Please or to access all these features

Add post

Watch this thread

Save thread

Start a new thread

Flip thread

Hide thread

My feed

Active Unanswered threads

Getting started FAQ's

Unanswered threads Acronyms Talk guidelines

Hide shortcut buttons

Talk

Secondary education

Connect with other parents whose children are starting secondary school on this forum.

Flip

Original poster

Music / Textiles GSCE

19 replies

Yeeek · 26/09/2018 08:29

my dd has just started her options.
She has chosen music gcse, her decision helped because she plays the piano and will be taking her grade 6 clarinet next month.
However, she has just told me that she dislikes the subject (and the teacher) and wants to take textiles gcse instead, which her friends have told her is fun.

She has never done textiles, has never shown any interest in fashion, materials or even picking up a needle. She isn't particularly arty in that way.
I don't know much about the subject as we didn't even visit the room when it was options evening.

Obviously, I want to support her decision, they are both GCSEs but I have read that textiles - is coursework intensive and my worry is that going into it blind she could be giving up a decent exam result in Music.

However, she may love textiles and may do brilliantly well in it.

Any advice from parents, teachers whose dc have done either / both?

OP posts:

Soursprout · 26/09/2018 09:26

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

Original poster

Yeeek · 26/09/2018 09:41

Thanks, Soursprout glad you see my dilemma!

She has until this Friday to make a decision. It has to be textiles as they are in blocks and the lessons are at the same time.
Obviously, at this point, we don't know if there is even room for her
All the other subjects she could move to really don't appeal.

She doesn't enjoy clarinet (doesn't like the teacher .... see the theme here) but likes piano but doesn't take exams in that. She can play what she likes.

No interest in material at all. She likes fashion when I'm paying!
She did say she was going to talk to the head of year.....

As you said I don't want her to be miserable, but she might not like the new subject either.

OP posts:

Kilash · 26/09/2018 09:47

That's really tricky. DDS did music, it was an easy GCSE for him and the practical and aural requirements he did not have to worry about. However, he had a good teacher and more importantly the GCSE class was small and they all got on well.

I have friends with dc who have done asrt and textiles - both involve huge amounts of work and lots of after school comittements.

I'm tempetd to ask if there isn't a 3rd option? (sorry!)

Jinglebells99 · 26/09/2018 09:55

Maybe check with the school as to which subject they get the best grades in? My dd did both Art and Textiles. Art turned out to be the most time consuming of all the subjects she did. Textiles had a practical element, she made a dress, coursework, and an exam. I think the school got good marks in Textiles overall. My dd got an A . Music I’ve heard is hard, but with your dd’s musical background, she would probably be at an advantage.

fedup2017 · 26/09/2018 10:03

Ds is currently in year 10 and we had this dilemma last year between music and DT.
Hes doing grade 6 trombone shortly and is quite musical..... I thought music GCSE was a shoe in. However he really enjoys DT( I think it's wood and plastics ) they get to use cad and it's quite creative and practical. The rest of his GCSEs are straight academic ones and this was his "fun" choice.
So in the end he chose DT... But still carrying on with his music lessons/band etc.
I was a bit frustrated when he made the choice however with hindsight he gets the best of both worlds

Original poster

Yeeek · 26/09/2018 10:10

Kilash, as I said it would have to fit into the blocks
So on offer would be triple science, history, computing, engineering, food and spanish (which she would have gone for but they started that in year 9 so she is a year behind already!)

She has already said there is another music teacher who she really likes, but he doesn't teach her year (or next I don't think)
from the comments above it often proves how important a teacher is to the subject

OP posts:

Original poster

Yeeek · 26/09/2018 10:12

Fedup, yes DD is doing health and social care as her 'fun' one
I think if textiles was an ocr or btec it wouldn't have been such a dilemma. but they are both GCSE

OP posts:

ifonly4 · 26/09/2018 10:25

I'd suggest she goes and speaks to teachers for both subjects as that may help her - at options evening many teachers made it clear they could go back and see them independently. The teacher she doesn't like may turn out to be the one whose more friendly and helpful or it could even confirm that textiles is something your DD would like the chance to do.

clary · 26/09/2018 11:16

Did she not do textiles in KS3? Or am I misreading your OP? if she has never done it at all I would choose something else, what about triple science?

Lonecatwithkitten · 26/09/2018 11:21

Textiles is hard and time consuming. This s piece submitted at DD's school for last years GCSE to give you an idea of the level required to do well.

Lonecatwithkitten · 26/09/2018 11:23

Forgot to say this piece is a hat.

Astronotus · 26/09/2018 11:26

Yeeek, textiles is very time consuming. Students can get very behind in their work and have to cram the last few weeks' work. Same for art, they need to be very organised.

Polkasq · 26/09/2018 11:29

Could she ask to attend a textiles lesson this week to see what it's like?

RedSkyLastNight · 26/09/2018 11:30

Not sure how your DD can suddenly have decided that she hates music after (presumably) experiencing it in KS3. Particularly to change to a subject she was not even sufficiently interested in to consider at options evening. Is it really mostly to do with the teacher/other students in the class?

My DS is taking GCSE music. He liked his last teacher, but she left in the middle of last year, and he doesn't really like the new one (which definitely supports the not making a decision based on the teacher, as teachers can change!). But ... there is a fair amount of time in lessons where they are working on ensembles, or composing, or listening to music (recorded and each other). So he can filter out the fact that he doesn't really like the teacher.

Original poster

Yeeek · 26/09/2018 12:13

She took textiles in year 7 (or 8 can't remember which) for 1 term only. But they rotated through all subjects anyway.

She took music in year 9
I have looked at examples of coursework and other threads on textiles and it does seem to suggest lots of coursework and time, which is fine - if you like the subject .....

OP posts:

Original poster

Yeeek · 27/09/2018 13:50

Just an update...
I found a couple of videos on Textiles GCSE by various youtubers last night, which she watched.
When she saw what was involved with the coursework and exam she decided to keep studying music !

OP posts:

Soursprout · 27/09/2018 14:19

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

SE13Mummy · 28/09/2018 22:06

Your DD's decision-making sounds similar to my DD's!

When I read your post my first thought was to wonder if your DD had fallen out of love with the clarinet because she's currently slogging for an exam? As she's playing at G6 standard, maybe she could stop working for exams and work on other repertoire with her teacher. Jazz clarinet is quite different from classical or maybe she'd be enthused by the idea of playing sax?

Pythonesque · 29/09/2018 11:37

One of the nice things about music is that some of the coursework elements may be ready and finished well in advance. My daughter is in year 11 and I think may be about to do her music performances very soon, then they will be "in the bag", so to speak.

It sounds like your daughter has made the right decision and showing her what was involved was a very good idea. I suspect there is more "work" in music once you start the GCSE course, but that will apply to most subjects if they are going to get a reasonable result. Good luck to her!

Flip