Are GCSE choices as complicated as they seem? Is there an idiot's guide?

[ragged]

I am foreign so come from a very different system.
Modular vs. linear GCSEs, taking GCSEs too early, coursework GCSE vs. IGCSEs, BTecs (what are they, anyway??), what's wrong with league tables, what's wrong with EBacc, what's wrong with MFL, whether GCSE results matter that much, how do I know which options are best for my DC (etc.)....

Has it always been this complicated? Do I just listen to what's on offer at my own DC high school & try to ignore the rest of these gabillion possibilities & considerations? How in the world can anybody plan their child's University future at age 12-14, which seems to be required? I feel like I understand so much but still after years of perusing relevant threads on MN, I still understand so little.

Sigh.

ps: oh, and it seems like the goalposts keep moving ("reforms"!), so it's pointless to try to understand the system now because it could completely change at any moment, anyway.

On the question of modular v. linear or GCSE v. IGCSE, I don't think there is a question. You do what the school offers! How can you do an IGCSE if the school doesn't run it?
I haven't got much experience of vocational qualifications, only GCSE. I would recommend that your DC keep their future open for as long as possible i.e. do a wide spread of subjects. This means the essentials of Eng Lit, Eng Lang, Maths and double science. Then choose options: say one each of a Humanity, a MFL, and expressive art and a technology.
That's it really. Concentrate on getting them a good education and the rest follows.

what senua said - keep all options open

Nothing wrong with MFL to start with! ( MFL teacher here!)

seriously tho, you need to go with the options at your DCs' school, yes, as anything else will mean changing schools in year 9 which is no a good idea, other things being equal.

So as far as options go, these vary from school to school; most (all) insist on Eng, Maths and Science; some will strongly encourage a modern language (because of the Ebacc), others will not; some will insist on a tech subject (DT, food tech, textiles etc), others that everyone does ICT (this often but not always depends on the specialism of the school).

I would in general advise a choice with an element of academic rigour as long as the student is up to it (eg history/geography, MFL) alongside something they love to do (art, food, etc).

BTECs are a coursework based route to a qualification so eg science BTEC is a good way for a student who does less well in exams to get a science GCSE equivalent (for purposes of uni/future jobs).

Not sure if that answers all your qus but hope t helps.

Ah yes you see what senua said, only she said it more concisely

If your child is in Year 9 or below, then they will be doing linear GCSEs. Don't worry about modular.

If your child is in a selective independent schools, they may do some IGCSEs. IGCSEs tend to be linear (exams at the end of the course) and do not have intermediate assessments.

BTecs are for lower achieving students who benefit from doing bitesize pieces of work.

IMO, Ebacc is a good thing. It is to the benefit of the student to have a rigorous and well-rounded education. It's what I got 30+ years ago, so doesn't faze me now.

I think some reforms are very good, especially those that allows every student to achieve something. But it has to be clear what the student is achieving and put into perspective.

As a mother of a variety of teenagers, I can reassure you that no one is choosing their future at age 12 or 13. If a student does traditional courses, they will keep most of their options open.

Sorry, it's just that the phrase "good education" has cultural assumptions built into it that I think I'll struggle with.

But it's helpful to learn that schools tend to only offer one or the other (types of GCSEs), I didn't realise that would be the case. Are BTecs always "vocational" qualifications, then? Does that mean they're no good to enable entrance to 6th form college and/or Uni? Don't most state secondaries offer both BTecs & GCSEs? Does this mean that expectations about how academic a kid is, are supposed to be set by age 12-13?

Is "good education" the same as British thing about "having standards"?. It's like when friend told me that a school used "old fashioned teaching methods", and I well and truly didn't know what that meant & friend was flummoxed that I couldn't immediately understand, except that it now is evident that my DC at schools that use "new" teaching methods turned out to be more stimulated & satisfied (maybe just anecdotal that experience, though, my conclusion that old-fashioned = unimaginative).

Keeping options open makes sense, I hope I can cling to that as a principle.

eek, major X post, will see what other replies said.
Clarifications on what BTec means, when they might be best, are very helpful!
Friend with DD in y8 is being called in to talk about GCSE choices soon.

OP yr DS will most likely be advised to take GCSE or BTEC in certian subjects I imagine.

There are differences eg f you do GCSE music, it's quite traditional (playing a classicaly instrument etc) but BTEC music is much more about composing rock songs (slightly glib, that, but that was my observation at the secondary I wrked at last year). BTEC science is (in general) suggested for lower-achieving pupils but IMO it should be more about what would suit the child (ie exams or coursework based) rather than how able they are!

What sort of levels is your DC at now?

Some schools like to enter kids early for GCSE. Don't let them. Kids will get a B in Year 10 when they could get an A or A* in Year 11.

What sort of child is your DC? Do you think they are heading for University? Are there certain subjects he/she thrives in?

Your DC will be swayed to make more traditional choices as the Ebac has been foisted on schools by a Tory government to try to make all 21st century kids have an education like Tory boys in the 1950s (i.e Geography not music, French not Drama).

Every school has its own way of doing things, but make a fuss if you do not like the options they give you.

What sort of child is your DC? Do you think they are heading for University?

But that's the question that infuriates me (& baffles me). Why do I have to typecast them at age 12-13, which seems like the English system does? (Friend being called in to discuss her y8 DD's GCSE strategy, the child is only 12).

Twelve.

Fuck me, I was still learning how to pick my nose properly at age 12. I certainly wouldn't want my parents to be making choices that could strongly impact on what I might feel up to achieving by age 17-18.

Well I thought I understood it only to discover dd1 is going IGCSEs and it seems that some of them are more in depth/more difficult than the GCSE equivalent...

Is your child bright? If so, GCSEs.

or IGCSE, is equivalent )real equivalent - some are harder, some the same, some a little less). BTEC tend to be vocational, ie. not for academically minded students.

I agree Ragged. I came through a different educational system myself and here people are always trying to explain things by reference to the past, eg x exam is like the old xy exam but harder... If you don't have a feel for how things used to be, it's hard to understand these descriptions.

My dd y9 is supposed to choose ten subjects, whereas for me 7 or 8 at that age and level would be more normal. Why so many?

I agree that the exam system in the uk has developed into some kind of bloated madness and that it is difficult to navigate through it. To a large extent we have to hope as parents that our DC's school don't decide to take on some sort of bizarre regime of lots of lots of gcses taken over three years or push kids into decisions that do have adverse consequences later on. Unfortunately we are tied by how each school decides to do things.

I would concentrate on understanding what exactly will be available for your own DC to choose from and think about whether you feel what is on offer matches their abilities and talents. It doesn't have to be about university but it is about understanding which qualification allows further study.

I treat things like GCSE options on a "need to know" basis - I know absolutely nothing about IGCSEs but that's fine as DS isn't doing any

here I go again; having to clear up the misconceptions regarding BTECs!

They are not just for lower ability students; believe it or not we also have higher ability students taking the qualification (you have to have a high ability to achieve distinction!)

You can use them to gain entry to 6th form/university

You can use them to enter a A level in the same subject

They are a different way of learning and showing what you have learnt from the traditional academic manner (which is why lower ability students can succeed) but they are just as worthwhile

Sorry, it's just that the phrase "good education" has cultural assumptions built into it that I think I'll struggle with.

Can you expand on this? I'm not sure that I see what the problem is.
I think a "good education" means keeping up a range of subjects so that you acquire a range of skills: logic, comprehension, analysis, criticism, the ability to write well and give presentations, creativity, problem solving, understanding of language (native and other), working to deadlines, communicating, as well as many questions about the nature of the world along the lines of what/where/who/why/when/how.

Yes there are a lot of misconceptions regarding BTECs but as I said its about understanding what will be useful if you want to study further - so if you do a BTEC in science you might find problems if you decide you want to be a doctor but a BTEC in performing arts will still be helpful if you want to go on and study English at a top university.

OK - sorry to just blurt out edu-speak...

But, for instance, if your child is Year 9 and is working at L3 (say) across the board, then it is fairly unlikely (statistically) that s/he will end up studying medicine at university.

If your DC is getting L6s ad 7s at age 13, then university is a distinct possibility.

This isn't to judge them, but just working within a framework.

Some people think that with the right amount of motivation and environment anyone is capable of anything, but look at Prince Harry, just about scraped through his A Levels even after a huge amount of effort had gone into his education.

Yes, as webwiz says, it's all about stepping stones. At most stages of exams it's about making sure that you are doing the right subjects and getting sufficient grades to get on to the next set of exams. You start out with a broad range and gradually narrow it down the further you go through the system.

Seuna, for me it's like that word "bright": there's no one obvious definitive definition (so ditto for the phrase "a good education"); everyone has their own picture what those words mean, which are naturally culturally biased.

But I sort of understand what you are trying to get at. I was fairly "academic" (another loaded meaningless word) myself, and indeed worked in Universities, so I think I do understand what are and aren't rigorous and cerebral subjects, at least.

to be honest, there is one thing I used to quite like about the English secondary system, and about 12 things that irritate me (at best). The bewildering array of qualifications is near the top of my list of Not Good Aspects of English secondary system.

But not sure if I'm just being a crochety furrener by saying all that.
It's good to hear that the system is more flexible than it pretends to be (possible to kick up a stink and demand other options). I guess it's like childbirth, you have to remember who's really in charge?!

Independent schools and selective grammars don't offer BTECs, do they?

It is quite bizarre how some people endlessly claim that BTECs are just as good as GCSEs. They aren't worse - but they are DIFFERENT!

Ds's comprehensive school only offers one BTEC - that's in Performing Arts and it's only available to certain pupils.

I have heard of schools/teachers who for some reason refuse to make any distinction between exams - something which is more likely to have an impact on pupils with less informed parents. My teacher sil intervened when she discovered that one of the most able pupils was taking BTEC Health & Social Care. The girl had been advised that this was useful if she wanted to do medicine (!). Sil was hauled over the coals and told that the policy was "all courses are equal" and that she was denigrating Health & Social Care.

Your child probably won't get that much choice. Mine get to choose 3 subjects, the rest are compulsory; so a Mfl which they may have chosen earlier, two English, Maths, two or three science, and RE. Then three options.

I would say that the best thing to do, if your child is capable, is to do the combination of subjects that doesn't start closing doors for them.

I cannot think of a single career that you would reduce your chances of being able to enter if you didn't have a BTEC at 16. If you want to do a particular course - childcare, performing arts, plumbing at post 16, you don't need a particular BTEC to do that. If you want to do a particular course - dentistry, medicine, foreign languages post 16, you do need particular GCSEs to do that.

So if a child is capable, I would suggest they do Maths, Eng Lang, Eng Lit, MFL, triple or double science, two academic subjects (History, Geography, another language etc) and one subject that shows fine motor skills - Art, Music, certain technology courses or possibly Drama (but you can do LAMBDA and RAD qualifications out of school).

DS (year 9) is sure what he wants to do, but he is still being told by the school and me to do a broad range of subjects so that no door closes to him at 14.