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Secondary education

Connect with other parents whose children are starting secondary school on this forum.

Original poster

I got it wrong, the school doesn't want DD to do 14 GCSEs

84 replies

KatyMac · 11/01/2012 21:52

Only 12 plus 2 Btechs

That's not fair

OP posts:
hellhasnofury · 12/01/2012 07:48

I don't understand why they want her to do science at BTECH and GCSE.

14 GCSEs is achievable, my dd did that as well as a heavy training load but she was top set in all subjects except maths where she was set 2.

Have the school explained their reasoning? In reality the only subjects that have been any use to DD beyond getting into 6th form have been English, maths, and science.

Original poster
KatyMac · 12/01/2012 10:39

I don't know either tbh wrt the science

& she isn't top set for anything

OP posts:
Lancelottie · 12/01/2012 10:43

Bloody hell that's a lot.

I might show this thread to DS1 who is currently whingeing about the workload for 9 GCSEs.

(Comp here as well, though allegedly an 'outstanding' one, which means it knows how to play the results game if nothing else.)

TalkinPeace2 · 12/01/2012 13:12

at DCs school around 30 kids per year get 14 GCSEs spread over the two years
we have options coming up for DS and its looking like

English Lang, English Lit
Phys, Chem, Bio
Maths, Further Maths, Computer coding (after school) , Business Studies (home study)
Geography, History
French, Spanish, Latin and maybe Italian (after school)
and Art

I've said to the teachers I'm only interested in her doing huge numbers of subjects if they are certain she'll get straight A* (as 3 girls did last year)

Lancelottie · 12/01/2012 13:25

ermm, Talkinpeace, that looks like 17 subjects to me...

Lancelottie · 12/01/2012 13:25

..or even 16

TalkinPeace2 · 12/01/2012 13:36

I know, I counted.
Only 14 are in school time and when we have the options meeting I may put the kibosh on some of them.
Thing is the teachers all want her doing their subjects as she comes in the top 5 in the cohort
Much easier in my day with only 8!

Original poster
KatyMac · 12/01/2012 20:54

8 would be better

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Hassled · 12/01/2012 20:57

Blimey - what a nightmare for you. Your school is a bit ahead of mine - we're going through this in a few weeks with DS2, and it was all different in DS1 and DD's day.

I agree that the whole BTech thing seems like pointless additional pressure - and for what?

Asinine · 12/01/2012 21:00

How do you know she won't do A levels? Is that from the school or from her? If they have to stay in education until 18 what will she do?

More GCSEs? Grin

I would be telling the school that less is more.

Original poster
KatyMac · 12/01/2012 21:02

She is likely to do vocational school - dancing/drama/musical theatre unless she does that sooner. I don't want he to go at the start of Yr10 but we will see.

She definitely can't do all that

OP posts:
Original poster
KatyMac · 12/01/2012 21:17

Hi Hassled ae ou two in the same year (yr9)?

DD is part way through 4 already Hmm

OP posts:
Hassled · 12/01/2012 21:24

Yup, Yr 9 - "pathways" meetings are coming up. DS2 seems to know what he wants to do already.

Original poster
KatyMac · 12/01/2012 21:25

They sort of launched the GCSEs on us last year without any much discussion

OP posts:
seeker · 12/01/2012 21:35

9i know this will be irritating, but are you absolutely sure? the school near us that do early GCSEs only do 10/12. my dd is in a very academic grammar school and they do 10-of which only 8 have to be academic subjects. They have to beg if they want to do any more.

I would go in and talk to her head of year, explain about her dance commitments and seeif you can work something out. I would also be very careful about deciding she's not going to do A levels, though. Who knows what xoould happen over the next 2 years?

Original poster
KatyMac · 12/01/2012 21:38

I went in to see them on Tuesday which is where I got the info from

I do think vocational school is where she is heading, but you are right we should wait & see

OP posts:
DiscoDaisy · 12/01/2012 21:57

My DD did 2 GCSEs at the end of year 10 and got B's in both of them. They were ICT and D & T. This year (yr11) she is taking 9 GCSEs plus a B Tech.

Original poster
KatyMac · 13/01/2012 19:52

The options pack arrived this evening

DD wants to do GCSE Music as her option for yr 10; I'm less sure I'd rather she did Drama (I think it's a bit lighter) this year then Music instead of 2 options in yr 11

We have another meeting next week

OP posts:
mycatsaysach · 13/01/2012 20:07

music is quite a tough choice - both of my dcs have taken it.will it be offered as a 1 year option - there is a lot of work.

Original poster
KatyMac · 13/01/2012 20:29

1 yr; 5.5 timetabled hours a week I think

OP posts:
Ponders · 13/01/2012 20:46

DD2, who is musical & had already done Grade V theory & was at about Grade VI flute, did Music GCSE over 2 years & found it tough(she got a B iirc)

Original poster
KatyMac · 13/01/2012 20:52

That's what I thought

I'd rather she did it in Yr 11 instead of 2 options

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Chubfuddler · 13/01/2012 20:55

Ridiculous. I went to a grammar school and did nine gcses then four a levels (but one was general studies) and went to a Russell group university. The nearby comp pupils did 12 and I could not understand the reasoning for it.

TalkinPeace2 · 13/01/2012 21:00

DD did the www.cascaid.co.uk/kudos/ today
it was pretty darned accurate
even more so once DH and I did it (in cynical mode)
and it came up with our current professions!!

NB
GCSEs now are much easier than they were in GCE days
top girl in my class did 9 - and now leads a research team at an RG Uni
to do that now, DD will NED at least 11/12

Original poster
KatyMac · 13/01/2012 21:05

Do I have to pay to do that?

OP posts: