English GCSE advice on predicted grades please

[Dancingdreamer]

We recently attended my DD's GCSE option evening. We were advised by the English teacher that she is not capable of getting an A in English language and is firmly a B level. However he did believe she could get an A or A in English literature. She has to take both for GCSE at her school. For all other subjects she wants to study she is predicted As or possible As. (This includes another languages and history). We were bit surprised as up to now no one at the school has raised any issues about her English language.

Couple of questions please:

1. Why would there be such a difference in the prediction between the two English GCSEs? What skills would she be lacking in English language? Is it posssible 2 years from her exams to improve these predictions and how?

1. Why does she have to do both GCSEs? Would it be better to try and drop the weaker English and do another subject instead to try and get full set of As and A*s? Would that look better when she applies to uni?

Any advice appreciated please.

Dancing. My first thoughts were mild dyslexia. My dyslexic DS is likely to do very well in Lit but won't do so well in Lang because of the spelling and puncutation.

I know what you mean about "natural" rather than "learned". Having a dyslexic DP and DS has been a wake up call on this - they are both probably cleverer than me but neither can spell or punctuate correctly. They just don't "get it" whereas it's something I don't remember having to learn at all.

Mild dyslexia can be hard to spot, especially if your DD is achieving at above average levels. Teachers and school screening may not pick it up.

Kitchendiner - I have thought about this dyslexia question again since got this predicted grade. Just seems strange that her English seems out of line with the other subjects. Not sure, however, where to go with this at school as has already been dismissed. She has struggled also with French (which she is dropping) but, for some reason, not German which she thinks is more logical and she will continue with.

You could consider a private assessment which would be costly. She might be entitled to extra time in exams. It might be something worth investigating. My DP only realised he must have been dyslexic when we discovered our DS was dyslexic and it certainly answered some questions. At school they had not let him do English Literature O Level but despite this, he went on to do a Degree in it. He has found ways to compensate and always double checks his writing. I don't think of dyslexia as being all bad - it can make you think outside the box and be very creative.