Online A levels and gcses

[Kishkes]

My Year 12 DD is struggling with school. We live abroad and she's in an ib school so never did gcses.
We're thinking she might do better studying from home but she will need to move to a levels as the ib is not available online
She will also need some kind of tutoeing framework. Probably she could do gcses in maths and English this year- she's being doing them at SL in the IB so should be easy for her to get a C at least. Then restart year 12 at home in August/September doing remote A levels.
Can anyone recommend an online distance learning provider for A levels? She definitely wants to do Biology and Chemistry and to do something biology related at university so a bit worried about the practicals component.
Thanks for any pointers!

I am not hugely knowledgeable on the subject but I do know that you need to find an exam centre where she can actually sit them. Some of the online schools don't tell you that, with the result that people waste huge amounts of time and money studying for an exam they cannot sit!

If you haven't yet registered her to sit (I)GCSEs this year, you may have left it too late. Even in a non-Covid year people usually sort that out by January. If you can still find a centre with spaces you will be looking at late fees now, I think. The UK govt hasn't yet addressed the issue of how private candidates will get grades this year. After last year's fiasco in which many home ed kids were left without results because centre assessed grades weren't available to them, people have been trying to ensure they can get grades by finding a helpful exam centre and doing mocks etc so the centre will actually be able to give them a grade, on the assumption that the powers that be will again leave HE teens in the lurch. It's all a bit of a mess.

You do know that spring 2021 GCSEs, IGCSEs and A levels have been cancelled in the UK, right? Teacher assessed grades instead. You need to check with the exam boards whether the exams are still going ahead where you live. But you could see if there is an autumn sitting and whether she is eligible for it, or sit them in spring 2022 alongside A levels.

Here's the first place to go for basic info about how home ed kids sit exams: he-exams.wikia.org/wiki/HE_Exams_Wiki I think you'll find something there about science practicals, and it should answer some of your other questions.

We’re using Southwest Science for GCSE sciences and they’re good. They say they do A levels although the website doesn’t seem to have detail - but would be worth asking them.
We’ve also used Wolsey Hall for GCSE science and I expect they do A levels - you could have a look. They didn’t do video lessons though and that was a disadvantage for us but that may have changed.
There are a few Facebook home Ed exam groups and would be worth asking on those as well.

The first thing to do before you sign up for courses is find out where you can sit the exams. This might limit your choice of awarding body. You need to know that you can arrange the exams for that course before you start studying.

Regards this year GCSEs and Edexcel International GCSEs have been cancelled, finding a centre now to take on and deal with teacher assessment will be very difficult. CAIE IGCSEs may be possible to sit exams depending where in the world you are. They are cancelled in Uk.

We're considering this for Bio and Chem A levels and the 2 GCSEs she'll need
ukglobal.pearsononlineacademy.com/

Or maybe even this one
www.harrowschoolonline.org/

She's thinking of a more essay based A level for her third one, maybe even English Lit as she's been doing really well on that with the IB, has very good analytical skills. So we'd need to find a different provider for that one.

Have you somewhere to sit the exams lined up though. You need to look it to that before sorting a course provider as you need to know what examining organisations you can use.

Pearson and Harrow have arrangements to sit exams internationally. They're expensive but they also help with all of these issues at least.

Hello,
OP Kishkes, have you found a suitable solution to your queries?