DS failing A-Level maths, too late to change?

[falalalalalalalallama]

DS has just completed the first term of A-Level and it looks like he made either the wrong choice or something has gone very wrong.

He's done two assessments in maths and got an E in both. Meanwhile, he has an A in the assessment for his other subject and is predicted an A - this is a humanities subject. (Third subject hasn't done an assessment yet.)

He's a very bright and articulate young man. He's on the spectrum and doesn't have good organisation. He says also didn't realise he was doing so badly in maths, although it turns out he often wasn't doing his homework.

I feel like history is repeating itself. I was a bright child with (at the time undiagnosed) ADHD and I flunked A-Level maths despite having a lot of promise, because it's so easy to get behind and then everything builds on what comes before so it's easy to lose the thread.

He'll have to work hard to catch up and he says he wants to do this, but I feel he is being unrealistic as he has no plan for how to actually do this, and since getting the low grade he's focused on his extra curricular stuff, not maths.

He's interested in STEM based careers, but he excels in humanities. He's well read and well informed and writes and researches well.

I suggest changing subject but he said it's too late.

I suggested a tutor but he said he doesn't want one.

The universities he wants to go to ask for results like 3 As. That seems totally unrealistic now, although I know it would absolutely be doable for him if he was studying all humanities subjects.

If he's going to stick with maths I think I am going to insist he tries a tutor.

Are there any other options?

WWYD?

I am going to talk to his 6th form college, but I would really appreciate any advice.

We are in this situation too. YP - Year 13 - predicted approx AAD/E (the D/E in maths despite 8 at GCSE). We realised late to change. It’s very demoralising and is hugely impacting uni applications. YP is applying to unis but considering doing a humanities A-Level in one year next year if the outcome is bad in the summer and re-applying to uni then.

I found the jump just from maths GCSE (with an A*) to further maths (where I got an E) absolutely enormous. I think you have to push for him to change. Perhaps look at STEM related careers that suit people with strengths in the humanities (not my field so no idea but there must be some -- some branch of law, perhaps).
If he wants to go to a competitive university, could he go a few years later after taking an additional a-level? It doesn't all have to be down the conventional path.

See, the thing is, although he only got a 6, he also decided he really wanted to get into maths and joined the additional further maths GCSE very late - I think he just did it for 2 terms, and managed a 4 in that despite joining so late. (C in old money I think?)

He enjoys algebra and says that's not what's letting him down.

I think I'll see if we can get a copy of his assessments.

He should never have been able to take an A Level in a subject he only got a 6 in at GCSE. He needs to be realistic about subjects he’s good at and change the subjects now.

A 4 is an old D/C. A 5 is a solid C. He needs to pursue non STEM subjects.

At my DS’s school he wouldn’t have been able to do Maths at A Level if he only got a 6, so your DS has a lot of catching up to do. My DS does maths but it’s taking considerable more effort than his other subjects, and he’s extremely good at it. You either need to arrange a tutor or he’s going to have to drop it/switch subjects

Trouble is @falalalalalalalallama that maths is really a linear subject – the A level learning builds on the GCSE learning, or rather assumes it is secure. If he got a 6 (while that is a perfectly good grade) it means he may only have gained just over 50% of the marks. Clearly a good deal of required learning was not there. It’s the same with my subject (MFL) – the A level starts from the point of “you know your tenses and vocab about xyz topics” and if you don’t (ie if you got a 6 or lower) then it’s going to be a struggle. It makes no difference how much he decided he liked maths tbh. MY DD got a 6 (she is able but did the minimum of work as it wasn’t something she wanted to pursue) – I (and she!) cannot imagine her taking A level.

It's not quite the same with subjects like Eng lit or history or new subjects like sociology or psych or gov/pol; the learning will for sure build on GCSE skills, but if you hated A Christmas Carol/the medicine through time topic and thus didn’t write a great essay, you may still love Death of a Salesman/the Tudors. Obvs a higher grade is even better but it’s more possible to access some courses with a 6 at GCSE than others.

A grade 4 at GCSE is a C in old money btw, not a D. Image from Gov.uk. (not sure what happened to the image! LInk:
https://ofqual.blog.gov.uk/2018/03/02/gcse-9-to-1-grades-a-brief-guide-for-parents/

I'd talk to the sixth form see what they say about picking up another subject or how likely he is to pick up the maths grade. I'd also get a tutor if he continues in maths.

We're in Wales so it's A/A* star all my kids had maths subjects at *and all struggled with maths A-levels - DS did get an A in end and C in FM - DD1 dropped it end of Y12 cashing out with an D at As level and DD2 started to struggle.

STEM related careers that suit people with strengths in the humanities

Archaeology,Museum Curation - science communication, product design - you'd have to look into them more but perhaps along those lines?

I'd be looking at Uni courses he interested/jobs - see what they are asking for in A-level subjects.

I did this 30 years ago... swapped to Economics just after Xmas. Ended up getting an A in that. My friend who was also struggling but didn't swap got a D in her Maths. We both ended up as lawyers though so perhaps didn't matter in the end.

So, if he can swap and put in the time to catch up I think its a good idea.

No school here would allow you take to take maths a-level with a 6; even with a 7 it is discouraged. I strongly suspect it is too late to change subjects. At our school, students in this situation will often retake year 12.

My DS is in Y12 doing maths. At his sixth form they were only allowed to change subjects up to the middle of October.

His sixth form has lowish entry requirements for students who came up from the secondary school (compared to most local sixth forms), and they require a 7 in maths to study maths. 6 is only accepted where they narrowly missed a 7 and were particularly strong in algebra.

I totally get how he might feel a bit awkward about a tutor, but what about something like Uplearn, so online tutoring. Haven't personally tried it and no links to it at all, but they do video lessons for subjects and then structured questions and revision. Might help fill the gaps and let him catch up before it's too difficult.

In the schools I’ve worked in this wouldn’t be a high enough grade to get into A level maths.

If he is talented and interested in his humanities subjects why is he not looking at pursuing careers in that sector? Sounds like he needs some decent careers guidance sooner rather than later!

STEM is not the answer for everyone!!

Yes, they had 40 days to change subjects.

The one test he did well in was the baseline test at the beginning, he got 86% in that.

And every time we asked him how it was going, he said he was finding it easy. So we've only now realised he's struggling.

I suspect what he meant by he was finding it easy is that he's understanding the concepts when they're explained in class.

But he's then not putting in the time at home to practice so he gets used to the equations and remembers them, which is where he's coming unstuck.

A 6 is a great grade to get for GCSE Maths but as others have said unfortunately it’s really not enough to secure a high grade at A level. (Unless there was some real context around exams.)

OK, yes, but I'm unclear why people keep repeating this? It's useful background the once, but it's less useful the 10th time!

That's the grade this college accepts, and it's too late to go back in time and change anything now.

I need to deal with the situation as it is now.

The situation as it is now is he is unlikely and always was that he will get a high grade at A Level maths, but with some application he could get a C or D. What STEM subject does he want to do and what are the entry requirements?
He sounds like he loves humanities but he doesn't intend to do that at uni?

His third subject is Computing.

He got an 6 in that at GCSE. I'm yet to find out his mark for his assessments, so I have no idea how well he's performing or not at A Level, yet.

The thing is, he loved the sciences as subjects. He finds physics fascinating, always has done. But, that didn't translate into high grades, so it wasn't as simple as subjects he loves = high grades.

He got 6,6,5 for his three sciences IIRC.

He really struggled with making choices for college, and could easily have picked all STEM (which I'm glad now he didn't) or none at all.

He's spoken about doing Computing with a humanities subject (found a university he likes that does this) or Engineering.

When I mentioned politics and philosophy - which he would excellent at, I have no doubt - he said no, as there are no jobs in politics. I tried to explain that you don't necessarily go into politics after doing it as a degree. I think maybe he could do with some careers advice - as suggested up thread.

OMG - apologies everyone!!!

I just looked up his GCSE results to check I remembered the science results currently, and discovered he did get a 7 for maths afterall, not a 6.

Sorry everyone

FWIW, he got 8 for English Lit, Lang and History.

He's a bright kid, and where he loses marks is usually through lack of organisation or understanding how to study effectively, rather than lack of overall aptitude.

Having ADHD myself, I don't really know how to help him here, never worked that one out myself.

I would say focus on getting a maths tutor who is experienced in working with neurodivergent young people . Very common for working memory to be weaker in Autism , which is going to mean he needs excellent compensatory strategies (eg rote learning of particular rules for calculations; making sure he writes things down as he goes). A good tutor will help him to catch up and also to develop good study skills, adjusted for his autism .. Try that quite intensively for a half term and then see where you are at that point.

Maths teacher here. I recommend that you ask the school if your son can switch to another A level asap.
The school should have advised you at the start of the year that a grade 6 GCSE does not often lead to a decent grade at maths A level. The most common grade for pupils who scored a 6 is an E, with around 3/4 of pupils getting a D, E or U grade.
This summer the grade boundary for a 6 was 50.5%. Knowing only half of the year 7-11 content is not sufficient basis for A level maths.
They should have told you this before your son started the course.
It's great that he is heading for an A in his Humanities subject. Hopefully he can switch maths for another Humanities subject which uses similar skills and play to his strengths.
Edit: I've just seen your update that he got a grade 7, not a 6. Here is the progress data for grade 7 maths continuing to A level: A* 1%, A 8.9%, B 15.4%, C 25.6%, D 27.5%, E 17.4%, U 4.2%

I'm really sorry, I got the grade wrong - he got a 7.

Does that change your advice? Thanks

This seems like good advice if he carries on with the maths, thanks :)

I've edited the post to add the progress data for grade 7. The school I teach at requires an Grade 8 or 9 to do A level maths because grade 7 pupils tend to head for Cs and Ds.
If it were a 6 I'd definitely drop maths. Since it's a 7 you have a tough decision to make. Is it better to do a subject he is likely to get a better grade in? Or better to keep maths so that a STEM career is still a possibility even if the grade he gets at the end may be lower?

Thanks, that's useful info.

Is it better to do a subject he is likely to get a better grade in? Or better to keep maths so that a STEM career is still a possibility even if the grade he gets at the end may be lower?

Yes, this is the crux of it. It's really hard to know what's best. We need a crystal ball!