What GCSE grades did your dc achieved to get A* in 2 or more a-levels?

[em2322]

I'm assuming the majority of dc who achieve A* at a-level got mainly 9's at GCSE in all subjects but is it possible to achieve it with grades lower than 8/9?

My DS got 9 grade 9 and 1 grade 8. However his friend who also got 4A* got 4 grade 7, 3 grade 8, 3 grade 9. As long as your child did well in the subjects they are taking for A level, there is a good chance they can do well.

Mine got one 9, I think 3 8s , a clutch of 7s and a 5. They were CAG grades , mind, at a school that stuck to the 'prior data' calculation advised by Ofqual or whoever it was, so I reckon 2 of the 8s would have been 9s. But never all 8s/9s. Science was never a strength.

He works and has always worked incredibly hard.

And ,as a teacher, I teach plenty of students who get A stars from a lower base than 'all 9s and 8s'. I also teach students with 9s and 8s who don't get top A level grades. Cuts both ways. Largely down to a combination of suitable A level choices and work ethic but there are other factors such as quality of teaching, parenting, social life, emotional stuff etc.

In 2017 DD got mostly A, couple of 9a( first year to do some on new grading) and her lowest was A. She got A, A*, A at A level after a remark- originally got AAB. Graduation last year from a top uni with a 1st. My favourite part is that she went to state schools, primary was in special measures. Very proud of her.

Not at all with my two DS's. They got a range of GCSE results from 5-8. But they worked harder at A level and were doing their best subjects that they enjoyed.

My DS got a 9 in GCSE maths and an A* for A Level maths. He finds it very easy though

My daughter just got all A stars for A level History, Art and Psychology.
For GCSE (though these were TAGs), she got 9s in English lang and Lit, 8s in Physics, Bio, German, History, Art, a 7 for Chem, a 6 in math.

Yes, it is possible. My son did old style GCSEs and got no As at all. This is due to his much better work ethic in Sixth form though.

DD got 8x9's and 2x8's in 2020 (CAGs). 4 x A* in CS, Further Maths, Maths and Physics in 2022. Has completed and passed first year at Oxford studying MMath. Wider participation relevant in her case.

DS did a mix of letter grades and number grades but effectively 7 x 9, 3 x 8, 1 x 7 and then 3 x A* at A level

I don't think this is as clear cut as 9/8 equates generally to an A star.

However imo you would expect a all 9/8 student to be getting A star or A surely?

There are stats for maths that show anything less than a 9/8 at gcse generally equates to a lower a level result. Noblegiraffe (Mumsnet /general maths teacher expert) has done threads/commented on this.

However obviously this won't be true for subjects such as economics and psychology that aren't even studied at gcse.

Mine didn’t get any 9’s but got 5 x 8’s, 3 x 7’s and a 5 (whoops, never a D&T fan) but 3 x A* at A level

My son got C for maths GCSE, A for A Level and an MMath degree at a top uni so bucked that trend. But he didn't work hard at all for GCSEs and did after.

One got all 9s. The other got 9s and two 8s.

DS got a mixed bunch of GCSEs, middle grades and one A* (9).
He did very little work for his GCSEs but that all changed once he did A levels and subjects he enjoyed. He got four A* at A level.

My DS last year got 3 x A* (and 95% plus on every paper) and he studied Maths, Further Maths and Spanish. Now about to going into year 2 at Warwick. He got 9 x 9’s & 3 x 8’s. Covid year but he got 9’s and 8’s in all mocks and would have achieved those grades if he sat them

I don't think it's necessarily the case. Not for many of ds1's friends. Varied. Ds1 got the highest A'level's, but GCSE's were varied 8's, 7's and a 6.

It doesn't work like that, I'm afraid. A
Levels are very different to GCSEs. One of mine got stellar GCSEs but couldn't cope with A levels- the other got distinctly average GSCEs and shone at A Level....

I think the thing to remember is that for most with 8s and 9s have usually have a work ethic that means they work hard and are successful. Obviously there are the ones who do just coast through GCSEs. However, mixed sex, new friends, different subjects etc can mean that they don't work as hard at A levels or they have never had to ask for help before and for some reason don't in sixth form either.

Ds had mates who all wanted high grades and big dreams for top unis. They came out of lessons and if they had a free period together they spent it in a a group study session. Others were off chatting in the non-study areas or off premises because they could leave during free periods. All work for Ds was pretty much completed in those free periods. It would have been hard for Ds if all his mates had been the chatty ones and he wanted to work. Friendships play a massive role in this.

That's definitely true.

My dd got all As or A* in 2013, except PE where she got a C.

Mine got A* just before it changed to numbers) in the GCSEs that he got them for at A level (maths, chem, biology)

DS2 just got two A** stars in Maths and Biology and A in Chemistry (just missed A star) this year.
He got seven 9's and two 7's at GCSE. State schooling.
He worked hard though. Particularly as due to Covid he started his A levels not even having finished the triple science syllabus.

Suitable A levels and work ethic are absolutely key. I envy the parents now whose kids are sitting proper GCSEs as they give a real view of how their kids manage the work load and where their strengths lie and have that valuable information for college enrolment so different from the Shit show that is the last 3 years

My DD got 3 x A* last year. She got 4 x 9, 3 x 8, 1 x 7, 2 x 6 for her GCSEs.