Why do some children sit eight NAT 5s and others only sit six or seven?

[Vettrianofan]

Just that really. DS has a few friends who only sat three or four which is very low, others six or seven. He seems to be the only one with eight NAT5s that I know of at the moment.

Why is there such disparity??

How did you manage to get to this stage in your dc schooling and not know about different pathways in secondary for different abilities and your some pupils might only sit a couple of NAT5s in S4? Try your ds's school handbook, or the information you would have been given when he was making his subject choices as it can be specific to the school. It is fairly normal, especially in low performing schools where many pupils might have challenging backgrounds to tailor how many NAT5s they sit and when to their abilities.

In some schools it is standard to focus on and sit 6, it is more usual for schools to sit 7, and not uncommon for some to sit 7-8. In the grand scheme of things the only disadvantaged to a school offering less NAT5s isvpupils are narrowing their choices for the important higher subjects too early, whether your NAT5 certificate has 6 or 8 NAT5s imo doesn't matter.

Ds's school is in the bottom 1/3 of Scottish schools and around 1/4 pupils did 8 NAT5s (application of maths was added to those in top Maths groups which seems to be the most popular easy way of squeezing another one in), everyone else who had the aptitude to sit a full set of nat5s did 7.

My kids school offer 8 Nat 5s in the timetable. Some schools only do 6 - even for the brightest kids - because fewer subjects = better grades in these subjects. Makes the school look better in the league tables.

Thanks for explaining, but no need for being snippy. I was genuinely curious and no, I thought most sat between 6 to 8 NAT 5 subjects at S4. I don't remember getting an information booklet about it, but it was a while ago now. He is sitting five Highers when the new term begins.

Judging by what he has told me, he seems to be the only one with eight NAT5s, and after reading the thread for the exam results on here, everyone kept repeating their own DC passing seven NAT 5, not 8. I was beginning to think I had made a mistake and miscounted!

Thanks for your input too. It's been interesting reading and I am going to get reading a bit more about all of this as I have others in the family yet to sit NAT 5 exams in future.

I agree actually that its surprising you didn't know this.

It can vary from council to council, and from child to child. Some are capable of 8 Nat 5s, and others do a mix of Nat 5s and Nat 4s.

Most schools get the kids to drop a subject or two after S3.

They can do more Nat 5s in S5 and S6 if they wanted, or Highers.

In our school most sat the standard 7 but the ones who sat 8 took an extra science

OP it's taken me most of my eldest's time at secondary to get my head round Nat 4 and 5s. You are not the only one.

I did a mix of O grades and Stand Grades myself.

Do ignore the snotty smug people.

Nat 4s are basically similar to General at Standard Grade and Nat 5s are like Credit.

Curriculum for Excellence then allows different pathways based on abilities to mix and match each child.

PS isn't National 4 and 5s bloody study names for exams?

Thank you @DinnaeFashYersel ☺️ you have explained it really well. I also did Standard Grades and I have noticed DS did much better than I did. I looked out my old certificate from the SQA and I can see some 1s and 2s, but a few 3s and 4s (maths!). He has done much better than I did at maths, for instance.

For those really surprised I didn't know all of this, please just accept that some of us are still learning about the education system at secondary level. He's my first to sit exams.

I see this all come into play around 2013 so still fairly recent.

That explains it then. He took two sciences at Nat 5.

Our school only offer 7. I guess maybe you could do an extra one if you pushed, I don't know.

Ds took woodwork and it's only offered at Nat4 in S4. Not sure why, something to do with limited time in the workshop in S1-3. So he ended up with 6 Nat5s this year

DC's school do 6 Nat 5s. Ds only did 4 last year.

He's now just got 4 As at higher so has improved massively

It depends on your local council and state v private schools too. In our council area the state schools did maximum of 6 NAT5s - my son and most of his friends sat 6 but a few only 3 or 4 and got nat4s in the remaining ones. In the local private school I think the norm is 8 with some dropping a language and doing 7.
It suited my son better (esp no compulsory foreign language!) but does mean they narrow down a bit sooner than we did in the O/S grade days.
I think a lot of areas have 7 as standard in state schools though.

Where I live the state schools in the most affluent areas do 8 and the least affluent do tend to do 6 with the rest in between. Our parent group complained and the school upped the number from 6 to 7. I was concerned that 6 Nat 5s didn’t give much wriggle room in aiming for 5 highers in S5 if there were subjects they realised they didn’t like or found they had less aptitude for. Am sure the argument can be made in the other direction but I was pleased that the school was responsive.

Very much depends on local authority (except independent schools) and school AND on individual child.

Our school only offers six Nat 5s to allow for more advanced higher subjects to be timetabled.

E.g. my son only took six Nat 5s, but has just achieved four top grade advanced highers in sixth year.

DD’s school it’s a maximum of 7 national 5’s or you can do a mix of nat3,nat4 and Nat 5. But a max of 7 subjects in total in 4th year.
In 5/6th year you can do a max of 5 highers. But you can also do a mix with nat4/nat5 if you take less than 5 highers.
There is also an option to do a college course in place of a subject choice.

Occasionally they allow 4th years to go to college.
DD did that as they made a mess of her timetable and the only option in those periods with a space was to redo a subject she had completed the Nat 4 in during S3 year. (The national 5 was not being taught at that place on the timetable and DD hated the subject) or woodwork.
So she did an NPA level 5 in computing game development and design which ran on a Friday afternoon at college (our schools finish at 12.30) and instead got 4 periods of study at school to compensate using her own time.
She loved going to college and can’t wait to go back in a couple of years once she’s finished 6th year at school.

10 years isn't 'recent'. Seriously, where have you been?

I presume you watch the news and read newspapers? You have social media? You talk to other parents? You get a school handbook? Letters home? Emails? Got a radio? I hope you go to parents evenings? Honestly, it doesn't take a genius to work out what Natonals are compared to standards and o grades.

So many parents blame the school if their child does less well than expected like the school are to blame for that, or get defensive on mumsnet when its pointed out that taking an interest in their child's education is basic parenting 101.

Proud to be a 'snotty' mum if it means I have a clue what's going on in DDs life.

Bye!

It depends on the school. Ours were 7 which the same as standard grades. 8 is ok, 9, 10 is ridiculous and unnecessary and just about the school league tables rather than what is best for the kids

I have no idea why there are snotty posts on this thread.

Also some that do 8 there may be some similar ones eg maths and apps

and/or pe which has no exam

and/or RMPS which is compulsory anyway but my kids just did level 5 not National 5

doesn’t necessarily mean the kids are brighter cos they do more mine has 7 As at Nat 5 and 5 As at higher now

Ours did 8 - English, Maths, compulsory foreign language, science and social subject and then "3 from the end column"

Yes I do listen to the news, but don't follow much on social media to be fair. I would argue ten years is fairly recent as I sat very different qualifications at that age.

I am very involved as a parent and helped DS during his study leave with lots of encouragement in subjects he was struggling with ( but managed to pass). I go to parents evening, read all newsletters from all the DCs schools etc.

You are coming across as very obnoxious @storminamooncup

Thanks to all others who have positively contributed to the thread though.

Beats me too.

Surely if one has nothing nice to say it's best saying nothing at all.

That's how most civilised people operate.

That's a fantastic result for your DC!! You must be incredibly proud.

(This is a complete left field question but obviously the difference with the English system is huge overall. Do they do 1 English? (We have to do English lit and English language so "2 slots"). Also is it general science for 1 slot ? Or do you pick one? (In England it's combined for 2 slots unless all 3)

I'm just fascinated by the differences as in my head Scotland had breadth for longer but you do less subjects. Or rather "slots" it maybe you do 1 English and we do so it's not really less subjects just weighted differently!