Where/what next if they fail GCSEs?

[phoebemcpeepee]

Ds is facing the very real prospect of failing most, if not all, his GCSEs . He is bright enough - he only just missed 11+ without a tutor, had decent grades until year 8 then gradually lost interest and motivation but was doing ok until lockdown when unbeknownst to us gave up on all things academic. I'm cross school didn't flag it sooner and of course blame myself for not realising/acting before now, but we both work long hours so had to trust him to just get on with it and naively assumed we'd hear if there was a problem. He's fine in himself (lots of friends, plays sport regularly,has a pt job etc) and I know will be gutted if he fails and we've had a million pep talks, tried bribery, threats, promises all of which he seems but take on board and agrees to, but then never does anything about it.
So, what next? He had no idea what he wants to do in life (& we always knew uni probably wasn't for him) but he won't be able to stay at sixth form unless he get decent grades so will have to leave and presumably retake the core subjects whilst doing something vocational but where do you start. He seems so young to be leaving school and I'm really sad he'll be leaving his friends and taking a different path with very limited choices.

I think you need to check out local colleges. Do it next week if possible because he'd need to apply for courses. I imagine they have online info about what subjects or courses they offer.

Have the school given an indication of predicted grades?

My DS now Y12. He did get broadly what he wanted/needed but not all of his friends did.
They are all at different colleges now, some doing A Levels, some BTECS, some having to resit subjects but they do stay in touch.
Firstly, its not the end of the world if he doesn't do great. He's very young and has plenty of time (with your support) to mature and find out what he wants to do.
If his school offers limited choices, look at a 6th form college. I was amazed by the range of options available and my DS has blossomed at college.
I was worried he wouldn't cope with the big change from a school environment but it has suited him .
Hope works out for your DS.
Given the last 12 months suspect that there will be many pupils doing resits.

If he pulls his finer out now possible 4s but not enough to stay on at sixth form. If he carries on the same path, god only knows

I say this as a mother having been in this situation with my dd, a colleger teacher of 16 -18 year olds coming in without GCSE's for whatever reason.
I was one of them many years ago and I went to uni, gained a degree and then a PGCE.
The apprentice route is really good as are NVQ's.
For Maths and English there are alternative equivalent online tests at level 2.
These are accepted for most courses that aren't medical or educational

OP, it's never too late and you've never ruined your chances.
Encourage him to look at local colleges.

I think you need to start with a meeting with his school. Get an idea of how far away he is from scraping through and what he can do, if anything, to catch up. Also, ask them to advise you on what they can offer/what your local colleges will offer etc.

If he has been lacking interest in school since year 8 then maybe leaving and doing something vocational could be the best thing for him. Get a list of what's available in your area and get him to look through and pick something he is interested in.

Retakes? Regardless of your personal circumstances it's been a tough couple of years. He's not going to be the only one.

I don't recruit junior grades any more, but I'd be pretty sympathetic to anyone with major exams in 2020, 2021 or 2022,

Have you got a local FE college? Ours is very good (DC1 is there at the moment and loves it).

Ours offers level 2 courses to people that haven't done well at school and then students can move on to level 3 courses like BTEC/A level and they also offer GCSE resits in English and maths.

It's a very different atmosphere to school and if your DC hasn't liked school then it might be good for him to go somewhere different. If uni is right for him then he can go from FE college and if it's not he can do a vocational course which leads him into a job or apprenticeship.

Dc1 is doing a level 3 qualification at college, in the first year they do level 2 and those that didn't pass maths /English do resits along side the course (can also sit other subjects to) then those that pass level 2 & gcses if resitting can go on to level 3 in y13. The level 3 is equivalent to a levels and many on dc1s course are expecting to go to uni. Dc1 is looking at a higher level apprenticeship. There are many options at further education colleges can dc get to see the school careers guidance team? Is there any virtual college open evenings?

My daughters boyfriend was in this situation last year. Moved to the local college started a level 2 electricians course and is flying. He is staying next year to do the level 3 and will then get an apprenticeship.

He also meet my husband this time last year who left school without a qualification, did a mechanics apprenticeship, did an engineering degree at OU in his twenties and became an engineer in motor sport. It showed him that GCSEs are not everything some people take a different path, but are still successful.

My DD is going to fail all her GCSEs, might get 1. She has been out of education due to poor MH since lockdown1.

Options:

• retake GCSEs at private crammer type place or via Home Ed
• apprenticeship
• BTEC

At this age BTECs come in 3 levels 1 (for which you don't need any GCSE passes), 2 (GCSE equivalent, entry criteria may be only 3s) and 3 (A level equivalent, normally need 5 GCSEs at grade 4 or above, or maybe more).
This year there may be more flexibility on entry criteria. BTECs are not an easy option, he will need to work, but they are more tangible than GCSEs/A levels.

BTECs are vocational but cover everything from sports to computing, to plumbing to business. This is what our local one offers: www.eastleigh.ac.uk/school-leavers/

(My DD was always going to do a BTEC. She should have qualified to do level 3. She is likely to start on level 1, which hopefully she will find easy and it will help her self confidence.)

op what year is he in? if yr 10, then there is time to improve. You speak about improving so I am imagining he is in yr10?

If yr 11, then look today at what colleges offer and call them tomorrow, start getting a plan sorted. Tho if he is yr 11 I agree it's beyond poor that school have only just flagged it up.

But as others say, there are options. A friend's lad did poorly at GCSEs, just did no work, couldn't stay at sixth form, went to local college and retook GCSEs and is now doing A levels. He's a year behind as it were but that doesn't matter (full time education till 19 is open to all).

I was assuming OP's son is y11 and has some final assessments / exams that if he gets his act together he can bring up his grades. If he is bright enough it might not take much to get over the 3/4 line.

OP, as clary hinted there is funding for 3 years at college if needed.

@TeenMinusTests

I was assuming OP's son is y11 and has some final assessments / exams that if he gets his act together he can bring up his grades. If he is bright enough it might not take much to get over the 3/4 line.

OP, as clary hinted there is funding for 3 years at college if needed.

Yes I wondered that too. V poor of school not to let parents know until now tho. DS2 is in yr 13 and his school has two more weeks of assessment starting tomorrow - so not much chance for anyone to do anything. Schools will vary of course and op's son may have longer.

If he is in yr 11, he has presumably applied for post-16 course(s)? If they are now inaccessible (eg A levels where he is set to get a 3) then I would look at what there is at college at a lower level along similar lines. Could maybe retake some GCSEs alongside.

I'd consider college and a BTEC. My nephew took this route and is now at uni loving his course. Before 16 nothing could motivate him to a to do the work (first too lazy and then just overwhelmed at how far behind he was).

A level 3 Extended Diploma attracts UCAS points equivalent to 3 A levels, so it needn't be closing off university.

But Your DS needs to work at whatever option he does. He won't get anywhere by being lazy.

Don’t make the assumption that if a student doesn’t do well or get any GCSE’s that an apprenticeship is always an alternative. They can be even more challenging and competitive than getting a college place.

I advertised an electrical/mechanical apprenticeship recently and as it is an advanced apprenticeship you have to have 5 GCSE’s including a 6 in maths. The maths work in this apprenticeship is really challenging.

There are level 2 apprenticeships, but it is a myth that you can ‘just get’ an apprenticeship if you have no GCSE’s. I received over 50 applications for 1 apprenticeship role. It’s so much more competitive than getting into college.

I could not agree more. There are far fewer apprenticeships than there were a few years ago and certainly one leading to motor sport would be hugely sought after.

Getting 4s at gcse really does mean FE college or 6th form college if they are very large with an array of courses. So the key is to decide which course. What might interest him.

Just get him to work on his English and maths, trying to catch up at this stage is virtually impossible and too much stress.

You do have options, he could possibly, but you need to check with the school about funding, repeat his last year.

FE colleges are not just places for people who have failed GCSEs there are loads of courses from Level 1 up to HND. He will have more opportunities than if he stayed for VI form.

If he has no GCSEs he would have to start on a Level 1 course, if he can scrape a few then he can do Level 2 (GCSE equivalent) if he can get 5 then he can start a level 3. You can also start at level 1, then 2 then 3.

What does he enjoy?

You mention sports, BTEC AKA Pearson do various diplomas / certificates in health and fitness, one of their level 3 courses qualifies you as a personal trainer, would that appeal to him?

Level allows you to get to uni if he does decide that is for him.

p18 has a summary of what you can do with the qualification.

qualifications.pearson.com/content/dam/pdf/BTEC-Nationals/sport-fitness-and-personal-training/2019/specification-and-sample-assessments/btec-l3-nats-non-measures-sports-fitness-and-personal-training-spec.pdf

Firstly, check what 6th Form offer. Many offer BTECs alongside A-Levels and will accept grade 4’s.

If not, next step is local FE college, there are loads of courses, he just needs to have a think about what he wants to do and as pp have said A level 3 BTEC is equivalent to A-Levels so uni not out of the question.

Apprenticeships are another option www.gov.uk/apply-apprenticeship.

Also ask school or your local authority about access to a careers adviser. They have loads of knowledge about local opportunities.

All will be fine, you just need to start getting your head round the options.

See if you can buy some good quality workbooks that help.

You do have options, first contact the local community college to find out more about qualifications etc. You mention sports as a possible interest, there are quite a few vocational sport courses that lead to a accredited qualification. It will work out in the end, but you need to sit down and research the different options for progression carefully online then decide. Go view local community FE colleges with him in tow.

Ours offers level 2 courses to people that haven't done well at school and then students can move on to level 3 courses like BTEC/A level and they also offer GCSE resits in English and maths

It depends where you are.
Ds, although passing a level 2 trade course top of his class he wasn’t allowed to take level 3 without passing certain exams which he was taking alongside the required GCSEs

The college he went to was the only one in our area that allowed him to do level 2 alongside the academic exams.

The following year the college got in line with the other colleges and he could only do level 1 stuff until he passed the required GCSEs

He tried another trade but he completed the years health and safety module in one lesson. He felt that the course was too easy and just because he couldn’t analyse a poem didn’t mean he couldn’t plaster a wall or put wall paper up or tile a bathroom.