants.

It is not the end of the World that it feels like

Are they wise? work in Further Education. I would totally agree with this
poster and would not advise Alevels. She’d be totally overwhelmed - poor girl. I’d advise a L1 or 2 in a subject she is interested in while resitting her Maths and English.

@Clearoutthecrap Thats a bit of a dumb question.
Do you you not know people who are whip smart, interesting, clever and engaging but don’t don’t have a string of qualifications to their name? I do.

And Jamie Oliver

Very well said and explained . My Ds 20 is incredibly bright , very well informed on so many subjects ( through you tube etc ) . Dislikes reading due to dyslexia. He’d rather listen/ watch. He also has ASD and is comfortably anti-social. He got 2 GCSEs. He has no interest in academia whatsoever and it’s impossible and unfair to hammer that beautifully square peg into a round hole . They all find their own level .
My dd’s GCSE results at 16 in certain subjects initially upset her, as she couldn’t follow her intended path but they sent her down a different route and has excelled in her chosen career.
Keep positive ! Tomorrow will be brighter ❤️xxx

My friends DD failed her GCSEs, took a job in a basic pub chain and now, at 28, she is an area manager. Meanwhile I know many kids who got good degrees who have never quite found their niche and are working minimum wage roles.

It's not all about grades, confidence, self belief, determination, tenacity, dedication and good communication skills all count.

I know a lovely young girl who got similar results. She went on to do Functional Skills at a local college and they got her a placement in a suitable job.

She might be able to take a BTEC (might have changed to T-level?) which is one subject and they’ll give her extra English and maths lessons alongside it then resit the exams.

A-levels will be far too much for her at this stage.

Lots of people can be very bright but not academic. Some of the most successful and wealthy entrepreneurs don't have a qualification to their name

You are making yourself sound incredibly thick and narrow minded

Yes I agree with this. my own dd is very academic and acheives amazing grades in every exam she sits but omg does she often lack common sense! And she is completely useless at anything practical.
Amazing grades mean nothing if you lack common sense intelligence and practical skills needed to get you through life.

Maybe not an essay writer or interested in dissecting Victorian novels but does really well in STEM or art or is a fantastic baker or really understands how engines work?

Agree. It's pretty ignorant too.

It’s not the end of the world. I messed up first time. For context it’s was my 5th form and it was O levels/CSEs. I just stayed on a year, buckled down, passed, then went on as normal. In the long term it’s not a big deal.

Btw my dad was bright but poorly educated so not academic. He earned far more as a builder than I did as a nurse.

my husband is bright but I think undiagnosed dyslexic (too old for it to be picked up at school) so not academic.

Just to say, Oprah was very academic; she saw education as her way out of poverty. I remember her saying that she was offered a media job while she was still at college and she was going to refuse it so she could finish her course. Then her tutor pointed out to her that the whole point of doing the course was to get the kind of job that she was already being offered… which is when she decided to drop out.

Wishing your daughter the best OP. Being academic isn't any better or worse than any other talent. Society places too much emphasis on it. I honestly don't think it matters whether you're academic or not. What matters is being kind & compassionate 😊
To me, academic ability is just a variation. Some people have brown eyes, some have blue or green or hazel etc. All equally beautiful, just different. Some people are academic, some practical, some creative, some athletic etc. None of those things are better or worse than any other. Just glorious variation.
I'd also like to say that being academic can be fluid in a person's life. I'm a prime example - at primary school I was very high achieving academically, in the top 5%. I then went to a hideous, totally unsuitable senior school, and was miserable, and severely bullied. I developed severe mental health issues, but at a time there wasn't the same support as now. I couldn't concentrate at all; and within a few weeks I was pretty much bottom of the class 😔 the bullying got worse, and I was constantly told I was stupid, so my self-esteem crashed, and it got to the point I couldn't concentrate or learn as I was so unhappy. I actually checked out mentally I think, and wasn't really there iyswim.
I eventually left (should have happened far earlier) and went to another, more suitable school. Within a few months of being nurtured and receiving kindness I recovered a bit, and was in the top set for English. Quickly considered academic (in some subjects) again, and I don't think they'd have believed I'd been considered completely stupid before.
I never totally met my potential though, and just got average GCSE results.
Because of my experience, I know intelligence is complex and hard to measure. So many different kinds too. Everyone is clever in a way. Some highly academic people lack common sense. But, that's fine too. Takes all sorts to make up the world. As long as you treat others with respect and kindness, and contribute to society, you're doing well.
I'm sure your daughter will be just fine. Nobody asks you your GCSE results once you've moved onto the next stage. My own GCSE results are completely irrelevant to me now.
Take care both of you.