How much study does your A2 child do?

[swimmer4]

DS1's school says 5 hours per subject per week - eeek! He's doing 3 subjects.
He's just about scraping 5hours in total but only because of homework that is set.
They are expected to write up notes, make revision stuff maybe?, read around subject, do practice questions. This is not happening.
Is it possible to do diddly squat the first term and still manage to get your expected grades?
He is not the most mature of 17 year olds and has said he stills wants us to 'nag'. This just didn't happen when DH and I were in VIth form - we were left to get on with it. We feel it's OK to be involved on the basis we're having to fund what could potentially be 5 years - ahhh of study/placement.

We have a very strong desire to support him as we strongly believe uni will be the making of him. He isn't the best of company and if he doesn't get the right grades we are dreading having to support him living at home. Don't get me wrong, we love him to bits, but as he is mildly on the spectrum he is not the most loving, giving person and we feel our relationship will improve if he goes away - regardless of whether he gets a degree or not.

He isn't partying/going out/doing paid work in place of school work either - just 3 hours of sport outside of school and 2 hour social club on a Friday. Rest of his time he spends watching you-tube clips on his phone.

Sorry to go on .....!
in summary - how much study time/
how much encouragement/cagouling/nagging do you use?

thanks
swimmer4

Mine does very little! He's at school long hours and he says he is covering it there, but who knows? He got A A D D in A/S which we were amazed by, so have to trust him.

We were told by our DD2's tutor that for every hour they have of lesson time they should have an hour of homework! Be that exercises, essays or reading around subject.

DD1 is through A levels and did nowhere this much but her subjects were science/maths based and she had a natural ability A*/A grades

Missed this bit
DD2 finished school at lunchtime today and then says she has done 6 hours work at home. Not sure if that was studying or YouTube as I was at work

Do we go free reign on phone etc - we still have some hand in this as he's 'needed' micromanaging!

He does need to focus on reading for the purposes of the UCAS application- has he done anything about that yet? All the advice my DS school gave was to read, read, read and refer to at least 2 relevant books on the personal statement. That is something your DS might consider using his time for. One hour a night weekdays and nothing at weekends seems very little but it depends on the subjects I suppose. If they are not essay heavy then this might be ok, but my DS does at least 2 hrs a night plus free periods at school plus about 3-4 hours over a weekend. He does 3 humanities/social science type subjects

Sorry I misread your OP re 5 hours! So 15 hours over the week, 2+ hours a night. So actually apart from time spent at school free periods probably about the same as my DS

Thanks throughthick&thin - some of the problem is me not finding it easy to let go - if he says 'it's fine' we really should take his word for it - but I can't help worrying when he gets D in a test for a subject he needs an A
PowderMum - thanks for that - he's doing Chemistry, Physics & Maths so I should expect he does less than say History and English where there would be loads of reading & essay writing. He is predicted A, A*, A and needs that for Uni or AAB is the lowest possible he's found for his course at a Uni he likes.
Homebythesea - sorry I didn't make it clear - he should be doing 15 hours a week and he's barely doing 5. We know he doesn't use his study periods at school to study either.
As for Personal Statement you've guessed right!! -that's a whole nother battle - he has one which is poorly written and although his tutor has spent time with him and done an additional glance over - it needs loads doing to it. DS gets obsessed with the word count - reaches the word limit and thinks job is done!! His friend even corrected some of the basic grammar in it - but he's yet to make those changes.
I've tried to coax him into visiting places of work that demonstrate his course choice so he can add that as a sign of interest but he's made a couple of calls - no-one got back so he thinks that's enough - grrrrr.
I purchased 2 books and offered to help him find a couplee of relevant magazine articles but here's hoping he'll get it in the end and it will be all completed last minute
Homebythesea thanks for saying what your DS is doing hour wise - this does seem to indicate that we should be worried.

I can't tell you the relief last night when I paid the UCAS fee so essentially meaning no more tinkering obsessing and moaning about the bloody thing! My DS subjects are essay heavy (RS, Politics, Geog) so perhaps not directly comparable to a scientist / mathmo?

I used to teach in a good school. The students who did well studied 3 to 5 hours a day on top of lessons...then they did reading and essays at the weekend. So at least 20 hours a week. But they got the A s and went off to med school a lot so if you are aiming lower maybe 2 hours a day.

Med school is not "higher" than other subjects kierk just different. There are many other subjects thanked the same grades as medicine you know

That need not thanked

I have two sixth formers in the house ATM - one taking A2s in Maths, F Maths & Physics. The younger doing all humanities.

For context; I can follow bits of the Physics I have a nose at but the Maths is complete Greek to me (algebra excepted). OTOH, humanities is comfortable ground for me, meaning I can read essays & make sensible, informed suggestions and generally make myself useful.

Which is just as well because my humanities studying child is the procrastinator

Whereas, maths child (and classmates) racking up 30 hours a week of study some weeks (and it is paying off).

So two thoughts; I'm not sure the idea that non-essay subjects require fewer hours necessarily holds up (sorry) . And I think some teens just take longer to find their innate motivation than others (both of mine on the spectrum so that's no predictor in this house ).

FWIW I have already decided that there's a limit to the support that it is useful for me to try and foist on the younger one; either they'll step it u next year or not. If a gap year/retakes/some time working are what it takes for a young adult to find really passionate motivation then that's what it takes. Even if the gap year becomes two or three years (God forbid ). Otherwise you have teens with no real passion being ushered onto degree courses that they lack real session for or commitment to.

That's my take on it all anyway. Ask me next year what actually transpires

Update: DS1 did no further reading around his degree subject (no books /magazines /websites/ youtube clips!!) and didn't visit any future possible places of work but still got 5 offers.
I should be thankful, however I think it's taught him that through no effort whatsoever you can get by........ which surprise, surprise doesn't bode well on the studying front.
Big thank you to GooseberryRoolz as I feel you have got him in one - he has not found his innate motivation and no nagging, caguoling, gentle encouraging is going to change his work ethic. It's got to come from him. The thought of him remaining at home is making us go into nag mode but actually if staying at home and getting a temporary job/ doing a course/ voluntary work for a year (or a couple - [shocked]) gives him the time to perhaps really find out what he wants/who he is etc - then we should just let him be.
I just hope that if he fails to get what he needs, it doesn't undermine his confidence to attempt anything else in the future