BTECs starting 2015 - General support thread

[TeenAndTween]

Is there anyone else around whose child is starting a BTEC rather than A levels? Should we stay on this board or move to Further Education?

My DD has enrolled for Travel & Tourism.

Pottering along OK (well actually hobbling on crutches ), parents evening on Tuesday. I've decided DD will go home on bus as usual and I'll just go alone due to appointment times and distance.

Oh no T&T Plan here next Tuesday is DD to get train to where DH works, have some food then they go off to parent's evening whilst I stay with DS. I'm a bit nervous as DD currently off to work for first time and she was very nervous.

We are hoping for DD to get work at 'local theme park' for next season as it will go well with her course and only starts after panto. (Crutches not as bad as it sounds, will be abandoned next week, but impacting rehearsals for panto at the moment!)

Sugar Hope the first day goes well. My DS finally got a job and has been there a month now. I did query whether ordering pizza was allowed but apparently the manager wanted some as well!

T & T Hope the crutches go next week. Hope she gets the job

And to both of you hope parent's evening goes well.

After plenty of nagging my DS finally submitted his UCAS application. Now has 3 offers and 1 interview. Not heard from his 1st choice yet so am keeping my fingers crossed

That's great news for DS GasLight. Fingers firmly crossed for first choice.

Glad end in sight for crutches T&T. That would be great for DD if she can get a job there so fingers firmly crossed for her too.

Had an Ed Psych report for DS today, he has dyslexia.

Thanks Sugar

Sorry if you have already mentioned it. How old is your DS? Were you waiting for the report to get help?

I don't think I have on here. He's 12 in Year 7 and totally miserable at school, but that's mainly due to bullying. Went in yesterday and he's moving classes.

He actually does very well in things like SATs and CATs test but has got into a bit of a mess with homework recently where he can't read what he's written to be able to log onto the system and things like that, I've been a bit suspicious for years and the head at first school did a 'test' which he sailed through. It was things like he hated reading aloud, struggled with the order of months, writing poor, spelling lower than expected, hates learning French plus most have his cousins have it or dyspraxia along with DD and probably DS.

Report was interesting as has a massive variation in the range of test scores. He's worked out strategies to hide it well. I think he'll need to start using a laptop at some point for somethings to get what he's capable for GCSE.

This has made DD think and DH is going to flag her dyspraxia at parents evening tonight, she thinks she has ADD and I think she might be right. Also I think she might have dyslexia too so she's going to ask student services to be tested. Unless she changes her mind.

I hope the moving classes is helping and I hope that now you have the diagnosis that the school will be able to start getting a plan put together. Is he able to voice record thing like homework.

How did parent's evening go? And did she say anything?

T & T How did parents evening go for you?

Thanks for asking. It was productive I think is the best way to put it. She didn't say about dyspraxia but is being assessed for dyslexia and dyscalculia. They saw two tutors. One says she us barely scraping a pass in his stuff but only saw her book once near the beginning. The other was more upbeat. The third is ill.

She said if she stopped next summer then it will be a 90 credit course as each year is 90 and she thinks DD would be looking at merit merit or distinction merit. DD said to bloke she finds the darkroom hard and he offered additional help. She also showed them a compilation of photos set to music and she can submit that and she said she felt he was surprised and looked at her differently.

The next day he produced a sheet to help her that others had already had before she joined which she said is a big help. Plus he made a point of saying to her he was proud of what she had achieved that lesson.The other tutor did try to persuade her to be open minded about the second year. DD has been a bit more positive since the but I don't think she will do year 2.

Meanwhile she saw the lady who organises trips to their sister school who is trying to recruit her for GCSE mandarin. She is vaguely contemplating it but don't think she will. What she wants to do is drop photography at end of year then do Japanese A level the next. She's resigned from her job as it was too much at the moment, a shame but I think the right decision.

Meanwhile after a difficult few days of anticipation, DS returned to school into new class and so far seems a lot happier, making me realise how indredibly stressed he was before. The SENCO has the report and will come back to me. I think he could do with a couple of weeks to settle before any changes re dyslexia implemented but will be pushing for a few bits to gradually start next year. Ended the week feeling emotionally exhausted but slept solidly for 10.5 hours last night and have woken up feeling human.

T&T how are you and DD?

I'm not really sure how it's going.

Parents evening was so-so. We 'had words' when I got home.
BTEC work has improved, but another assignment is about to be bounced back. Spanish is OK-ish.
But she has missed some sessions, and unclear to me whether due to disorganisation/dyspraxia (acceptable reason just about) or new BF (definitely unacceptable).

Support on academic side is OK, but I'm not impressed by pastoral care. She needs more than she is getting, but waiting list for counselling.

This year wasn't meant to be so stressful. I need to be concentrating on y6 DD2 who is not anywhere near ready for secondary yet.

2 weeks to go ...

I feel for you T&T, I naively though this year might be easier. I agree with you about the pastoral care. DD wanted the independence you get at College but could do with the support she would have got at sixth form. I really thought she would come into her own this year but it hasn't happened and I can't wait until they break up.

Sugar If your DD can just get to the end of the academic year. When my DD was struggling I kept saying to her during the Christmas holidays there is six months left. It was hard work being upbeat and hard work dealing with her stress and at there age six months is almost a lifetime but I kept repeating it!

Hate to be negative but have you checked that only doing one 'A'level is allowed. There are funding issues - my DD was not allowed to drop one subject in Y12 all because of the funding. Worth checking it out. Not sure but think they are allowed to deviate if there are SENs.

Hope your DS settles in.

Only two weeks to go

Thanks GasLight, appreciate the support. She's been to,d they finish in June so been doing the 6 month thing. She wouldn't be down the A level in school or college as know it isn't enough for funding plus no where round here does Japanese. So if she goes this route am planning to say home edding her until 18th birthday and her Skype tutor plus local lady who helped her just before GCSE will be helping her

Hoping the school where she did GCSE's will be kind and enter her for the exam as a private candidate if I pay or I guess she could ask the Mandarin tutor at existing college, school a lot closer though.

Sugar Just wanted to make sure you understood! ** - I am on your behalf.

T & T I wish I could suggest something. If work is improving could this be a the last of the bounce backs?

What was her attitude like after you had words?

You do have to wonder sometimes what qualifications/experience these pastoral care teams have? I am sure some are very good but...

I don't understand the full impact of dyspraxia so excuse any ignorance but can you ever get to a point where you can say it's down to her now. Not that it stops you worrying.

I'm sorry that this is not helping your DS

Gaslight I'm very grateful, there's a good chance I wouldn't have known that. Just been having a ponder in the shower and I think it probably is the way to go for her. She's got prediction of merit merit or distinction merit for BTEC then B for A Level. So if she got merit merit and. C that would be 200 UCAS points,, merit merit plus B is 220, distinction merit plus C is 240 and distinction merit plus B 260.

She's trying to keep her options for a course she is interested in which is 220 UCAS points so might be ok. Though I still think she needs to travel rather than university. However I can see the sense in trying to keep options open.

I'm going to email a 6th form college who do the GCSE and just check for sure they can't help, then approach her old school I think.

Think the difficulties T&T and I are having with our DD's show level 3 can be very hard goi g for those with additional needs.

Good idea to keep options open and try and go with a plan that gives as many options. Travelling sounds great too (I wish I had). Not that higher education is the be all and end all but it is also good that she is not totally ruling it out. As long as she is making rational decisions that's the main thing.

Level 3 is very full on and not always the easy option that a lot of people think it is. Her predicted grades are good so I do hope she can keep plodding on

Not sure if this is a feasible option or not but has she thought of doing a teaching english as a foreign language qualification. Combined with the foreign language could it make her more desirable while travelling.

I think with DD there is an element of if she doesn't like who she is with in class or the teacher then she finds it hard to buckle down. I'm sensing that she's trying hard to get over that which is good. Level 3 has definitely been a shock to her. I don't think any of this has been helped by her Grandad dying at start of September.

With DH's parents emigrating and also my Mother and Brother, suspect travel is in her genes and always on the cards ! She made a lovely group of friends scattered around Europe who she can travel with which makes me feel happy about it. TEFL is a great idea and I'm going to float that past her.

Anyone with a teen struggling in the mornings, one of those sunrise clocks is helping DD.

if she doesn't like who she is with in class or the teacher then she finds it hard to buckle down

Funny you should say that. Just received DS's report. Very good except one subject. So shocked that I checked the name at the top in case it was a rogue sheet (had that happen before). When I spoke to him all he said was 'she's a cow'! Doesn't like her and is struggling to concentrate

DS is struggling in the mornings but that's because he is going to bed too late

The going to bed late common topic of conversation amongst friends at the moment. I think they're all pretty knackered right now.

It just goes to show how the teacher can make or break something in some cases. DD said the male tutor is being really nice to her and thinks the other had a go at him. Just handed over further money for photographic paper, travel plus equipment roughly £150 a month at the moment.

Trip to Student support services today for DD . He looked through books bad asked questions and feels she has mild ADD and dyslexia which along with her hypermobility may have been misdiagnosed for dyspraxia as he says hard to tell when young. She is going to be formally tested for dyscalculia next term with view to extra time in maths. I would have liked formal testing for dyslexia and may well arrange that myself, am just thinking.

One of tutors has decided DD needs to type things from now on. She's more upbeat about the next assignments as well. So ending week on a fairly ok note.

Your DD went which is step forward. Why are they not testing for dyslexia?

Good the tutor is suggesting typing - presentation will be better.

Sounds like perseverance is starting to pay off

Oh my Sugar. £150 a month! I was feeling sorry for myself about the £200 one off for sports kit although am in the process of drafting an e-mail to HOD. DS is a second year student and my feelings are that new uniform should apply to the new students. When he started one set was required for practical which we bought. Now they are saying they have to wear it everyday. Oh and last year's uniform is obsolete

He seems to feel after looking at books and asking questions that it isn't an issue. I need to discuss that with DH over the weekend. The bloke she saw is specifically for the arty students, everyone else gets someone else. She liked him and feels she can approach him which is good . Thing is with DD she won't be told and has to get to these decisions herself. Now I've realised that I gently encourage then shut up.

Reading a bit about ADD I have to say it does sound like her to be honest. Someone she met this summer has it so she's been getting tips. I'm hoping she may yet settle on the course and see the two years through.

I'm wrong about cost as have just realised it is 4 month term and not 3, we've spent £461 so far, travel a killer. £200 for sports kit is outrageous and totally agree it should be just for new students. DD's old school did this when they changed the uniform, much fairer.

So today DD:

• forgot her conversation lesson AGAIN

(reminder in phone, but phone off, written in planner, but didn't check plan for the day)

• apparently did her enrichment but forgot to sign in

(marked as Authorised? absence)

• had her assignment corrupted, so phoned asking me to send a backup(good). I was out but said I'd do it when I returned. I sent it during enrichment, and texted, phoned and emailed to say, but apparently when she checked after enrichment it wasn't there, but she failed to contact me to check (and of course phone was off ...)

Result: Big argument at home.

I think we need a depressed icon and a fed up icon for this thread.