GCSEs 2018 (18) Well that's all over, let's get the party started

[Stickerrocks]

www.mumsnet.com/Talk/secondary/3341060-GCSEs-2018-17-What-will-be-in-your-coffee-cup-on-Thursday

for Ggirl

That sounds really difficult. It’s horrible to see your child distressed, especially when you understand the reasons why he dropped some grades.

My DD had a BTEC lined up as plan A. She’s been influenced by an older sibling who gave up A levels and went on to do really well with BTEC and her career is going really well.
Another D.C. slogged through 3 years of A levels (changed subjects) before going on to uni. She now wishes she’d done a BTEC instead of A levels but at the time saw herself as an “A level person”, her words.

My DC who switched from A levels to BTEC likes how the BTEC marks criteria are more transparent. If you work hard and produce excellent work, you get good marks. It is more predictable and you can build skills. It does not depend on having a good day in the exam. Exams are a test of your memory under very particular conditions which is great if you have that sort of memory. BTECs are not easy. You have to juggle doing research, writing reports, meetings deadlines, more like university and work in fact.

I hope when the dust settles and your DS gets to learn some really interesting stuff and succeeds he will settle.

It is a 3 A level Engineering BTEC - we have been really positive this evening trying to make him realise that College A's loss and B's gain. He is more suited to BTEC as he is a hard worker and has produced consistently good work throughout his GCSE courses. We have told him it's time to draw a line and look forwards to where he wants to be. We are going to get a new bag, new stationery, new calculator, new overalls and steel toe caps and the future starts now. He has a choice of continuing to look back or to go on and prove to himself he can do it despite them. I am praying he loves the course, makes loads of new friends and enjoys his new college - I don't ever want him to feel like he has for the last few days ever again. I'm going to be positive and hope it is catching...

Ggirl my friend's DS who happens to have ASD has just completed his level 3 Engineering BTEC and he's off to Portsmouth Uni to do an Engineering degree. His uni course had a fairly modest entry requirement but due to his ASD his family felt it would be better to choose a course he was over qualified for, because he might find the huge change quite challenging. He only needed MMM (equivalent to CCC at A level in UCAS points) but he gained DDD.

There's a lot of opportunities out there for DC who are prepared to do the work. I'm sure your DS will do well once he's got over his disappointment with not getting to do plan A. With the BTEC, he'll need to start positively as work done next term will count towards his final results. The very best of luck to him.

@Ggirl27 - what sort of engineering? Does he know what he wants to do as a career?
This may be in previous posts but if you could clarify I might (should?) be able to advise.

A levels are not the only way to go as in the case of my dgs who is opposite to dgd in that he is not academic at all has no aspiration to do A levels. he changed schools at 14 to go to a technical college and has not looked back since! . the only GCSEs he will do is English and maths and btecs in engineering and mechanics . he is no way a failure and has already booked in for an apprenticeship at 16.

Sostenueto that's brilliant - well done to your dgs and a great choice of career! He's done well to get the apprenticeship sorted already!

Dgd on a high about starting back to study ( she is strange sometimes). She spent yesterday sorting wardrobe and folders. We also had a long discussion on whether strawberries were alive or not thanks to the infinite monkey cage book! Oh and of course, the daily lesson on chinese

Sostenueto It's been a very long summer. For all of us! DS is looking forward to getting started - he only has to enrol next Monday and they start the week after. I imagine it takes that long to get the timetables sorted out.

DS itching to get back too now. Best wishes to any with places or subjects still to get sorted and to those in new schools.

So this morning there's an email from College A who I complained to and are going to 'investigate'. Am not going to tell DS - it would only have the effect of raising his hopes to maybe having them dashed again. @bpisok he is hoping that this course will give him a wide variety of experience in all types of engineering so he can decide but if I know him like I think I do he is most interested in automotive - he has always been obsessed with all things with engines and can name a car and it's properties at 100 yds!

DS starts with induction day in the 5th then lessons on the 6th

Oh dear. A bad start today.

Dd has enrolment this morning at big city SFC. She's been stressing all weekend about whether she's doing the right thing going there instead of school.

She's due there at 10.40 and has woken up with period pains and feeling sick saying she doesn't want to go.

Luckily I'm not at work today and was planning to meet her for shopping later anyway so I have said I'll drive her.

I think she will massively regret it if she stays at school. She was growing out of the place all last year. She'll be in the same building as 11 year olds and she already knows she doesn't get on with the maths teachers.

On the other hand she's struggled with tiredness and health issues this year and it's over an hour each way to big city and our train service seems to be imploding this summer.

KickBishopBrennan
Hopefully some painkillers and a pep talk will do the job.

kingbishop its only natural that your dd will be nervous about going somewhere different but I am sure that she will grow in confidence and blossom in her new environment.
loose in dgs mocks he got highest grade in engineering. The only thing they have to sort is his English and maths. He is a 3 at the month in English and nearly a 4 in maths. Their sen programme has bought him up from a 2 in both and all praise for him and the school. The apprenticeship he got by going out and applying himself. He's so pleased and just gas to get English and maths and merit on his btecs. He will easily get his btecs and I have prepared extra work for him to do on English and maths with the help of dgd which I gave to dd1 to help him. But it really is a struggle to get him to study academia simply because he thinks he's stupid but he is far from that and he is determined to eventually work in the aircraft industry ( engines).

Dgd starts back on the 5th and has not got timetable or anything yet till they actually start. They meet up in hall at 8.45 am and have a meeting where I presume they get a pet talk and then allocated their forms ( they will be in forms with yr 13s which is good idea so they can get tips from them)
She will have to join various things as she wants to go on the program set up for Oxbridge/ Russell group units where they give you extra assistance on interview technique and she wants to do an epq too. So an extremely busy time coming up for her. She is nervous though too.

His BTEC will be great for automotive. I think the only thing he would struggle to get into would be structural engineering and hard civils/tunnels where he would need Physics and Maths.
Electrical and Mechanical would be fine too.

His BTEC would probably be more beneficial than A Levels if he wanted an apprenticeship rather than straight to University- there are lots of degree apprenticeships around where you train on the job and attend Uni part time (but they are pretty hard work).

He's not too fussed at the moment about Uni - he's quite a home bird and hasn't thought much further about his future after college. I think an apprenticeship would be perfect for him, he is very active and not afraid of physical hard work, learning on the job would suit him. Will find out more about degree apprenticeships and find out what doors the BTEC could open for him. Thanks @bpisok

Ggirl

Not sure where you are but we really enjoyed this Skills Show at NEC in Birmingham.

www.worldskillsuk.org/directions/our-events/worldskills-uk-live

Loads of different employers with apprenticeships in all sectors and at different levels. There are the obvious like Jaguar Landrover and others like BBC and GCHQ. The video sums it up.

It’s more complicated than UCAS as recruitment processes and times of year vary. Some more links:

www.gov.uk/apply-apprenticeship

www.notgoingtouni.co.uk

Hello all, en route home from my few days away. I haven’t seen DS since he got his results! He went off straight to Reading from school and I left the following day. Looking forward to seeing him and giving him a big congratulatory hug!

Ggirl I’m sorry to hear you’ve had such a nightmare. Easy for me to say but it sounds as if this could be one of those times that you/your DS look back on and think you’re so glad you were forced into Plan B. The Btec sounds like it could be perfect for him.

I’m not sure that DS shares the enthusiasm of some DC on this thread for going back to school! He’s had a great summer and I think he’d be quite happy if it went on a while longer. He goes back next Wednesday and we still need to get shirts/ties/shoes. Think that will be tomorrow’s job.

We only had the maths mark on the results sheet too. I’m not at all interested in his marks for any subjects apart from the one he didn’t get a 9/A* in and that’s only because I’d have put money on that subject (a science) being one of his highest grades. Luckily it’s Edexcel so it should be easy for the teacher to check his papers. Chances are it was just a bad paper for him-I do remember at the time he said one of them was really tricky.

Reservoir DS did that RS igcse. The grade boundaries were high on it again (85% for an A) and it’s very time-pressured, but very bad luck to be only 1 mark away. It wouldn’t surprise me at all if DS was bang on the boundary, I think we were both a bit surprised that he managed to get the A.

Dd starts on Wednesday and has a 2 week induction programme including dance assessments where she will be streamed.

Dhe wet yesterday to take in her DBS paperwork and as part of the safer recruitment policy etc she has to provide 2 references.

Where the heck do you get two referees for a 16 year old girl who has attended school 45 miles away from home for the last 5 years? Becasue she will be working for the school the referee cannot be anyone else from school.

Friends of yours, neighbours, vicar, dofe group leader, volunteering, local dance teacher, ...? I'm guessing the references aren't about her ability, only her character?

Our neighbours moved in 6 weeks ago. We don't go to church and she hasn't done any classes or activities locally since she was in Year 6. She did some volunteering at the library last summer for the Summer Reading Challenge, I'm not sure if they will remember her, it was for about 3 -4 weeks once or twice a week. Most of dh's friends are other teachers at school and I havn't really got any friends other than a few other parents at her school (we see each other at school events and communicate via Facebook).

For the last 5 years she left the house at 7.30 am and returned at 7.56pm and had Saturday morning school. Sundays were spent relaxing and catching up on homework so she didn't really see anyone from her old life.

7.45pm

Are there any mums that know you through your DS who could help you help?
You might have to give the library a go, and maybe any friends of your DH - no matter how long ago - who doesn't currently work at the school. Or the old neighbours (or the ones who live on the other side?) It is not ideal, but it does sound like a box-ticking exercise, so maybe someone will help.