GCSE Options for v dyslexic DS

[peoniesarejustperfect]

DS is in Y9 and has come back for half term full of chat about GCSE options, which are filling me with dread.... He is very dyslexic which is compounded with issues with working memory and processing speeds. He's in a mainstream school, but with a lot of support (at school and me). His EP gives him 25% extra time, a reader and scribe (we've never used the latter).

His interests are art and design/DT. He quite likes geography, music and tech. He finds programming difficult, so Computer Science is out.

He's set his heart on designing golf courses, so ideally would get enough at A Level to get onto a Foundation course and then Landscape Architecture. If his is too much of a stretch, there are more vocational routes, but they don't have the design focus that he likes. I have no idea if that's possible for him, but don't want to pop his bubble and think having a plan is motivating etc.

His school is mixed academically and they are supportive of him focusing on
5-6 GCSEs. He's quite diligent/hard working and I think he'll be ok with quite a lot of course work.

That would suit him more than a lot of memorising, revision and timed assessments - essays and multi-choice are difficult for him. If the timetable options allow, how does this sound to you?

• Maths
• English language
• Art
• DT
• Geography
• Music (plays sax but

Any thoughts or experience would be really appreciated. TIA 🙏🙏🙏

Hit "Post" too quickly -
He plays the sax and has a great ear for music, but very much an informal player.

I would imagine the best people to talk to are the school.

You've cut out science, RS and English literature which are compulsory options at the two schools my kids go to. When they said reduced GCSEs did they mean you'd be able to choose what was dropped?

Even with reasonable adjustments arguments they still have to show they're offering a full curriculum I would think.

Apologies if you are able to choose differently.

Is it worth looking at BTEC qualifications as they are coursework?

Other than that, those subjects look ok. :)

English literature isn't compulsory. The school may say it is, but the Government don't. If he leaves school with a 4 in either language or literature, and 4 in maths, he won't have to resit.

My son is dyslexic and it was good that he did language and literature so he could hedge his bets on passing one of them. He ended up passing both but it's good not having to worry about retakes in year 12.

My son did BTEC Food which.is mostly practical cooking with a write up after each meal cooked. Teacher gave son a template with series of questions on. All he had to do as well as learn his food skills eg chopping, mixing etc was to answer questions and could use laptop with spell and grammar check. Only exam is carrying out practical in timed conditions. You choose meal to cook and practice it at home and at school too. My son enjoyed it. Now he can cook about 4 mains really well and three deserts.

DT could be an absolute pain for him.

In most schools the project work is going to be hand written which could cause issues with his coursework (NEA) as this is mainly their own work and 50% of the total mark.

Many of those outside of the tech department will sell it as an almost completely practical option and it isn't.

It would be useful if he could do Biology if he is going down the route of Landscape Architecture.

Another possibility is BTEC Sport. My son is really good at Sport and did this too.

@Littlebluebird123
I am not sure as we haven't spoken to them yet. But we have a friend whose DS is in Y11 with a similar profile and he's not doing any sciences. They don't offer RS.The online booklet says he can drop English Literature.

@Lougle

Thats good to know.

@PeekAtYou I like the idea of hedging his English. If he could manage the lit, it would be a great idea.

@FrippEnos Thank you - I didn't realise that at all. Do you think a scribe could write for him? Has your DC done this.

@lemonyelderflower I would love him to be able to do one science, instead of
combined (which seems to be the option). Biology is def is best science. Do you know much about Landscape Architecture? I hadn't heard of it until I started researching with DS.

@caringcarer They don't offer food tech unfortunately. This was my best o'level and I still love cooking!! They do the BTEC in Sport and I think that could be could, especially if he did manage to do Biology. I imagine there is quite a lot of crossover.

Do they really not offer RE/RS?
I was going to suggest RE instead of Geography as I think RE is much more 'straightforward' than Geography. Geog has all those case studies, and the revision guides didn't seem as good/helpful to me.

If he is going to be on a reduced timetable anyway, then if he was timetabled with the 'triple science' people perhaps he could do just Biology (or just Physics? - fewer facts more maths, might be better fit too?) again maybe instead of Geography?

Modern GCSEs aren't set up for dyslexic kids with slow processing and working memory issues.

@TeenDivided Spooky, but that's exactly what his Head of Learning Support said!!

I thought the RS thing was odd too. It is there for A Level but not before.

Here's their list. GCSEs offered: Mathematics, Biology, Chemistry, Physics, English Language, English Literature, French, Spanish, German, Latin, Greek, Art, Computing, Design, Drama, Dance, Geography, History, Music, Physical Education, Business Studies

Reading all of this I wonder if we are better plugging away at the sciences (physics & Biology) and dropping Geography and music ideas. So:

• Art
• Maths
• English (Lang and maybe Literature)
• Physics and / or Biology
• PE
• DT - find out more about this

@TeenDivided Sorry, it's quoted the whole thing (haven't used that bit before). He said the same thing as you how tricky modern GCSE are for dyslexics / slow processors/working memory bods.

With English Lit depending on their set texts if you can go to see things it would help a lot. But it still won't help with Poetry.

I would try if you can to a) look at exam papers for different subjects to see how they are structured (eg 4 x 20 mark questions v 8 x 10 marks) and b) go to WHSmiths (or ask school) to look at the CGP revision guides so you can see amount of content / how useful they are.

(My DD didn't sit GCSEs due to MH issues worsened by Covid. But in y12 we got dyslexia & dyspraxia diagnoses and found out how poor her WP and processing were (that the school had known but not made clear)).

Is laptop use an option? Science might be useful.

I think that you would have to prove that it was his standard way of working. But the exams officer should be able to find out the details.

My DH is dyslexic and he said he struggled with very exam heavy subjects as although he would understand very well what the class content was, articulating that in an essay was a real struggle for him.
I'd speak to the school and ask for which classes would be more coursework focused- he will likely have to do exams for everything, but classes where a good chunk of the grade comes from coursework will likely help.

I recommend speaking to your local college(s) and seeing what they do. I did core subjects + business NVQ for GCSE resulting in 7 exams IIRC. He could potentially choose extra optional courses that would suit him better due to smaller classes, better resources for kids with dyslexia

Thank you @TeenDivided I think some research into the revision books / syllabus / grade scheme will def help. Your post also reminded me that I managed an A grade in English Lit without ever reading Macbeth - the film and study notes were enough! That sounds really tough for your DD. What is she studying? Was she able to move straight to A Levels? Covid was such a synthesiser for those already facing challenges. I must say, you sound a really supportive Mum.

@LIZS He uses a laptop and I think I'm going to find out more about reader / scribe as well as voice recognition software - whatever they will let him have I suppose. He's not mad keen on Science, but if it's a more straightforward stepping stone, it could be a good choice. We could start soon as a little often is def what works for him. I have a saying "inch by inch, life's a cinch. Yard by yard, life is hard".

My DD was never headed for A levels. She is doing Animal Care at college (always was the plan) but due to her MH issues she has started 2 years 'below' where she was otherwise heading for.
(But she is much better now than a year ago, and infinitely better than 2 years ago.)

Thank you @ANiceBigCupOfTea my DS is exactly the same - he understands ideas, is quite engaged with it all, but expressing them is difficult as are multi-choice as the options sound too similar to him. I will def see what we could do with course work as it will help to have quite a lot 'banked' in advance. I feel as if we've got to play the game as best we can.

@Carrieonmywaywardsun Moving school isn't an option for us at the moment, so we are stuck with the choices. I am interested that you did Business Studies - what did you enjoy about it?

My DS goes to a school for dyslexic children. They offer the following GCSES
English lit and lang
Maths
Science (dual award)
RE
Art
They also look free functional skills in English and Maths.

The head stated that geography and history are difficult for dyslexic children as you need to remember so may need terms, names and dates etc.

Have a quick look at Biology and physics papers or revision guides. If he is reasonable at maths, physics is a good bet, but my biology always suffered from the longer answers required (30 years ago!).

@peoniesarejustperfect

I would agree with pp that our current curriculum is dreadful for those with working memory issues. It's based on knowledge so just learning stuff which is a nightmare.

School already sound supportive which is great. It might be helpful if you can speak to the teachers of science, dt and geography as they'll be in the best place to explain the course and what would be more suitable.

When my second DD chose hers we were given a slot to discuss it (albeit with the head of year) and she was really helpful at discussing the options with us. My dd hasn't got a DX but does have working memory issues (identified by school) and finds essay writing extremely difficult. She's doing business and photography for her options. Both of these interest her and are a bit different so she is able to excel in a different way. There is a fair bit of writing in both but it's more broken up so more manageable than the essay based subjects.

They really wanted her to do triple science as she's doing well in those subjects but we said no as I know she was already stressing about them to get what she was getting and I didn't want the extra pressure.

Hope you can work out a suitable solution. It's all a bit of a minefield. I always say to mine though that each part is just a stepping stone to the next. They might have to take a different path than others but there are many paths - despite what it might look like to begin with!