GCSEs 2018 (2)

[Stickerrocks]

Pre-empting our 1000th post.

well just to change the subject, ds2 is going to have a Sixth Form interview tonight at a college, which is not a school, but where he might be doing a BTEC in Applied Science. Now he says he wants to do Politics A level at his existing school, so this is quite a different kettle of fish but I thought I had better have it as a backup in case he doesn't do A levels at all. Full of trepidation because I have to take his EHCP along and I'm dreading that whole side of things. Maybe I won't give it to them until he has sat through the interview and made his decision about whether he is in the slightest interested. avoid unnecessary form filling if I can

School has really pressed for belt and braces approach but it is so tiring having all these balls in the air, and I don't think ds really likes it either. He has now two conditional places, surely that is enough.

So did I think that at first. Its just I think I inferred too much on oddsocks last post. The way it was written.. It seemed I read wrong so take back what I said.

Another email...a whole day of English revision classes is planned - actually it looks very good so DS1 will probably enjoy it!
He's actually pleased there's quite a bit of maths in psychology and he has a good memory so I'm happy for him to take the A level. I'm still mentally prepared for the moment when he opens his GCSE results and changes his mind completely about his A levels, though!

One caveat about the revision classes, which inevitably get laid on more and more nearer the time - it sapped ds1's ability to do any independent revision, as he felt he had done everything in school. Ds2 missed all the RE revision classes laid on as we went away that half term and he did typing after school on the booster day but still got a high B when he was predicted a C (did the GSCE a year early) and I wonder whether it is because you do much higher quality revision when you do it by yourself, and you have to think. It is easy to just sit there and go on auto pilot in the classroom, and believe you have engaged. But maybe Ds1 was that sort of boy.. I think of all those thousand of revision classes and lesson he sat through in Geography and he got a D! I just wonder whether it was the lack of independent enquiry which clinched it.

What is everyone's views on whether its a good idea to take facilitating subjects for A level? How many are enough?

I thought 3 would be ideal for keeping as many options as possible open for university.

@Nettleskeins I guess it depends on how actively you participate in the revision classes. If (citing extreme examples) you are fully engaged, then you'll get a lot out of it, but if you just watch, like you would in a cinema, then you probably are better off on your own with a book and a pen for note taking.

Good luck to your DS Nettleskeins with his interview.

No revision classes here yet. Top universities like facilitating A levels. We just advised my dgd to do 1 science, 1 humanities and maths (cos they really like a maths a level at unis) and one other. That way all bets are covered. She will have more if a choice for a course rather than doing all sciences or all arts. A mixture is best IMO.

Took post off to oddsocks.

DD looking to do two facilitating subjects at the moment - may change (Physics and Biology) together with DT - Graphics (may well change again) she does have the option to do the IB and the school are very successful with a very high average score - but she's not keen - said its too hard work.

If they are going down medical route then sciences with maths.

DS1 and I went to a university admissions talk at the weekend.

They talked about selecting at least two 'keystone' subjects.

For science based courses that's Maths, Biology, Chemistry and Physics. FM is also considered one but obviously you'd be doing Maths as well.

For humanities and arts I think it was English, History, Geography and Maths.

So there is a definite benefit to doing Maths A Level if you can.

DS1 is planning on Maths, Physics, Chemistry and History - his school all do 4. He's leaning to science degree in the future but might shift to history or politics.

This is it teenmum. So hard to make choices. If adults find it hard the DC certainly do. There's no way my dgd would give up geography cos she loves it. She wants to do neuroscience so needs maths and a science ( preferably 2 but she thought that too much) if she goes off doing neuroscience she has geography teamed with biology to go down biogeography route. And maths is always a good a level to do.

I think as long as you do one facilitating subject, that's enough. Sometimes those less facilitating subjects like photography or pyschology or politics could be the passion that follows through to university or 4th level, and if you chose say History, French and Biology, you would never have that chance to check whether your passion WAS your passion. So for example I know a girl whose A levels were Maths English History and Art, and she is now off to Art school. If someone had persuaded her not to bother with the Art because it was less facilitating, well, she would be an A* student who hadn't pursued her real talent. But if you chose Media Studies, Politics, and Pyschology, well that is a good range, and each A level is hardwork but none of those A levels convert to other topics at university level. Say you wanted to do American Studies suddenly, it would be better to have History, Media Studies and English.

University lecturers welcome to correct me if I'm wrong.

Doesnt want to do Maths - but has shown interest in Forensic Science so A's she is thinking of should be OK.

My dgd doing psychology too.

It gets a bit complicated with facilitating subjects, especially when schools don't want to start with more than 3. Technically, DS1's current choice looks like Maths, Computer science and psychology if he stays at his current school and from all the uni entry requirements for computing or psychology that looks OK. However, Maths, psychology and biology would keep more options open. So at the school he wants to go to he would start with 4 including biology with the option to drop one at the end of year 12.

Forensic science my dgd wanted to do for ages. But she wanted to be a top one like a coroner which meant she had to do medical degree first then another 3 years on top all told about 9 years study!

Are MFL considered keystone subjects?

Mathematics and Further Mathematics
• English Literature
• Physics
• Biology
• Chemistry
• Geography
• History
• Languages (Classical and Modern)

DD has chosen Philosophy & Ethis, Sociology and Psychology for A-level and will not be moved on that. Not one facilitating subject there but I she is not looking at a Russell Group anyway. I hope it doesn't hold her back but the only facilitating subject DD would consider for A-level is Geography but that means she would have to drop one of the other and she loves all those subjects.

it's such a shame AS levels have been dropped - DD2 was determined that she wanted to do geography at uni, got to A level and hated the teaching. But because she'd picked Psychology as her AS subject with the intention of dropping it, it was straightforward to carry on with that and drop Geog instead.

DD3 OTOH can do three subjects (I know its what we did back in the old days, but there really wasn't so much pressure, almost all the A levels you could do were "proper" subjects, and BBC got you in to a good uni to do a good subject, leading on to a decent job - sorry rant over!), if she decides half way through the course she's changed her mind about what degree she wants to do, she's stuffed, because what would be her second choice of subject needs humanities A levels, not science A levels.

Are any of the 6th form colleges offering incentives - I know our local 6th form is :

You may qualify for this £4,000 bursary if you achieve eight GCSEs grades 9-6 including English and Maths and at least four of your GCSEs are at grades 9-7. You will need to study our full-time A-Level (or equivalent Level 3) programme. This bursary is not means tested and the £4,000 is paid over two years.

Although DD will be staying where she is if she gets the entry requirements...

So is Philosophy & Theology regarded as Politics i.e. a soft subject)? DS currently thinking of English Lit, Music and either Politics or Phil & Theo...

That - the £4k incentive - sounds a bit desperate. Why are they paying people to study there? Shouldn't the quality of education received be reward enough?