Active discussions

Meet the Other Phone. Flexible and made to last.

Meet the Other Phone.
Flexible and made to last.

Buy now

Please or to access all these features

Talk
Secondary education

Connect with other parents whose children are starting secondary school on this forum.

Original poster

Computer science GCSE

31 replies

CinnamonStar · 23/10/2022 12:28

Anyone’s DC do/did computer science GCSE and can offer insights?

Dd’s school starts GCSE option process in November, and their computing teacher gave them a bit of a “sales talk” last lesson about them all considering computer science gcse or IT BTEC.
He took dd and a few other girls aside afterwards and said not many girls take the gcse, so he wanted to tell them he thinks they in particular would be really good at it and really enjoy it, etc.

Dd came home all inspired but also unsure.

She enjoys computing, and is very good at maths too, but I wouldn’t say she is passionate about them.
Is it enough to have a good aptitude and be hard-working, or is this a subject more akin to art, PE, music etc where really it needs to be your hobby outside school too?
Is everyone else going to be designing apps or building their own robots in their spare time?
And if you’re not really into that sort of thing, does that mean this isn’t the wisest choice?

OP posts:
MeanderingStar · 23/10/2022 14:24

My DC sounds very similar to yours, but now in Y11. Interested, capable, good at maths but not passionate in CS. They have found it a straight-forward, lowish time commitment but really rather boring GCSE. They have got good grades, but have been utterly put off taking it at A Level because they find it quite dull.
There are a couple of children in the class who are really keen and do a lot out of school - however, they don't get top marks because what they are interested in doesn't seem to mesh with the GCSE requirements.

Would mine choose it again? Probably not, but it hasn't been a disaster and it has balanced out Art in terms of time commitment.

RedWingBoots · 23/10/2022 14:40

As someone who works in technology doing a technical role, if your DD isn't interested in the subject then don't push her into doing the subject.

As long as she has a good foundation in Maths if she is interested in a technical career there are routes in later.

clary · 23/10/2022 15:30

Ds2 took CS, liked it at first but then that faded. There was a bit I a kerfuffle over the coursework. In the end he got a 6 and was one mark off a 7 - I asked did he want to get it reviewed but he said he had feared a 5 so the 6 was fine 🙂

He doesn't do loads of programming outside school but some did. There was one girl in the class which is a bit 😞. If your dd is keen then great. Don't do ICT Btec tho, so so dull (mate used to teach it and hated it).

Original poster
CinnamonStar · 23/10/2022 16:05

Thank you for your insights, that is really helpful.

I would prefer she did something she really enjoyed, not sure if this is it. I was also concerned it might be boring, but computer teacher apparently emphasised how creative it is, all about solving puzzles.

She doesn’t have a career in mind yet.

If she doesn’t do Computer sci, she’ll probably either do French, or triple science - both of which she enjoys and is good at.

She has already pretty much decided to do history, Spanish and media studies for her other options.

It feels like a bit of a crossroads for deciding to go for a more equal balance of science and humanities, vs going more heavily on the humanities side, but I suppose it doesn’t really rule anything out at this stage.

OP posts:
sproutsandparsnips · 23/10/2022 16:57

DS is doing CS GCSE, there are no girls in the class at all!
He seems to enjoy it but has always been interested in computers etc. As far as I'm aware he does no programming etc at home but has just finished his assessed project in school. He is predicted, and is hopeful of achieving an A*. He still has a written paper and on screen exam, I would assume some revision will be required for this. If the teacher thinks DD will be suited to it I'm sure she will but I would say she would need some interest in it to enjoy it.

WhichWitchIsTheWitch · 23/10/2022 17:00

DD did it and loved it, now doing the A level with her 2 best female friends. Plenty of girls doing it at her school. Does depend on the teacher- our school has two with computer science degrees themselves. The GCSE course is a bit of a dumbed down version of the A level so can be annoying for the brighter students who want to cover the topics in more depth but can’t until A level.

DorotheaDiamond · 23/10/2022 17:05

Which exam board? Dd doing edexcel independently (don’t ask) and it’s not tricky - she can do all the programming pretty well despite not enjoying it!

CraftyGin · 23/10/2022 17:09

My DD did GCSE Computing, A-level and is now in her third year of her degree.

I remember her giving a talk to a prospective pupil at my school, who was interested in computing thinking it was a way to perpetual computer games without parental nagging.

She told him that Computer Science is all about problem solving, and you need to be tenacious and relentless about the problems you are trying to solve.

Techno56 · 23/10/2022 17:12

It's my son's favourite (he's doing triple science, french, music, 3D design as well).

It's my favourite too as he hasn't had any homework yet so it's a bright spot in a sea of long winded tasks from the other subjects taking up his evenings and weekends.

Princessdebthe1st · 23/10/2022 17:13

My DD did it. Didn't programme or code outside of school. Really enjoyed the course and got a very high grade. I would say that the different exam boards have quite different specifications so it is worth looking in more detail at the course specification your school is offering. My DD's had a good balance between coding/programming and theory which really suited her. Also some are all exam and others a mix of exam and course work.
Remember computer science is a science and also teaches transferable skills such as logical thinking and problem solving. I would recommend it.

demimore · 23/10/2022 18:55

@CinnamonStar if she is good at it, she should do it, especially if the school has a good teacher - she is remarkably privileged to have the opportunity - many schools don't have a CS department. And the country needs as many computer scientists as it can get. It definitely isn't a hobby subject. My DC does it and it isn't a hobby. He is good at maths, and logical, so is good at and enjoys the aspects of the course that some kids consider difficult - the boolean/hexadecimals and the coding.

parietal · 23/10/2022 20:07

My dd does compute science. It has quite a lot of theory and teaches you to code well. The code itself is simple (dd has done more in her free time) but learning the core theory is good.

Zib · 24/10/2022 07:09

Both my older dc have done it or are doing it. Both find it fun and the workload not heavy. If your dd likes maths and problem solving and is a bit creative then it's a good subject.

Mumdiva99 · 24/10/2022 07:14

My son is doing it as one of his 3 science options (didn't want to do Biology!!).
It's not his best subject and he's not really 'into' computing. But it is giving him a basic appreciation of the nuts and bolts of the purpose of apps/it, how to programme etc so it's not a complete waste of time as opening his options for later on.

OperaStation · 24/10/2022 07:17

It’s a brilliant qualification to have and I don’t think you should be talking her down. It will open many doors and potentially lead to an extremely well paying job. More girls should be encouraged to study computing. It will help to close the gender pay gap.

Fairislefandango · 24/10/2022 07:22

My dd (now in year 13) did it and enjoyed it. Ds is doing it now and wants to do computing at A Level and possibly degree level. It's a good qualification and quite an enjoyable GCSE for most of the students who do it imo.

demimore · 24/10/2022 07:33

@CinnamonStar Have you questioned why she is choosing Media Studies? It seems an lacklustre choice for an intelligent girl, and if she chooses it over computer science the phrase "poverty of aspiration" comes to my mind. Parents need to be more savvy about which qualifications are most in demand in today's job market.

hippoherostandinghere · 24/10/2022 07:58

My DS is at the same stage and he definitely wants to do ICT in some shape or form. We're a bit confused though because there are 3 different ones on offer:
Business communication systems
Digital technology multimedia
Digital technology programming.
Anyone know would the last one of these be most similar to computer science?

imeldagolightly · 24/10/2022 08:47

Definitely don't do the IT BTecc, have a look at the spec for whichever exam board her school do for computer science. There are a lot of online videos for computer science GCSE to walk them through it and no you don't have to be coding every night to do well in it.

LactoseTheIntolerant · 24/10/2022 08:57

My Ds is doing it year 11 (last year of gcse). He, like many pp, finds it a bit boring but he is keen to go into engineering at uni so it compliments his other subject choices. Dh's career is in this field and he always says the most important thing is to have maths and extra maths a level but to be able code. Most companies/ unis are more interested in candidates that have maths/physics to a high level than computer science.

Original poster
CinnamonStar · 24/10/2022 11:34

The exam board is OCR, which seems to be 2 equal exams.

She is going to choose Media studies (actually I think it is called Creative i-media) because she really enjoys it - she’s very into film and animation, making her own videos, photography etc. She says it’s like art, but without having to be good at drawing! It’s a good choice for her, and ties well into her other interests - she’s an enthusiastic member of the foreign language film club at school for example.
I don’t see it as poverty of aspiration at all.

Many helpful points both for and against computer science. I do think she would be good at the theoretical side of it, and a lighter workload is a nice thing to have.

But she would likely do well in many subjects because she is bright, hardworking, and pushes herself.
I don’t want her to choose something just because she feels she “should” though.

OP posts:
WeAreAllDead · 24/10/2022 11:37

4 girls including my DD in her CompSci class - by the end of the first half term, she was the only one left.

She loved it in Y9, was predicted an 8/9 if she did at GCSE. She’s in Y11 now and still on course for one of those grades, she did find the first term of Y10 quite a jump, but I work in STEM so was able to help a lot.

WeAreAllDead · 24/10/2022 11:39

@CinnamonStar DD also does Creative i-Media, and loves that too. A close friend of mine works in game design and said it’s very rare that anyone knows both sides of it, and those that do earn a lot of money.

demimore · 24/10/2022 11:46

She is going to choose Media studies (actually I think it is called Creative i-media)

Creative i-media and Media Studies are two completely different subjects. If you'd said Creative i-Media originally I wouldn't have questioned it, because she will learn valuable technical skills. (However, in case you weren't aware, its a vocational qualification, not a GCSE).

TheTurn0fTheScrew · 24/10/2022 18:32

DD1 is in YR11 and does computer science. There are only 4 girls taking it across 2 classes of 25 in each. The workload seems light - she doesn't do nearly as much homework as for other subjects - but is still on target for grade 8/9. She enjoys it, but she is very mathsy rather than into computing for fun, and I think that's where the curriculum sits. A good few of the intake switched out in the first half-term as they were expecting something more practical.

She's not going to take it as an A-level, but only as the more competitive universities for Computer Science require maths and further maths but not Computer Science A level, and she'd rather do a humanity and a language for balance.