Teachers pls - dropping a GCSE - does it disadvantage school?

[PassMeAPolo]

I wonder if someone could please advise me about a situation involving my DD, who is going on for 16 and taking her GCSEs prior to going to college in September.

Owing to a house move she joined her present school following the 2010 Easter holiday. This caused her some problems with the curriculum, particularly History, as over the following months her new school was at times teaching areas of the course which she had already studied in her previous school and in turn she's missed some topics because they had been taught in the new school prior to her arrival there but hadm't been covered by her old school before she moved.

She spent a considerable amount of time explaining this to the history master, to no avail. Promises were made to coach her on the subject areas missed but they didn't transpire. DD wasn't/isn't unduly concerned as her chosen career is science based but she concluded that under the circumstances she was wasting her time continuing with History. So,a week or so ago she obtained the permission of her Deputy Head to drop history and to use the time to revise/catch up on other subjects. She was required to get my written permission for this which, after some discussion, I gave.

However she's now told by the Head that she can't drop GCSE History. No negotiation, nothing, just that she can't because she "will need it" (she won't) and "because I said so". So, during yesterday's history lesson DD was given a textbook and a series of worksheets, plonked in the back of a class and told to work through the book.

She's fuming and I'm appalled that this is the Head's idea of tuition. I plan to speak with the HT over this but don't want to go barging in, stamping my foot when I'm not aware of the way things work.

I'm wondering if the school has anything to gain by refusing to allow a pupil to drop a GCSE subject at this late stage. I must also point out here that the Head doesn't like me for pulling her up on illegal practices and instigating a successful enquiry into them. I hope to god that she's not acting like this out of some form of spite and would like to think not but can think of no other explanation for her stance than one or other of these.

Can someone please advise if it benefits the school to refuse to drop the GCSE and how the hell I handle this situation?

TIA.

Thank you PonceyMcPonce.

"Worst case, she should just not show up."

I suggested that to her.

She will (should, all being well) get more than the five A to C grades so that shouldn't affect the school adversly. She can only get a D at most in History though as she missed vital areas of work and the ruddy History master didn't give her the much-promised additional tuition!

DD fears that if she just doesn't turn up for the exam she'll get a U grade. Would that be correct please?

If % of the course is coursework then yes she'd get a U. Entries are being/ have been done around now so she's probably already been entered.

Oh rollocks! I'd imagine that she has already been entered, great.

So the poor kid's going to get a D grade, not because of her ability or her willingness to work but because the teacher can't be assed to keep his word and teach... :(

So, we've eliminated disadvantage to the school as the reason for the Head reneging on the agreement between her Deputy, DD and I. That just leaves spite, doesn't it? :(

Hmm, Depends on what other subjects she is taking I think. Gove has brought in a new concept of ebac where league tables will be based on 5 a-cs in maths, english, a science a humanity and an mfl. It used to be any 5 subjects.

• That is that she'll get a D grade unless she opts not to attend and get a U grade.

Ah ha! She's taking Science and additional Science and the like, not the arts (apart from the obligatory English Lit and Language), WorldsSkowestTypist.

Sorry, Worlds SLOWEST Typist! D'oh!

So you're pissed off because she isn't getting private tuition after you moved her schools? Unfortunately the new english bacc could effect schools results and it actually costs more money than people often think to enter a child for an exam think tens rather than units of pounds. The school do seem to have messed her around s bit but if I'd moved my child midway through a year I'd r think it was mine and dds responsibility to catch up missing work. Just be aware that the whole 'well I don't need that subject' argument could come back to bite dd on the bum because all things been equal history is a very respected subject and it could be the decision breaker getting onto courses. I realise my post sounds critical, sorry about that, but I think these are points that need considering.

No Bulby, that's not the case at all.

Thanks for the advice Poncey, I'll make enquiries to ascertain whether or not the entries have been made yet.

I think, tbh, I would reserve judgement totally, until I'd spoken to the school. Without belittling your DD, has she really given you all the facts?

I had to speak to DD's school last week, because she told me she did appaulingly at her French speaking assessment, she was going to have to have one to one tution and she would have to pay for her re-sit.

Actually, the case was, that she had done her assessment, because the school thought she may as well have a go and if it didn't work out, it didn't matter (she's only Yr10) and she could do it again in the summer. She is getting one to one, but so is the rest of the class, because they've hired a french teacher to help, as it's a very big class and where she got the notion that she'd have to pay for it, is a mystery!

Also, you need to consider, that if she's not doing the History course, the school still have to find provisions for her and she needs to be supervised during that time.

Oh I am, Maureen. :o

That said, we have gone over this a lot and her story is consistant and reasonable.

The agreement between DD and the deputy was that she would use the time during which she would have been studying History to revise and study her Sciences and to catch up on English Language, where a similar problem occurred but where we managed to make arrangement for her English teacher and I to coach her in the missing elements of the course. As a Year 11 this could be carried out in either the common room without supervision or in a classroom with supervision.

Deadline for GCSE entries was this week (I think) After this point, the school will have paid the fee to enter your DD for History, and would not get the money back if she pulled out.

That's the only implication for the school that I can think of. That, and the fact that it might set a rolling ball of kids saying "Can I drop XXX" and the hassle that causes.

Think it's probably the latter isn';t it evil twins - a whole raft of students realising they are unlikley to get Cs and the consequent supervision issues.
Have to say polo i think the responsibility to catch up on missed areas was yours and your dds not her teachers.

The final deadline for entries is the 16th of Feb iirc. And I imagine that they won't let her drop out because they are hoping she'll scrape a C and thus count in the English Bac figures, which measures pupils for getting passes in the 'right' combination of subjects, History or Geography being one - so if she isn't doing Geog they need her to get the History.

Tbh although the teacher hasn't been forthcoming with work and is thus partly to blame, I really think that if you'd bought her some study guides etc she could have caught up on the areas she's missed. Also, if it was such a concern that the teacher hadn't given notes etc despite frequent requests, why didn't you contact the head and demand them?

I'm sure that it could still be worked out and that she could still have a chance for a C.