GCSE options: obligatory or not?

[KatyBB]

Hi, does anyone know whether I can refuse to take the "options" my son's grammar school offer? There are 'Core Curriculum' subjects that the school says the boys MUST take - English, English Literature, Mathematics, RE, ICT, Science, PHSE & Citizenship and PE. The remaining 4 subjects will be chosen from the option blocks.
PE? PHSE? RE? Why on earth does he HAVE to do those? That means he'll have to drop some of the stuff he shines at - history, geography, French, Spanish, art, drama. That sounds nuts! Grrrr.

I think RE is compulsory in most schools, actually at GCSE it is really interesting, lots of ethics and stuff. A lot of students hate it at secondary but enjoy GCSE.

Are you sure PE and PHSE are GCSE's? Again they're compulsory subjects, but NOT gcse.

If he's doing all those and 4 options, then that sounds a fairly normal curriculum tbh

I think you'll find that PSHE, PE and RE are compulsory. RE is likely to be the only GCSE.

I agree with you about the RE, OP. DS's school has made RE compulsory, but fortunately they are not doing the ethics units. All schools have to do PSE and PE, but the exams are not using compulsory.

These are compulsory subjects but none of them are legally compulsory GCSEs. However, some schools do insist - on the 'if you've got to do them at all, you might as well go the whole hog' basis.

ICT sounds odd to be compulsory, unless its a specialism of the school.

Mad to have to do them as GCSEs if it means dropping other subjects.

DDs GS has mandatory English, English Literature, Mathematics, Triple Science, an MFL and a tech. They then have 3 other options (the humanities, another MFL, art, drama, music, ICT or Computer Science) plus a half gcse for citizenship - 11.5 total. Your DSs school sounds like its doing too many yet still not allowing a good selection.

No they won't all be GCSE's or the students will each be taking 13 GCSe's, even if Science is only Double.

13 GCSEs wouldn't be that odd for a grammar though.
Agree with others - they have to attend RE, PSHE, and PE lessons, so maybe there is some confusion between tsking the lessons, and taking the GCSE ? Alternatively, they may have said "You're studying it anyway, so might as well get the exam credit for it". I can see that with RE and PSHE& Citinzenship, but it doesn't really fit with PE as there is a lot of classroom study to go alongside the 'being active' for a PE GCSE.
It varies so much from schoo to school, you really need to go and ask. I'd be surprised (at a grammar particularly) if you are the only one concerned about having to take PE GCSE rather than a MFL for example.

DS is at grammar and will be doing 3x Science, 2x Maths, 2x English, RE, IT, 1x MFL and 3 options, so that is 13.

DD will have the same core compulsory subjects but only gets 3 extra options. RE is only one lesson a week and is only a half gcse but they can do the extra phylosophy and ethics as a twilight subject to make it up to a full gcse.
PSHE is done in form and they get half a gcse in citizenship for that.
There is no exam for PE.

Mine are at grammar school too but 11 is the standard there. I'm curious ClothesofSand, at your DSs' school do they take the exams all in one go or spread them? And do they do modular or linear? 13 is a lot.

What are '2 x maths' -Maths, and Statistics?

DS - at local state comp, not a grammar - will end up with 12 + an AS. They did do both English at the end of Yr10, but that still leaves him with 10 and an AS they are doing in Yr11. Some (eg Science) are modular, but the 3rd Science doesn't take up an extra 'option space' as the boys in the top 2 sets study for the 3 in the same allocated lesson time that the others study for 2 (or the BTEC Science).

From this current Year9s who are chosing their options now, there will be no moduler gcses.

DD (yr 10 now, so chose options last year).
Also had a few too many, and not enough options.

For top sets GCSEs
Eng x 2, Maths,
EITHER science x 3 and 3 options
OR science x 2, MFL x 1 and 3 options

So that's 9 GCSE's

AND compulsory for ALL sets
BTEC Sport (supposedly worth between 1 and 4 GCSEs)
OCR ICT (worth 1 GCSE)

So supposedly 11 to 14 GCSE or 'equivalent'

PSHE weekly lessons but no GCSE
RE short course in year 11 but no GCSE.

They are all linear except Maths and are sat at the end of year 11. The only exception is that set 1 do linear Maths GCSE at the end of year 10 and then do GCSE Additional Maths GCSE in year 11. The other sets do the Government pilot qualifications - GCSE Methods in Mathematics and GCSE Applications in Mathematics. Those two Maths GCSEs are modular; one unit is sat in November of year 11 and one in summer of year 11.

I may be mis-using the term modular. The units can't be re-sat separately like the modular GCSEs that are going, but the two exams are not both in the summer according to the GCSE booklet that has just been sent home.

I know that bruffin, perhaps that will reduce the numbers of GCSE's taken. Or perhaps more will be staggered, to 'compensate'.

That's pretty rigorous Clothes. Must be one of the top superselectives. Actually I'd forgotten my current GCSEer is doing two maths, so that pushes the standard number at his school up to twelve.

Well, eleven and a half I suppose, since RE is the short course.

Yellowtips, I think it is probably because when a lot of other schools started moving GCSEs forward and doing them early, so that they could spend more time on A levels, DS's school kept to the traditional route of a 3 year KS3 and then two years of GCSEs. It gives them 3 years to really give the pupils a solid foundation before they get into the stress of working towards GCSEs, but then only two years for A levels when some other local schools start AS in year 11. Maybe that early A level start will go now that GCSEs have become linear.

I still worry that it is a lot. DS has just messed up one of his language assessments due to not working very hard recently so I don't know if he will be allowed to do a second foreign language as one of his options. I will wait and see what they have to say at parents' evening.

Thanks so much for all this, I feel much better equipped to be the gobby, difficult mother at the options evening coming up on March 6. Well... someone has to be! But I'm disturbed that our children in Year 9 will be the first to be unable to resit parts of GCSEs. Whatever the rights and wrongs of the present system, by comparison to previous years, that's bound to affect their results. Just how hard do our children have to work? What they are being asked to do is crazy at the moment, I feel, and now it's getting tougher. All work and no play.
www.bbc.co.uk/news/education-13922439
www.guardian.co.uk/education/2011/jun/26/final-year-exams-replace-modules-gcse

No KatyBB even for kids at schools which have stuck to linear, it's definitely not all work and no play. Have you had a child take GCSEs yet or it is your first.

Poor teachers. Does there really have to be someone who's gobby and difficult? Find out exactly what it is your school is suggesting first and why, or you could end up with a reputation for being gobby and difficult without just cause.

KatyBB A lot of people (very often the parents of dds rather than dss, IME ) feel that the current system of them having modular exams and controlled assessment continuously for (at least) 2 years, is actually a LOT more pressure than the old (and now to be 'new' again) system where all the pressure is piled on at the end of Yr 11 only.

I do think this varies, according to the gender personallity of your child, but it's something I've heard over and over, both on here, and in RL.

You have a legal right under Section 71 of the School Standards and Framework Act 1988 to remove your child from RE lessons and religious assemblies. However, whether such a move might be detrimental to your child is open to opinion. You could find out what the school would offer your child to do during the RE period, would he be given something constructive to do or library time for instance? In our school the child who didn't do RE was sat in isolation in a classroom all on their own and suffered ridicule because of it. It might be worth checking what alternative arrangements your school has in place for students whose parents withdraw them from RE.

PE and PSHE are compulsory but non GCSE
RE is compulsory (non GCSE) unless you opt out.
I have done so for DD and will do for DS
school gave us the form.

DD is doing GCSE stats in year 10 and GCSE maths in year 11
and three sciences in two timetable slots
school have moved away from extra subjects because with everything back to being final exams (nearly) it will make the summer term of year 11 REALLY heavy

ICT is still currently a core subject at KS4. Whether or not it is taken as a qualification depends on the school as if it is shown as it being fully covered, it can be delivered through the curriculum rather than on its own. There are not many schools though that can demonstrate this within core subject SoW therefore the majority of schools keep with dedicated lessons