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

1 2

Original poster

Sixth form - heavy work load and not much time for anything else!

31 replies

Notcontent · 07/10/2022 20:35

My DD is in year 12, at a very academic school. She is doing 4 A levels and really enjoying it so far, but she is working pretty hard. They do some enrichment sessions as well, so in total she only has one afternoon when she finishes a bit earlier and other than that no free periods at school. For one subject she also has an additional after school session. So overall nearly all her time after she finally gets home is spent on homework and revision (they have regular tests). Up to now she was able to do lots of sport during the week but there is just very little time for it now.

Is this normal for some sixth forms? She is also doing some volunteering at the weekends… I feel exhausted just thinking about her schedule - but I am not sure what the alternative is…

OP posts:

NinetyNineRedBalloonsGoBy · 07/10/2022 20:36

Why is she doing 4? No wonder she's exhausted. Even for oxbridge she only needs 3 A s / A stars

tickticksnooze · 07/10/2022 20:37

It doesn't sound abnormal tbh.

Camdenish · 07/10/2022 20:38

Is one of the A levels further maths? If not then I’d be concerned that she was spreading herself too thinly for little purpose. Two years ofA levels is a high percentage of a child of 16-18 life. It could be pretty miserable not to have some sort of outside life. Especially after the experiences she’ll have missed during the lockdowns.

Original poster

Notcontent · 07/10/2022 20:51

They all start with 4, with the expectation that they can drop one. It’s not further maths. They are 3 STEM subjects plus one creative one, that she really does not need but enjoys….

@Camdenish that’s what I am slightly concerned about. Year 10 was the pandemic and she missed out on so much, and then in year 11 she pretty much worked non stop as they had so many mock exams before the real thing.

OP posts:

canyouextrapol · 07/10/2022 20:58

Creative a levels like art never seem to have an end to them. Annoys the crap out of me that some kids are bunking off my lessons to do more colouring in!

AprilShowers23 · 07/10/2022 20:59

Even in top private schools they only do 3 A levels. Usually drop the fourth very quickly. A fourth isn't needed even for Oxbridge/medicine.

PrincessButtercupToo · 07/10/2022 21:01

Is it normal that she’s working hard while doing 4 A-Levels at a ”very academic school”?

Yes.

Camdenish · 07/10/2022 21:01

It’s so difficult to get a balance isn’t it?

It seems sad for her to drop the “extra” creative a level but if she’s going to drop it at some point why not now? Isn’t it a shame they need to specialise so early?

I wonder if she’ll get into her stride a bit as the term goes on? Maybe getting into a rhythm of work and play? If not though I’d probably be looking at ways to sort the balance with her. I’m not driven though, and live is short, maybe it is normal. I’m not sure I’d want to live like that so I wouldn’t expect anyone else to.

Galarunner · 07/10/2022 21:03

Two stem Alevels plus one creative A level is fine for a lot of science courses at university. Students from my old school have got into medicine, biosciences etc with Biology, Chemistry , Art or Music. So depending on what she wants to do she might not have to drop the creative subject if she wants to drop down to three subjects.

Original poster

Notcontent · 07/10/2022 21:11

Lots to think about - thank you…

I didn’t go to school in the U.K. - I got top grades but it was very relaxed in comparison ! So this is all new to me.

OP posts:

PinkFrogss · 07/10/2022 21:16

Odd that her timetable is full, I don’t think that’s normal.

The very high achieving sixth form college in my area, that sends plenty to Oxbridge, has 5 hours per a level so 15-20 hours total

Sortingfinances2 · 07/10/2022 21:45

@PinkFrogss A school week is 25 hours of classes.
So 4 a levels + PSHCE + p.e. + enrichment then you only have 2-3 spare hours a week.

If she's coping, great. If not, drop the 4th. Frees up 5 hrs per week and less homework.
Keep the creative as a hobby.
But yes, normal.

catshadow · 07/10/2022 22:20

My ds did 4 A Levels, a level 3 BTec, played a sport at national level, had a casual job, a girlfriend, and still had time to feed his Clash of Clans addiction and occasionally spend some time with us. Not sure how he managed it, but he did.

whiteroseredrose · 07/10/2022 22:31

Both of my DC did 4 A levels (Further Maths!) and had very little spare time at school - a bit of time on a Wednesday pm. For both, they worked hard during the week so that they had some time at the weekends. Not much sport but we're not much interested as a family.

FacebookPhotos · 07/10/2022 22:39

The fourth A level is an optional extra - something to do if she enjoys it. If she’s finding it too much she can drop it. Some students spend their spare time doing sport, playing computer games or chilling with friends. But for some the extra thing they enjoy is an A level in a completely separate subject to the ones they want to keep up long term. Like how some adults learn a language for fun. I’m a complete geek who does random Physics questions when I’m bored. I did an extra A level because I liked it and I could manage the workload. My family think I’m nuts, but I’m happy.

Is she happy?

PandaOrLion · 07/10/2022 22:40

I’ve worked in some academic schools (in pastoral roles) and it’s standard for students to do 4 and drop one by February half term. Occasionally students would finish it at the end of y12. Is that the plan at DDs school?

RampantIvy · 07/10/2022 22:51

DD started with 4 A levels and really struggled with the content. Fortunately the untried subject was the one she hated and as she had three other subjects she could drop it after AS levels.

CaronPoivre · 07/10/2022 22:56

Perfectly normal and desirable if she wants an unlimited choice at 18. There will be time for sports, orchestra etc but it has to be slotted around work. Weekends, for example and holidays offer opportunities for better balance.

PinkFrogss · 07/10/2022 23:04

Sortingfinances2 · 07/10/2022 21:45

@PinkFrogss A school week is 25 hours of classes.
So 4 a levels + PSHCE + p.e. + enrichment then you only have 2-3 spare hours a week.

If she's coping, great. If not, drop the 4th. Frees up 5 hrs per week and less homework.
Keep the creative as a hobby.
But yes, normal.

Seems a bit silly doing PE and regular PSHE in sixth form given the workload of alevels, plus many will be doing work experience/volunteering to enhance their uni applications. Add in paid work, socialising, relaxing, and sleep - those couple of hours a week could make a big difference to a student.

bjmin · 08/10/2022 07:23

Notcontent · 07/10/2022 20:35

Is this normal for some sixth forms? She is also doing some volunteering at the weekends… I feel exhausted just thinking about her schedule - but I am not sure what the alternative is…

Is your DD applying to UK or US universities?

Unexpecteddrivinginstructor · 08/10/2022 07:37

What does she want to do at university and where does she want to do it? I only really know about medicine, but for that I would suggest unless aiming for very specific university (not a good idea generally with medicine anyway) then three A levels that she can score highly in and possibly an EPQ will open the most doors. There is no benefit in doing four unless she is really bored doing three.

TeenDivided · 08/10/2022 07:44

If she dropped the creative A level she could presumably still do something similar in her spare time?

The general rule of thumb is something like 5 taught hours + 5 extra hours per subject per week isn't it? At an academic school I can imagine they might expect more than 5hrs out of school per subject too.

In case you don't know about it, there is also a general y12 thread over in further Education: www.mumsnet.com/talk/further_education/4624910-post-gcses-2022-year-12-202223-general-support-thread

FacebookPhotos · 08/10/2022 10:30

Seems a bit silly doing PE and regular PSHE in sixth form given the workload of alevels

Regular exercise is really important, and I think insisting on PE is correct. And pshe in 6th form tends to cover a huge range of important things too - from budgeting, self care and relationships to ethical debates and politics. Done properly, both pshe and pe are vital imo. Otherwise it is very easy for students to become very narrow focussed at age 16.

Original poster

Notcontent · 08/10/2022 10:46

@FacebookPhotos that is true - and she does really enjoy the creative subject especially that it’s a very small class and they enjoy the social side of it. It just reminded me that DD was really looking forward to her long post GCSE summer break but then having so much free time was not actually that great for her…

OP posts:

MrsBennetsPoorNerves · 08/10/2022 10:57

My dd is very academic and considered doing 4 A-levels but decided against it when she realised that there was no real advantage to doing an extra one and that she would prefer to "have a life" as she puts it.

She is doing 3 A-levels and an EPQ, and she's also had to prepare for a couple of extra tests and do work experience for admission for medicine at university. On top of that, she has two part time jobs, a fairly time consuming hobby (performing arts) and a very active social life with plenty of time with her friends/boyfriend. She is extremely busy but she seems to be thriving.

I would encourage your dd to drop the fourth A-level if she can. A bit of balance is important!

Flip

1 2

Swipe left for the next trending thread