Can someone explain how AS and A2s work?

[catwalker]

Eldest about to go into the sixth form which is a whole new ball game to me (many decades since I did A levels and things have clearly changed since then).

I know they do AS levels at the end of year 12 and A2 at the end of year 13 but that's about all I know! Presumably the A2 builds on the AS so they have to get a certain grade at AS to be sure of a good grade at A level? Do schools normally expect certain grades at AS before they allow students to continue with A2s?

That's great - thank you. Actually, his brother starts year 10 in September and is doing his gcse maths in November (and has been told he is expected to start AS maths after that). He has been given practice papers to do over the summer which he actually made a start on last week (unprompted!). I asked him how he knew how he was doing if he didn't have the answers and suggested they might be on the school website. He said exactly the same thing about knowing which questions he can do and when he can't do one it highlights an area he needs to revise.

Just to say that DS's school set no homework for the period btwn GCSE's and A levels .
I didn't realise that this was fantastically unusual .

The DDs school dont set homework between Y11 and Y12 because they leave school in the May and don't know whether they have a place in 6th form till the end of August. Plus loads of them change their subject choices based on the GCSE results...
I'd have thought a school which did set work would be the unusual one tbh

DS wasn't given any work to do in the summer either.

I have taught in schools in 3 authorities that all set A Level Prep

On the Maths Forum on TES we talk about A Level Prep quite a lot (that is where I got the sheet)

In the authority where I work ... every school I know sets this work

Different experiences I guess

Though I do wonder what these schools do on Sixth Form Induction days in the June/July of Y11

DS is going into Y12, he has been set Maths, Physics, Chemistry and Tech to do over the summer.
Fortunately the Phsics & Chemistry is very much based on the work covered in triple science that he sat in June, but the school also accepts pupils with the double science award so I guess it's aimed more to bring them up to speed.

The maths book is called CGP Headstart to AS Maths.

"Though I do wonder what these schools do on Sixth Form Induction days in the June/July of Y11"

Ours helps the newbies settle in and feel welcomed: it's all about teambuilding & bonding, and a bit of admin. It's nothing to do with the academic side.

ours help them think about what choices they migt make for their courses after they get their results in august.

to be honest I think the kids deserve a break between GCSE and the start of AS.

Why saddle them with more, rather pointless work before the course starts?

MC, the maths prep work certainly isn't pointless. Many struggle to make the leap from GCSE to AS and drop out or do poorly on the first module and need to resit. The prep work helps them bridge the gap.

Also, it's a useful assessment tool. If they can't cope with the questions on the sheet that's been linked to, they are not really suitable maths AS candidates and the sooner they find that out the better, in terms of picking up other courses.

noblegiraffe and I are both talking from the position of Maths teachers and I agree with her comment on the essential work

But ... my daughter has been given Biology and Chemistry tasks to do that are clearly designed to encourage students to read about Science in the real world scenarios ... something that is (I understand) more important at A Level

In addition she has been given a reading list and an essay for History ... since the 2 periods she is going to study are new to her she has appreciated the reading list

Her friends are doing English Lit ... given the reading requirements of this course I am at a loss to understand why schools would not provide a reading list

I was talking from the point of view of an Biology teacher. personally I don't see the point.

'a biology' teacher...its been a long day

DS2 going to a sixth form college in september. He went for a taster day in July and they were given a booklet which had preparation work for each subject the college teaches. This included a 1000 word essay for History! Until he goes to enroll next week he won't even know if he is on the courses he wants. Currently at Reading festival and has still not done the history essay.
BTW on the taster day the college set the prospective maths A level students a test to make sure they were up to it (shows how much faith they have in GCSE grades)

3 Ds at AS seems low for a grammar to be asking its Y12 pupils for in order to progress to Y13.
All the grammars and some of the comps too around here want 3 Cs as a minimum.

English teacher here: we don't set work for the Year 11s going into Year 12 because GCSE results will often change a student's choices quite dramatically! More to the point, we don't all teach the same texts - so if students are asked to read 'Turn of the Screw' over the summer, they'll be a bit fed up if they then find themselves in the set studying 'Jane Eyre'!