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.

Ds's L3 extended diploma covers 540 guided learning hours which over the 38 weeks of the academic year gave an average of just over 14 hours per week. Most BTEC courses in the college where I work (not where ds is) are delivered over 3 days.

His timetable this year is 16 hours with Thursdays completely free which is fine as he has booked his driving lessons for first thing, and a shift at each of his part time jobs for the afternoon and evening.

Tuesdays don't look good though. He only goes in for an hour right in the middle of the day! I'm trying to persuade him to go with his friends to ask if it can be changed so that they can make the most of work experience opportunities.

DS is just going into his second year of a Creative Nedia BTec. He loves it.

Media obviously.

That's a bit of a pain, an hour Eatyourveg That's great to hear BestisWest!

T&T that's helpful, thanks. 3 of her friends are going and I think one has shown her the list, she muttered about something, will definitely check that. The Travel Lady has been hugely helpful and we're seeing her when we're there on Tuesday. It might take a few days until her ID shows on the system apparently so a delay in sorting (unless I wanted to pay in one go which I firmly don't!) but she will still luckily be able to go on the bus. I didn't go on the open evening so will be good to get to see it next week.

Sugar They aren't issuing bus passes until next week (as in week starting 14th). They have to be collected by the Friday as from the 21st they have to be scanned when they get on the bus.

How much does everyone else give their DC to cover lunches?

Nothing. My DS makes his own packed lunch and he is a water drinker. We give him free reign in the supermarket as it suits us big time. He likes pretty healthy stuff though which is why he started it - his mates just hit macdonalds each day.

Thats the problem with college...they find other retail outlets!

That makes sense of something Travel Lady said, thank you. She'll be less worried if she knows how it works. Bus lady has diarised my email then will check daily and let me know as soon as I can pay online. I've just looked at enrichment list and decided I might go back to College.

DD will be having pack lunch and wants a soup thermos. But on her first day I'll give her a fiver or thereabouts.

DS is back tomorrow and is gutted that lessons will be spread over 5 days this year as opposed to the 2.5 days last year!!

To anyone is worried about independent studying you may be surprised. I was extremely worried but my DS has done really well and if he carries on as he did in the first year he will come out with 3 D*s.

Check what marks they are getting for their assessments - I know that sounds a bit obvious but you need to be querying the grade if it is a pass or merit. Some assignments you can only get a pass or a merit but on others it is possible to get a distinction. One bad mark won't be the end of the world and it could happen at the beginning as they get used to how BTEC works. My DS did BTEC sport at school so he knew what was expected.

It is really important for students to understand as if they don't they could be busting a gut but they won't get the higher grades. Sorry to keep harping on about that

Hope that makes sense

Good luck to everyone

Theymakeme Sorry, no, I don't understand.

I know they have to pass each individual unit, but thought then the total marks then just equate to the final grading. As in getting a Pass or 2 wouldn't in itself prevent a DDD outcome (or higher). Is that not right?

Also, how do we/they know what grade they should be aiming at?
(eg a B grade GCSE profile is unlikely to lead to A*s at A level. Is it similar for BTECs?)

I'm not quite with you either, bit of a learning curve this !

As DD not going today I keep forgetting others are. Good luck to everyone

I have had a string of frantic texts this morning as my DD was standing at the wrong bus stop! She has always been able to walk to school before, (and if she wants to go to the town center), so she isn't very sure about using the bus, but I have repeatedly tried to tell her where to stand, and we went out of our way to drive the bus route on Saturday. I would have liked a text to say she had arrived after the bus stop fiasco, but am thinking that the silence means she is there.So, looking forward to hearing all about it tonight.

Fifi I know what you mean regarding buses. I walked (and timed) the route with DD last week to get to the bus stop, and pointed out how she would be dropped off somewhere slightly further up the road at the end of the day.

DD has reported everyone is very tall . (she isn't)

My DS has a C grade GCSE profile (inc E and M) and had a minimum target grade of Distinction, Merit, Merit. However, he finished year one with all distinctions - so don't read too much into the target.

They need to be aiming to hit every mark descriptor on the assignment. Be they passes, merits or distinctions. Just missing one can bring the mark right down, even to a fail if you simply miss one pass criteria. It sounds complicated - its not - just go for every point available!! I haven't had to get involved with my sons as he seems to know exactly what he has to do but, if he didn't, I would be getting his tutor to show him how the mark scheme works so he could understand how each assignment criteria is important.

My DS has his first day back today so hoping it goes really well for him - and all your DCs too.

TeenandTween have a look here to see how the btec is graded. The grade calculator is especially good for keeping tally

Thanks eat I'll check it out.

(Just had a call from DD asking for the number of her bus as she'd forgotten it...)

Hmm, I have to keep remembering DD doing a Cambridge Technical not a BTEC so must actually read up on marking scheme.

Hope they were all ok yesterday and got home on the buses eventually. By a stroke of luck DD's school bus is the same number she as the public bus DD has been catching home from school. Tell your DD that another little one is coming to boost the shorter person numbers T&T !

Buses are a complete pain in the arse.

3 times a week D2 starts at 9am. The 08.15 bus gets to college at 09.05 (and that's without traffic holdups at that time of day).

So if she gets a bus and wants to be on time she has to get the 07.15 bus. Coming home is even worse as after lunch buses are 2 hourly.

So lots of hanging around wasting time and waiting. No good for DD who gets more and more anxious and wound up.

My DS wasn't home till nearly 7pm yesterday - that was shock to him!

This morning his bus was over 20 minutes late so I'm not sure he'd have arrived in time - not great for only his 2nd day!

To those in the know - have you bought any text books? When you talk about mark desriptors, is this just what you have found from looking online or does the tutor tell them what they are?

It's rather odd losing that close communication that you get with a school

The mark descriptors usually come with the assignments. Each assignment will state to get P1 you need to do bla bla bla, to get M1 you need to do all the Ps plus bal bla bla, to get D1 you need to do all the Ps, all the Ms plus bla bla bla. For ds's assignments the Ps are describe questions, the Ms are explain questions and the Ds are evaluate questions. Not all assignments will have all the criteria some will be a max of P others M and others D.

I bought ds the main recommended text book - no-one in the class has one in the classroom so he keeps it here. There will be tons of copies in the college library though so there is no need to spend money.

Thanks - so when you say they 'come with them' do you mean that they are given a handout or something with all the details on?

Are the assignments set by the college or does everyone nationally get the same details at the same time, with a due date for it to be completed by?

Sorry about my inept attempt at trying to explain. eatyourveg has explained just right.

thunderbird They will be given a sheet of paper but I can't remember exactly what is on there.

The main thing (as parents or students) is to ask questions if you don't understand. It is different to GCSEs and it might not all make sense to start.

Thunderbird - assignments are written and internally verified by each centre (so the the vocational scenario will differ as will the form of completion, i.e. letter, presentation, leaflet etc) but they have to met the requirements set for each particular criteria.

For example, Unit 1 (compulsory unit) for Business P5 states that students have to "describe the influence of two contrasting economic environments on business activities within a selected organisation". The assessment guidance states that students need to ensure that they cover 2 of the following:

Economic: importance of stability; impact on business of changes in the economic environment (growth, recession, ripple effect); levels of inflation; availability and cost of credit; labour; changes in government policy (legal, fiscal, monetary)
Demand: influenced by affordability; competition; availability of substitutes; level of Gross Domestic
Product (GDP); needs and aspirations of consumers
Supply: Influenced by availability of raw materials and labour; logistics; ability to produce profitably; competition for raw materials; government support
Changes in supply and demand: supply and demand curves; elasticity of demand; price sensitivity; influence of branding on price sensitivity
Global interaction: levels and types of interdependence (supply chains, ownership of businesses, movement of capital and business operations, reducing ability of national governments to regulate global businesses)

My assignment asks students to present a report for a team of marketing managers of McDonalds as to why they need to market the brand differently to different economic environments and I suggest that they focus on demand and product

They are taught all the above, but the vocational scenario of McDonalds on these two issues are ones my students can identify with, whilst a different centre may have students that can entify with a different scenario and may suggest two different issues to describe.

All assignments have to be verified by another teacher to ensure that they meet the assessment criteria, have a suitable hand in date etc before it is issued to the students.

Centres can run units as and when they want to, but the assignment will be issued with an issue date and hand in date. This is why every students needs to be fully conversant with how their college/school issue, expect hand ins etc

apologies for the formatting issues (copy and paste plus also I'm also cooking!)