Year 9 options - GCSEs, BTECs and Cam Techs.

[Slugabedz]

We have just attended my DS’s options talk at his school. They have suggested to everyone it might be a good idea to take something other than all GCSEs to ease the pressure at the end of year 11. This makes sense to me and he already has his eye on one BTEC as it’s a subject he loves but is it a good idea to pick two options which aren’t GCSEs or alternatively, GCSEs which have assessments throughout the two years such as Art or DT. (The kids take 9 subjects in his school). Is the pressure of exams at the end of year 11 really that bad? He is very bright but sometimes needs a kick up the bum to get going in subjects he doesn’t enjoy. Thanks for reading.

Depends on the kid, I think. Some find coursework more pressure than revising for an exam. Mine's choosing all GCSEs and nothing with any coursework. She's got a good memory so revising will hopefully not be too onorous.

Really the only GCSE with any meaningful coursework is art. And maybe food tech. The coursework element of DT is really tiny, sadly.

Art is a massive thief of time, unless your child really loves it and would do it from choice.

Does nine include triple science, or is it one of the options? Nothing wrong with BTECs but they don't suit everyone. I wouldn't do more than one in your situation tho, so you have eight GCSEs. My bright ds2 did 10 including triple science in accelerated classes and he did really well. His only one with ongoing assessments was PE (again, the practical is a very small percentage).

I’m guesing it was a talk to the whole year group rather than a parents evening discussing your son specifically? So it’s likely very relevant for some and not at all for others. If he’s bright (as your post suggests) and has no memory difficulties he’s likely to be fine with 9 GCSEs if there are 9 subjects that interest him. Maybe speak to his subject teachers to see what they think.

Agree that art is not a subject to be taken simply to reduce the exam pressure - ‘thief of time’ is a perfect way to describe it!

DD is doing 9 GCSEs. She will have 20 exams over 4 weeks, so approx. one per day.
That is with 2 options Drama and Food only having 1 exam each as they both have assessed practicals.
It is something we took into consideration for DD (she has processing difficulties and gets very tired.)
If he is bright then doing subjects he enjoys and can do may be more important than exam load.

Hi. Thanks for your replies. Triple science is not part of the 9 GCSEs he would take but he can take it as an option. I had hoped he would take triple over combined science but he said yesterday that he wasn’t keen. They told him during the talk that instead of doing 6 lessons a week he would do 9 which put him off a little although I really didn’t think that was too bad.
I had no idea that art was so time consuming. He did take art as an option in year 8 which he hasn’t enjoyed much. We’ll speak to his teachers as you suggest and find out what they think. It’s good to hear that taking 8 GCSEs isn’t crazy pressure. He’s a very level headed kid with a good memory so it sounds like he will be fine. It will just be tricky to find the last option which interests him enough to give it a good go. At the moment the options he wants to do are: geography GCSE, computer science GCSE, Media BTEC (he wants to be a film/tv editor) one more left to choose from triple science, music technology BTEC, DT, Business, art, PE or history. He would have chosen French but the option blocks don’t match up :( Thanks for taking the time to reply, I appreciate it.

Ah yes Teen I forgot about the coursework element of drama!

Op from that list I would talk to him about triple science or history. That will give him a good set of eight GCSEs. If he's not keen on art then deffo skip that. Shame he can't do French tho :(

So he’s thinking...

1. Maths
2. Eng lang
3. Eng lit
4. Science double
5. Science double
6. Computer science
7. Geography
8. Media BTEC
9. ?

That’s nice and broad. If there’s nothing that jumps out to him he’ll be best placed to choose something that he knows he’ll pass well and ideally get a high grade at.

I'm saying this based on next to zero knowledge, but I think Business would be useful background knowledge for later life. (Though it doesn't support any A levels in particular).

Business at that level isn’t viewed very highly compared to triple science or history for example but it really depends on his passions and where his strengths lie.

DS is doing 8 GCSE's and a Cambridge National Sports Studies.

When he picked his options, he felt a bit like he was being pulled from pillar to post - all the teachers telling him he should do their subject etc. In the end, I sat him down and told him he needed to do exactly what he wanted to do and not let anyone influence him, made sure he understood what was involved etc. He's mostly happy with what he has chosen.

He really enjoys the Sports Studies, and he sees it as a welcome break from the more intense subjects and doesn't feel there is any pressure at all so that has worked very well for him - so I would say just advise him to pick what he wants to pick and the things he will enjoy :)

Slugabedz, it's probably worth letting the school know he would have chosen French. Sometimes they can jiggle the option blocks a bit, and they'd probably like him to do French to count in the EBacc statistics.

If he enjoys sport then PE is part assessment. Some sessions will be games but not all by any stretch. It helps a bit with biology and is slightly easier to get a good grade in than some of the traditional subjects.

Check he has thoroughly checked the Comp Sci syllabus as a lot of DS's friends have found it boring and not what they were anticipating.

. It helps a bit with biology and is slightly easier to get a good grade in than some of the traditional subjects.

Agree about the biology content but I would dispute that it's easier... Ds2's bright cohort saw no PE 9s, he got an 8 and he got 9 in biology and 8 in physics and chemistry so he's not stupid. He enjoyed it and worked at it too. Only do it if he plays sport out of school tho op.

Sorry ds got 8 in maths not chemistry, not that it matters!

Just wanted to say DT GCSE (Resistant Materials course) at DS’s school has a big coursework component. The coursework/project is done during the school lessons and I don’t think DS1 has once ever had homework. According to his teacher at the last parents evening, it is possible to get a 4/5 (basically pass the exam) with the coursework alone. Apparently last year one student did just this and didn’t go along to the exam! DS1 is predicted an 8 or 9 with minimal effort compared to his other subjects. It’s worth thinking about as an option. DS1 is very pleased he took it as all his other subjects are very revision heavy.

Yh to be fair DT is 50% coursework, but the actual prototype you make only counts for 30% of the overall mark so less than it used to be. Last year you'd have had to get 90/100 on the coursework, including design work and evaluation, to get a grade 4 if you weren't bothering to do the exam, so I wouldn't recommend that option!

Thanks so much for your input. DS is very logical. He loves maths and ICT, he programmes for fun at home and really enjoys the cad cam part of DT.

Hellohah, pillar to post! That’s exactly how he feels. Thanks Ewwsprouts for your suggestion, we will check out the comp sci syllabus. Ianthanum we told the school about French and the teacher said it’s so important to stream them that they all had to go in one block. I’m not sure that’s fair to be honest. I keep hoping they will change it, you never know. Clary, I’m afraid DS doesn’t like team sports much and biology is his least preferred science so PE or sports science is out for him. He has no interest in history and I’ve seen the syllabus (history of medicine) which I’ve been advised to avoid unless he’s really keen. Gegs73 - DT is just like that our school too but when he saw the portfolios of work I could tell that he switched off. I’m not sure he’s creative enough.

Thanks Yr10DD to suggest he does a subject he likes. He’s leaning towards triple science as it’s the most logical choice but the biology side might be an issue for him. I’m so gutted about French not fitting and also slightly annoyed I’ll admit as his French teacher is the one piling on the most pressure to take French and to add insult to injury she’s just put him up a set!

Does anyone have any thoughts on doing two BTECs and 7 GCSEs? He’s thinking of moving from art to music for the rest of year 9 and taking Music technology BTEC as an option. As he wants to be a film/tv/special effects editor I can see why but I’m nervous about him not talking as many GCSE subjects, or is this an old fashioned way of thinking? Thanks for your replies, I really appreciate it.

Well, considering it’s perfectly possible to get into a good uni with a Level 3 BTEC instead of A Levels, I can’t imagine a couple of BTECs at level 2 matter at all?! Especially given his ambition - it’s not like he wants to study medicine at Cambridge.

The only issue might be if he wants to go to a grammar for sixth form and they ask for 8 GCSEs.

You may need to investigate the strength of BTecs level 2’s. Certainly distinctions at level 3 are fine for uni instead of A levels but I know nothing about gcse equivalent. I’d certainly be asking any prospective 6th form school or college to ensure he’s not limited. I’d be livid with the whole French thing especially if he enjoys it and would get a decent grade! Can you speak to the head?

I don't think there's anything wrong with taking 2 BTECs and 7 GCSEs, as long as he is happy with the ongoing coursework- especially as some of his friends might have none at all!

Assuming he is thinking A-levels as a next step, most sixth form providers just want to see good grades in the subjects he has taken, rather than specific subjects. You could check with local sixth form colleges though as to whether it would cause a problem.

The thing about exam pressure is that some kids are fine with it, and some really struggle, and it can be hard to predict in Y8/9 who those children will be. Students taking lots of GCSEs can also end up with lots of days with multiple exams, which may impact their performance, but again, it depends on the student.

I teach triple science, and personally I think it is a good option for students who are bright but have one weaker science. If he does double, then his two grades are an average of all three sciences. Even if he is really good at e.g. physics, he is unlikely to get a 9 with one weaker science. IMO, something like 6,7,9 across three sciences looks stronger than something like 6-7/7-7 in double. I teach a few mathsy boys who do find biology a chore- but they cope and are still likely to get good grades!

@SansaSnark

I teach triple science, and personally I think it is a good option for students who are bright but have one weaker science. If he does double, then his two grades are an average of all three sciences.

Thank you for this. My DD is bright but struggles with chemistry. (She’s doing triple science). Biology and Physics seem to be stronger for her. I had thought to myself that it worked this way but you’ve put my mind at rest as I’d not want a weaker chemistry result bringing down an average grade had age done combined. Thank you.

had she* done combined that should say

Wow you guys really give me food for thought!

Thanks crazycrofter. I’ve done some research and he would be fine in our local area with 7 GCSEs provided he gets the required grades. We live on the Hampshire border and the only issue would be if he decided he wanted to go to a grammar sixth form in the next county but I’ve asked him and he pretty much said what I thought he would - why would I go there? So that’s good. At least he knows his options.
Yr10DD. I’ve written to his head of year. They sent me an email saying that he’s going up a set in French this week. Talk about adding insult to injury! Grrrr 😠
Sansasnark - thank you, it didn’t even occur to me about triple science grades v combined science grades. I will pass on your information to my DS so he’s fully aware, especially about the maths bit! I’ve just seen his physics h/w and it’s so good. It’s a shame he’s switched off by the amount of lessons, I would have loved it when I was his age. I will also do some research into the amount of coursework involved for BTECs and make sure he is fully aware before he’s makes a decision.

The curriculum head moved him today from art to music. He will have two double lessons before he has to choose his options. Hopefully he will love music and it will be a no-brainer otherwise it’s back to the drawing board. Thank you for your help, I really do appreciate your input and DukeC obvs does too 😊 Glad your mind has been put to rest Duke. Good luck to your DD!

Thank you @Slugabedz and good luck to you and your DS too