In what ways did your DC find A Levels different to their expectations

[MeanderingStar]

Currently considering choices, but interested in both general, 'how was studying for A Levels different' and specifically 'how was that subject different'. (Esp Psychology, French, Maths and Music!)
Surely they all expected to become more responsible for their own learning and for it to be harder - but what surprised them?

I know quite a few students were disappointed by psychology as it wasn't what they were expecting at all, and there were a few who switched subjects early on. So psychology is one where you should definitely take a close look at the syllabus before signing up.

The sheer amount of work.

Psychology is one of those courses that on the face of it has a choice of modules. In reality the staff choose which ones are studied (the only sensible way of doing it really), but make sure your DC knows which 'options' have been picked for them.

Soooo much work. Dd did Eng lit, geography and French, and did more work for French than the other two put together.

Tbf the GCSE she took (last year of old one) was much worse prep fir A level than the current one. Also she switched to it after a,week if another choice, so hadn't done any summer prep at all. Still hard tho. MFL A level is very challenging imo.

Ah @MeanderingStar DD switched from music as it dud not play to her strengths. Again tho, GCSE not a great prep but it's better now I believe.

History coursework is a LOT of work

Yes, hear that a lot about Psychology (although the numbers taking it are still HUGE), I wonder what students thought it was going to be?

Hoping Music will be OK as DC really loves all aspects of the GCSE.

Well that's good re music. I think Dd found that there was more emphasis on composition and less on the written exam, which she had done well at a GCSE. But I believe the focus of the GCSE is different now.

Ds2 took maths and said it was very difficult. He got 8 at GCSE and a B at A level. Some ppl in his class just found it so so hard. Less than half marks or even less than quarter marks in a test was not unusual. Some students were ace at it of course. I wouldn't recommend it tbh with a GCSE liwer than an 8. A 7 at an absolute push, but be prepared for a C at a level.

DC took Maths, Philosophy and religion, and psychology.

Psychology turned out to be their worst grade and they hated it. It was nothing like they expected. They wanted to swap after Xmas of Y12 but it was too late. Agree with PP, do research into the syllabus. For what they went onto History would have been better. Psychology isn’t needed, even for psychology degrees.

Maths is a massive step up from GCSE. We start getting into imaginary numbers, differentiation and integration. It builds on GCSE as well so a firm understanding of those topics are essential. It’s manageable but a lot of work if not mathematically inclined. Anyone with a 8+ will be fine. 7 can be variable depending on knowledge of GCSE topics. 6 will struggle but get through. (I also say that as a maths teacher).

Philosophy and religion they loved. Different from GCSE as it’s more about philosophy and ethics with religion thrown in, not just about religions.

Yes, Maths is a worry, I know lots find it so hard, even coming from good grades. DC is a solid 8, but definitely not a 9 IYSWIM. Obviously I am familiar with noblegiraffes' table.

@MeanderingStar could you explain why your DC hated it and in what way it was nothing like they expected?

Ok asked DD about this and she agrees with what I said re music, but Yy new GCSE much better prep.

When she heard your dd’s list she said “oh my god DON’T do four if you do French.” It was so so much work - so many topics, so much extra work outside class. Plus if you are in a big French class (there were two! in hers, dd and a good friend luckily) then the focus on speaking, vvv important, will be harder. Dd freely admits that her tiny class was a massive help esp for speaking. She says drop psych 😀

DDs school is firm on GCSE 8+ for Maths A Level. It’s early days for DD2 (just started Y12), but she’s saying that she’s really glad that she spent time over the summer hols doing the transition pack the school provided. There’s also a bridging book you can buy (by CGP or something like that) which provides similar. She’s finding that with that, it hasn’t been a huge jump so far, challenging but manageable. DD1 took Psychology, the topics are interesting - but it’s a lot about applying fairly dry theories and perspectives to those topics. You have to learn model answers to exam questions around this. Class sizes were also large, as it’s such a popular subject - although, actually, Maths isn’t all that far off in popularity. Generally, it is a step up, but a doable one for a student who has that in their mindset. It’s also good to have an understanding of how quick it goes and they are on study leave before you know it. It’s therefore really important to go over notes all the time, proactively fill in any gaps in understanding and create revision resources sooner rather than later (we found this was often set as homework). Both DDs did enjoy being treated a bit more like a grown up and having a few Sixth Form perks. School constantly reminds them that the periods when they don’t have a lesson are “study periods” not “free periods” though!

They’re a big jump from A levels. But other than that it really depends on your kid.
Eldest DD started with Maths, Chemistry, Economics & Psychology. Found latter boring so dropped after first year. Adored Economics and seemed a natural - got A*, had to work hard for maths (8 but borderline 9 gcse) and got A, and worked even harder for chemistry (8 gcse). Chemistry got so hard that she wished she’d stuck with boring psychology as thinks she’d have got a higher grade but who knows.
Middle DD had tags for GCSEs & chose History, Psychology, Economics, Core Maths. The latter is an AS and found it straightforward (maths gcse 8) loves History but no walk in the park (gcse9), psychology likes but not loves and again slightly challenging, dislikes economics, but school don’t do business so is stuck with it.
I think choosing new subjects like psychology and economics at A level is tricky as they’re not GCSEs so going to be hard & you really are going into the unknown. School do taster sessions but they’re trying to ‘sell’ their subject so I’m not too sure how realistic the tasters are. Middle DD looked through eldest’s books and notes and thought she’d like economics but she’s not crazy about the teacher’s teaching style. Again, different kids can like/not like the same teacher.

I meant A levels are a big jump from GCSEs.
I remember my teacher telling us that ‘there’s no greater jump. A levels to degree is a steady step not this huge leap’. I’ve never forgotten that.

Thank you, this is all interesting.
Agree about subjects selling themselves (which is fair enough) and this makes it harder. Also as DC is staying at the same school all the teachers want to hang on to students (assuming they aren't hopeless), so it makes it difficult to know if they really think your child is suited ....when at the end of the day I know they want bums on seats.

Clary, not really intending to do 4, it's just they are the most likely to start with.
Are there such things as big languages classes any more? DC will be lucky to get any more than 4 in her group.

I am not too sure what people expect of psychology, other than an expectation that it will be easy. I would say that it draws on skills from Biology, RS and maths. If you like that constellation of subjects you are more likely to enjoy psychology.

Well four in a group for French A level will be great. I recall a few years ago being in an A-level class (as a teacher not a student lol) of 19! That was only in about 2012.

Thank goodness re the four! Really no need for four A levels unless one is FM (and only then IMO to keep a broader option).

Deffo agree re jump to A levels being bigger than jump to degree.

The only beauty of starting with 4 is the option of dropping one if it doesn’t suit. This is especially a good idea if two of the subjects are new. In DD1’s case she would have likely have chosen psychol over econ if only 3 to start were allowed. By being able to start both she quickly realised that economics was her thing. For DD2 the rules had changed and she could only choose 3 plus either an EPQ or Core Maths. A shame as she would have quickly realised economics wasn’t her thing and kept politics, which would have been her fourth choice. However, starting with four and doing an EPQ or Core Maths (they do them in yr12) is a HUGE HUGE ask.
Does your school do EPQ/Core Maths in yr12 or yr13 op? Schools/colleges vary.

Core Maths not offered and EPQ is in Y13. If you do it at all.
Economics is another possibility (also big classes like Psych).

EPQ in year 13 is bonkers. It’s a massive amount of work

can you explain why your DC hated it and in what way it was nothing like they expected?

Can I assume you directed this at me OP rather than yourself?

Everyone in the year took it because it was a ‘new’ subject. There were also a lot of people who took it who thought it would be easy but it wasn’t and this affected the class make up if that makes sense.
DC also thought it would be about how the mind works and why we have things like mental health and nature vs nurture debate. What they were doing wasn’t what they thought they were going to be doing after reading the 6th form choices booklet. (If we had read the specification we might have had a better idea - and I do blame myself for not doing/insisting on this). There was a lot of biology involved (they don’t like biology) and they were doing things like the biology of eating disorders which was interesting but they just didn’t really like it. DC described it as ‘biology in disguise’.
It was also a lot of work to learn the scientific facts as well as writing a lot of essays. It’s very essay based.
I honestly think it was just a wrong choice which was badly thought through but adamantly jumped into expecting grit to be amazing but it turned out that it just wasn’t for them and if there was any way they could have changed it they would have. These things happen.

A good idea for DC considering 6th form only subjects (mostly, obviously some schools do offer them at GCSE too) is to browse the relevant Dorling Kindersley Big Ideas Explained Simply books (Waterstones usually has most of the range). I teach Economics and the DK Economics Book gives a good flavour of the ideas and debates involved. No doubt the Psychology one does too.

I think the key thing is to remember that Psychology is a science and Economics is a humanity (at least at A-level) - obviously at university your mileage might vary depending on course. Both require strong analytical skills and a self-starter approach to cover a lot of ground quickly

Thank you, that's really helpful. I love the 'Biology in disguise' comment!
We have got the spec and I have made them look at old exam papers, but it only gets you so far.

We have that book😁.

Dd dropped psychology after 4 weeks It was all data based and not interesting at all.

I think mine found A levels easier than GCSEs in some ways because it was just the subjects she wanted to do - no essay subjects and especially no MFL.