Year 12 - 2025/2026: Here we go again!

[QueenMabby]

A new thread for the new school and college year. A friendly thread for parents of those going into year 12 in September 2025.

@TheyNotLikeUs- we’ve already had our art exhibition of all GCSEs and a-level work so it must be fine!

I’ve been trying to catch up with the thread. I haven’t read everything. I keep getting left behind. Ds3 started year 12 on 2nd. He is mostly enjoying it, though they’ve had quite a few missing teachers, with no supply teacher like previous years. He also has several days with only one lesson, he says that’s boring, but as they get more homework then I’m sure he’ll do that in spare lessons. Ds also found out that he got the best gcse grades in the year. So he’s pleased with that. I still keep thinking about asking for a re mark in French. It’s pointless really, he’s not studying it for further ed. He was one mark off the 9. Ds has applied for a job at school clearing the lab up/setting up for next day. It will be nice for him to get it, but if he does it will mean he can’t come home free afternoons and we will have to collect him as he will miss the bus. I’m paying £400 a term for the bus, so collecting him will be annoying. But I think the job would be a good opportunity especially as he doesn’t know whether he wants to go to uni or try to get a degree apprenticeship.

DH and I have just been away for 10 days. The longest time we’ve been away together, abroad too as dh won’t fly, he last went abroad in 1980! We did a road trip with his car club, 7 countries in 10 days, 2,300 miles driven. The 3 dc’s were ok, though they aren’t speaking to each other (started that before we went 🤦‍♀️) the house was still standing and the dogs were fine. I’m glad we went, but it was far too much driving and not enough time to look at the places we visited. We had a day free in Davos, Switzerland. What an amazing place! We loved Austria too. Back to work tomorrow for me 😞

I’m not sure on a deadline, but DS says he’s got tests in at least a couple of his subjects at the end of next week, he thinks to try and identity anyone really struggling who might need to change subject.

My dd had these..one girl has already been asked to leave chemistry as a result.

Ours had a baseline test in the first week for maths. They then did gcse revision with those that needed it and the others practiced for the senior uk maths challenge.
I think once they get going they will be doing tests every couple of weeks though so by Christmas we should have an idea of potential grades.

My DD had a maths test recently that they were told about before the summer holidays and they had to score at least 80% to carry on with the A level. One girl got 77% apparently, but I believe she is allowed to resit the test rather than being kicked off already.

We get “effort grades” next month but no formal testing until November. Having said that they’ve lost one from her FM set already. Dd is mentoring in maths and has two year 11 pupils to tutor which she’s looking forward to.

She got her academic badge this week which school gives to anyone who gets at least eight 8s and 9s. In DS’s year there were just over 30. Dd says there was about 60 in her year! Crazy. She and one other got a special mention for their twelve 9s which dd said was v embarrassing!

The drama production is well underway so she has rehearsals multiple times a week so she’s trying to get most of her homework done in her free periods. Fortunately a lot of homework at the moment seems to be to finish classwork and as she’s a quick worker she often doesn’t have much (if any) left to do. I’m sure that will change!

That is an insane number @QueenMabby I think in DD's school there may have been 5 - perhaps 10. Similar number in her former comp, but it is much bigger.

Wow that sounds harsh! The kicking them out so early.

@QueenMabby congrats to your DD for her academic badge, that's brilliant!

Our cut off date for changing GCSEs is October half term. So far, no complaints from DS. He seems to be getting on with his homework etc. Not sure whether he's got any tests coming up as I told him not going to be checking his schedules anymore and it's up to him now. But, DH does check with him most evenings still. DD is in year 11 now and I'm spending my efforts on her now, although she needs and wants minimal input from me, so I'm enjoying my free time!
DS has taken his first methylphenidate tablet today, 10mg to start and then 20mg after 7 days. We go back to CAMHS in 3 weeks for a review. Those dosages probably won't make much of a difference but we will see. I am a bit nervous about it now, and I hope he's OK at school today.

It's the parent's information evening for DS today. It'll be interesting to see which students have stayed on at the school for 6th form. DS tells me nothing!

“She got her academic badge this week which school gives to anyone who gets at least eight 8s and 9s.”

I think DD has joined a school where everyone has that! It is over 230 kids, 80% of grades 8/9 existing cohort and all the new comers had to have at least 78 points across 9 subjects this year and I think most had 80 or 81 points. It is insane. But thankfully DD is enjoying it and finding it relaxing, has joined a rock band and loads of societies, and says all the kids are kind and not overly competitive with each other, more helpful and assisting each other.

The school my ds left had one student who got 9x9s but no one else got near. This is an outstanding school in quite a posh but rural area. Just giving some balance!

Yes sensing a mumsnet ‘skew’ of normality!

Thanks @RigbyRight - it is good to get some balance. I am a bit worried that if DD ends up being predicted a B in an A level subject she will think it is the equivalent of the Apocalypse with that peer group. But this is what she wanted and as a parent you sort of just go along with it and it is not like they had any real time to decide on Sixth Forms either, it was such a whirlwind post GCSE results. Thankfully she is happy so far, but normal this is not!

@Araminta1003 it definitely isn't! I don't think a single person in DD2's school would have been eligible for your sixth form, including her as she didn't do enough GCSEs.

Glad she's enjoying it though - sounds like she's in a good place for her!

Only a couple of kids got all 9s at DS1s school , pretty desirable state grammar .. I think about 65% of grades were 9-7 .. DS1 got a right old mix but enough to stay

The national average was 23% of grades were 7 or above. So 65% is quite high too. Our best local secondary comprehensive achieves around 35% grades 7-9 most years and that is considered highly desirable. They have plenty of higher achievers too, just the overall average is much lower than the grammars which are superselective (so most if not all those kids were greater depth standard at KS2).
DD has friends from her old all girls grammar school who have gone to the desirable comprehensive for Sixth Form, not because they did not make the grades for their own school, they just wanted a change and thought the fit would be better for them. All girls was right for DD at 11, but there was definitely a lot of drama, especially during the GCSE years and I think DD is happier with far more boys around now. Which is kind of strange for me as she is still quite a girlie girl. So I think I am a little bit nervous. I do know they can change a lot at this age.

Our school gets around 50% of grades 8/9s. This is a selective state grammar. I don't know what the data is for grades 7-9s, probably out there somewhere! They usually get a few all 9s, the last couple of years just 1 or 2 I think. DS was also "greater depth" for everything all through primary school, but decidedly average in this school and didn't perform as well in years 10 and 11 resulting in just scraping into their 6th form.

@Araminta1003 - this is good to know re National performance - I’m quite worried about whether DS1 will cope at the moment , but it looks like that might be exacerbated by where he goes to school ( he hasn’t told me he is struggling at all )

DS is at a a selective indie (less selective for full fee-payers than bursary/assisted places though) with about 120 in Y11 last year. About 35% of all grades were 9s and well over 50% were 8s or 9s. I think about 40% of students got all 7s-9s, with about 10% getting all 9s. Those that have stayed for 6th form tend to be from that 40%, so the 'standard' has definitely ramped up. DS said he hadn't really thought about who would be in his further maths group until he walked in to the first lesson and realised he was amongst the academic elite (he called them 'the nerds' so I'm politely paraphrasing because I had to point out that, by his definition, he is probably also considered 'a nerd'!).

I don't have a bead on recent grades, but at my DCs ordinary suburban comp (posh area of grotty city) in dd's year (numbers and letters mixed) no one eveb got 3 x 9 - bc she got 99 in English (6 in maths) and was highly feted.

Following year a friend of hers got 6 x 9 a d 4 x 8; ds2's year his mate got all 9s plus 6 in Eng lang; no one got all 9s AFAIK.

All grade 9s was achieved by just over 1,100 students in 2023. Just for perspective- a lot of these students have done very well.

Our school doesn't tell us how many students all 9s etc...so we'll never know!

Friend at an outer London comp got their school's best results with 8x9s and 1x8 this year. So no all 9 runs there. They don't have to do a MFL which DD envied!

I know the numbers because they list them in the program for speech day and make them go on stage!

All 9s is clearly a massive achievement, but I am not sure it is that relevant post GCSE results day.
Let’s say a DC who got 4 really high 9s (90 per cent plus) in Maths and the Sciences but 4, 5, and 6s in French, English x2 and History and Art, may well get 4 A stars at A level including Further Maths, whereas another DC with mainly 9s and one 8 but more of an all rounder with no equally strong subject preferences may not get all A stars at A level. It really just depends.

I think what matters is picking subjects at A level that you are both good at and passionate about and working really solidly from the start.

DD2 finally decicded to drop welsh bacc - there a long essay needed very quickly and she already doing 4 A-levels and realised she'll likely needed further maths as a science/maths so will have to carry it into Y13.

She told DS the teacher she has for it and he's said drop as he's had him at college and he's one of the worst teachers.

DC secondary school results are dire - they've been expectionally hard to find since last head left though did see them burried in a governor report sent out to parent. There odd one or two that do extremely well but over 50% don't get bare miniumn 5 GCSE including maths and English when it used to be over 80% when DD1 started there.

DS is off to uni tommorow with us in tow- and has manged to drag out every single task needed to be done to get ready. So things are going to wrong address and I'll need to post up there or still aren't sorted but he's manged to have multiple arguments about everything as well - so exhausted with him.