Btec or AS for dc with health/attendance issues

[Runningtokeepstill]

My ds, Yr 11, was hoping to do 3 AS's at college next year but his health issues are causing problems again and he's currently off sick using online education resources.

He was aiming for Maths, Computing and IT all at AS this year and hopefully continuing to A2 next but it has been suggested that an IT (Business) Btec extended diploma might be a good option. There isn't much difference in the grades he needs (can drop from a B to a C in Maths for Btec but otherwise C grades fine). AS courses run over 5 days with free periods as well as lessons. Btec run as 3 full days and 2 days private study - so he could be at home then. However, Btec is coursework based so would this be difficult/impossible to do if he had a bad flare up and was off for weeks/months? Obviously he'd find it hard with flare ups if he was studying AS but he could study at home. I'm not sure how much of the Btec coursework actually has to be done in college to "count".

sashh your school sounds the same as mine, except obvious the staff have less of a work load, for what ever reason. We are in 7-7 as standard, but there is absolutly no wriggle room in that to reschedule and reschedule and reschedule. Once is all you get, and even then, as I am sure you know, to do it in your own time, the teacher has to put themselves legally in the wrong.

Nothing you say addresses any of the issues realistically. i very much doubt you have any real experience of running this course.

Charis
It is NOT a school, as I said several times it is an FE college. No we do not have less of a work load, a normal day is teaching 9-5, that's right we teach classes after 3.30pm.

We also understand our legal duties to students, you worryingly don't.

You are right I have not run BTEC Level 3 IT, I have run BTEC level 3 in other subjects and I have also run BTEC HND Computing.

No a teacher does not have to put themselves legally in the wrong, don't be an idiot.

sashh, there is no difference whether it is a school or a college, obviously, we teach way past 3.30 too, like I said, my day is basically 7-7, and you clearly have NO IDEA what you are talking about legally, which is very dangerous, for your students and staff, but most of all for you, if your employer ever takes any form f legal action against you, as I have seen happen all to often.

Why "that's right we teach classes after 3.30". Who do you imagine doesn't We were legally classed as a school, we became an academy, we are now an FE college, there is only one difference, ofsted uses different tick sheet. No difference what so ever for staff or students.

I'm sorry, but you don't know what you are talking about. It is exceptionally concerning, particularly from the legal aspect. You are legally in the wrong, and are putting yourself, your career and your income in an etremely perilous position.

I would very strongly recommend you contact your union right away for clarification. You might even find you are completely nullifying any insurance your union holds for you. You are certainly compromising it.

No difference what so ever for staff or students.

It bloody well should be different. For one in a school the vast majority of students are children, in FE the majority are adults.

I'm sorry, but you don't know what you are talking about. It is exceptionally concerning, particularly from the legal aspect. You are legally in the wrong, and are putting yourself, your career and your income in an etremely perilous position.

What on earth are you talking about. You are the one breaking the law. You actually seem quite proud of it.

You also seem to have taken a great pleasure in upsetting a mother who initially asked advice for her child. Why would you do that?

Can't you see that everyone else is saying one thing and you are saying another?

I don't believe you have a 7-7 teaching day as standard. I doubt very much you are teaching a class at 7pm, you certainly won't be teaching a class at 9pm when the local FE college is.

Why would you not believe it, it is nothing unusual, we teach on Saturdays and Sundays, too. Most staff are expected in on at least one weekend day.

certainly to us, the change from school to college didn't make one iota of difference. like I said, different ofsted framework, but even that was mostly the same.

I', not setting out to upset the mother, just pointing out BTEC is a totally unsuitable course for someone with attendance issues. I;m certainly not in a minority to say so, I know any member of any department i have ever had contact with that teaches BTEC would be jumping up and down screaming NOOOOOOO!!! at the suggestion this boy does BTEC.

Again, I suggest you contact your union about your own position, as you are leaving yourself wide open and unprotected.