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Secondary education

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Original poster

Year 12 woes

30 replies

Bovrilly · 07/06/2021 18:15

My DS is about to get his AS level grades (we are in Wales). He has struggled all year with physics, partly due to lockdown but also it's just so difficult. He's sure that he has failed it.

Has anyone's DC been in this position? Did they cut their losses and give up one of their A levels after year 12? What did they do instead? Is it possible to do something else in a year alongside the Y13 syllabus for his other two subjects, maybe privately if not in school? Or maybe people start a new subject but do it over two years, so ending in Y14? I have no clue what the options might be, but it would be good to get some ideas ahead of the inevitable chat with his teachers if they feel that giving up physics is the best way to go.

The good news is that this year the AS level grade doesn't have to count towards the A level, so he could in theory continue with physics and start Y13 with a clean slate, but a) I'm not sure how successful that would be given that he found Y12 difficult and b) I don't think he will want to do that. He might be persuadable though, and we could find a tutor to support him.

Any advice / uplifting stories of success after having to drop an A level grateful received!

OP posts:
BunnyRuddington · 07/06/2021 18:26

We're in England and I honestly can't answer most if your questions but I do know that if they fail a subject at our Sixth Form, they get offered a resit. If he gets that opportunity do you think he's motivated enough to continue?

Original poster
Bovrilly · 07/06/2021 18:35

Thanks Bunny - I honestly think resitting Y12 while also doing Y13 would be too much for him and would also be his worst nightmare, but will have to ask his teachers what they think.

OP posts:
Wobblypig · 07/06/2021 23:05

Does he actually like the subject and just missed out a few key concepts ? How did he do in his gcse?
If he likes it and he has just got a bit behind I would tutor over summer and start with a fresh mindset in September.

If he hates it , I would dump it and concentrate on the others. What does he think he may do after school? Would physics be important and would that require 3 A levels?

Jablies · 07/06/2021 23:18

Could he resit as physics and pick up another as level qualification so giving him 3 a levels. Also Some level 3 btecs such as business can be taken partly in 1 year to get the equivalent of half an a level I think.

Original poster
Bovrilly · 08/06/2021 06:56

Thanks both. He got A* at physics gcse so I think he can do it, he just found the step up to A level a shock, didn't really engage in the first term, didn't tell anyone how he was feeling Hmm and then the last lockdown made it all ten times worse.

He always wanted to do physics at university but has completely fallen out of love with it now. He's umming and ahing, definitely wants to do a degree, maybe earth sciences or something like that. So physics would be useful. Summer tutoring is a good idea, and it could continue through Y13 if he needed it. Two AS levels is a good idea too, I hadn't thought about that. Not sure how that would work for university applications but I will investigate.
Thanks again.

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NotATreacleTart · 08/06/2021 08:17

Ds used www.physicsandmathstutor.com/ and www.youtube.com/c/PhysicsOnline/playlists to help with physics in year 12.

Re dropping it/continuing it this comes down to several factors, if he fails it completely will the sixth form let him continue it to year 13? He has the whole of the summer holidays to turn this around and catch up and he could argue that. 2 AS levels won't be viewed the same by all universities.

I would look into which unis he is interested in and see what their entry requirements are and what subjects they are looking for. Over summer he needs to engage in something that shows his love for the earth sciences so he has something to put on his personal statement ie I read something/watched something/did online course about X which led me to look into Y, what I found interesting or learned was...

How many hours is he awake for on a typical holiday day? For my two sons that is about 14 hours. That is a lot of free time to concentrate on pulling a grade up. Getting an A* at GCSE means that his foundation knowledge for physics should be good.

Original poster
Bovrilly · 08/06/2021 09:23

Thanks Treacle. I hope school will let him stay on, it seems quite harsh if they kick him out after everything that's happened this year.

Good point about using the summer wisely. He is typically sleepy but usually amenable to being turfed out of bed. The difficulty will probably be trying to persuade him that all is not lost and it's still worth working hard. He has always thought of himself as clever so is now struggling a bit with the idea of failing I think. The next few months will be really important.

OP posts:
ChristopherTracy · 08/06/2021 10:28

Come over to the Year 12 thread!

LostInTime · 08/06/2021 10:58

As to what school will do, well I'm afraid you need to have that conversation with them- they're all different and take different approaches.
He needs to be absolutely honest with himself and consider how much he would hate to carry it on next year, or whether he still likes it and can knuckle down to catching up over the summer. His target grade will be pretty high, I'm guessing? And this he's aiming for top universities? They'll not take him with two A Levels, but that doesn't mean struggle on with something that's not right for him. Restarting with a different subject in September could be a good compromise, if school will let him- depends on the school. There is an issue for funding in English schools if pupils take three years for A Levels, sorry, I don't know if that is the case also in Wales.

Original poster
Bovrilly · 08/06/2021 12:41

@ChristopherTracy

Come over to the Year 12 thread!
Thank you, I will!
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Original poster
Bovrilly · 08/06/2021 12:58

Thanks Lost. I think he'll need AAB or something like that if he wants to do earth sciences / geophysics or something like that. I just missed a call from his year tutor so hopefully will get to talk to her today. I am a bit concerned if he gets a U for instance, that it will have to go on the UCAS form and wondering if there's a way around that. I believe the school can withdraw him but it has to be done this week and I don't know if that means withdrawing him from the whole A level or just the AS.

Anyway I'm a bit at sea, not helped by his reluctance to engage apart from "don't want to talk about it". Angry Hopefully all will become clear later on. I have found a private tuition place which comes recommended. They do evening tutor groups as well as part time or full time school lessons for those who aren't at school for whatever reason, so he could have support with physics, or finish his other two subjects at school while studying physics privately. Not sure what that's going to cost Shock but we will try to find a way of making it work.

OP posts:
BunnyRuddington · 08/06/2021 18:36

Come over to the Year 12 thread.

Have you got a link please? I could probably do with joining as well Smile

EwwSprouts · 08/06/2021 19:27

This was recommended on the other thread a while ago isaacphysics.org/

If he got A* at gcse then he has a great chance of turning this round into a good A level result. Is he also doing maths as the mechanics element is almost like extra tuition?

Original poster
Bovrilly · 08/06/2021 20:09

Thank you Sprouts. Yes he's doing maths and we hope that grade is going to be ok 🤞

He says mechanics is like physics, only easier 😁

Thanks for the link to Isaac - I know school sometimes use it for setting work etc but I have never really looked at what it offers.

OP posts:
VorpalSword · 11/06/2021 20:06

Physics teacher here. This is a really tough question, it has been a rough year but unpicking why/where he has been struggling will help with his decision whether to continue or not.

Also speak to the teachers, do they think he is capable with the work or maybe not the right fit? Continuing doing a subject you are really struggling with is no fun. Sometimes it does click into place later but going from failing to a higher (>C) is tricky.

If he does decide to continue then my top 3 things would be:
Isaac physics to get the maths questions and concepts - they have workshops you can sign up to.
Seneca learning is good for definitions and more word concepts. Not sure if they have the Welsh exam board. It has a basic free version but there are premium features with a summer booster programme.
Use the textbook! There are normally end of section question on most pages, get answering them, all of them, self marking and reflecting.

One option might be to do a blitz over the summer then sit an AS paper and see where he is then and using that to form the decision.

mumonthehill · 11/06/2021 20:13

Ds bombed in maths in yr12, he resat year 12 dropping maths and adding in geography. He had good AS results in his other 2 subjects but resat the lot. Came out with good a level grades. We are in wales as well.

Original poster
Bovrilly · 12/06/2021 06:58

Thank you @VorpalSword that is really helpful. We get his grades on Monday so will find out more then.

Thank you @mumonthehill
I actually think this would be a good solution for DS, dropping physics and adding chemistry. He could either resit the whole of Y12 or do AS chemistry alongside his other subjects in Y13, and then finish A level chemistry privately as a sort of Y14. I suspect the problem will be that he will refuse point blank to be in classes with the year below him. But if that's what it takes then he will have to suck it up! Did your son stay at the same school, was he worried about 'going down a year' (or however teenaged male pride thinks of it)?

OP posts:
mumonthehill · 12/06/2021 07:11

It was not an easy choice however my ds had a goal in mind and the maths results were the kick he needed to take positive action to get where he wanted to be. He did find it hard but it was worth it in the end!

Original poster
Bovrilly · 12/06/2021 07:12

@VorpalSword
Just curious - do lots of kids find the step from physics GCSE to A level difficult?

I am not very physics minded but it seems like you can get through GCSE with a reasonable ability in maths, but A level physics seems much more difficult conceptually. I do wonder whether it's just too hard for him. Or maybe he could do it, but only with a lot of work, motivation and self-belief, and that part might be too hard for him iykwim.

I think he is slightly in denial at the moment and thinks that somehow this is going to be fixed without any discomfort on his part, so there may be a rude awakening ahead... my job will be to try to make sure he doesn't chuck away what he wants long term (which he says is university) because he doesn't fancy doing the hard work that physics will involve, or the other option of AS in another subject with the year below. Ugh.

OP posts:
Original poster
Bovrilly · 12/06/2021 07:18

Thank you @mumonthehill and kudos to your DS for such a mature decision. I hope mine would be brave enough do the same but do worry about that...

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menotastic · 12/06/2021 17:34

Not sure about physics, but I know of several a level biology people who switched after year 12 disasters to a btec in some sort of science subject. They covered the 2-year btec syllabus in a year and came out with top marks - and lots of useful UCAS points. Along with the 2 A levels they kept going with, that seemed to be fine for getting into good unis for the courses they were interested in. Might something similar be an option?

Original poster
Bovrilly · 12/06/2021 18:16

That's heartening thanks @menotastic

We get results on Monday and then will have to talk to the school. I had a chat with his year tutor the other day and she said their usual policy is if you actually fail AS they won't let you carry on to A2 but would expect him to pick up another AS or Btec. Btec in a year sounds like a great option. He will definitely not want to join a class in the year below him, but may have to I guess.

OP posts:
Original poster
Bovrilly · 12/06/2021 18:38

One thing I haven't even thought about is poor results in his other subjects, but he assures me those will be fine 😬

OP posts:
NotATreacleTart · 12/06/2021 20:47

@Bovrilly Ds got 9,9 in science but said physics A level was less mathsy than GCSE. He found it hard to stay motivated for it but saw it as a means to an end, ie getting a good grade to get into uni. He just steadily ploughed at it.

I know it is difficult when he says he doesn't want to talk about it but sadly he needs to face up to his options. There is a funding issue with repeating a year so only the specific sixth form can advise as to whether it is possible with the same subjects. Re the BTEC he needs to look at specific university entry requirements to see what they will take. This may help to make a decision too.

I think wait until his results are in on Monday but just remind him how much you love him and this isn't the end of anything. He is 17 and there is time to retake or work at his studies. But decisions will have to be made soon and he needs to know how this will impact his UCAS predicted grades.