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Secondary education

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Original poster

2 GCSEs to choose from DT, German, Geo, RS - critique is welcome please

99 replies

pasok1000 · 03/03/2023 05:59

My son is choosing :
Maths
Triple science
Engl
Comp Science
History

Now he needs to add 2 GCSEs from:
DT, German, Geo, RS

Please what woudl be your critique?

OP posts:
NeverDropYourMooncup · 03/03/2023 08:59

Geography can get you outside using science/maths and also seeing signs of history in the landscape, so it's helping with the other core subjects and getting some fresh air in the process.

DT is useful for making, rather than writing more essays.

DibbleDooDah · 03/03/2023 09:00

Go with his favourite subjects as by default he should do better if he enjoys what he’s doing.

My DD has a similar set of options. She has chosen DT as engineering might be on the cards for a university subject, she loves it, and actually having the project coursework element frees up time closer to the exams for revision of more traditional subjects.

DorritLittle · 03/03/2023 09:15

I would advise my child doing that list to do DT as one practical or creative subject is very beneficial for academic kids.

Either that or German. I disagree with a pp that the grammar is tricky, Germans love rules. And languages are useful.

Which one does he enjoy most?

drdomuch · 03/03/2023 09:39

Just to comment on the DT. There is usually 50% coursework and kids need to be quite organised (many start the work in the Summer before Y11 and it carries through until Jan/Feb time so they need to keep on top of it). Around 50-60 slides from memory so quite a big written project! So a good one for organised kids who don't leave things until the last minute.

Bramshott · 03/03/2023 09:53

None are bad choices given what he has already!
Geography is probably the most all round useful and keeps the most options open for the future
German is a good choice if he's keen on and good at languages - not many people get the chance to do 2 at GCSE these days
DT is good if he'd welcome something a bit more practical and where he can get a big chunk of the work done before the main exam round
RS is also great if he'd find it interesting

PerpetualOptimist · 03/03/2023 11:01

My advice regarding GCSE options is to look at three aspects in parallel:

What do they enjoy the most?
What closes off the least future options?
What offers good workload 'balance'?

DT can be time intensive in relation to coursework pre-exams but is lighter during exams. RE is content heavy and similar to History in that regard. Geography is not essay-heavy and is more about variety and breadth of content.

I have DC who have done all of the options cited, with the exception of German, so am referencing their relatively recent experiences.

CMOTDibbler · 03/03/2023 11:24

My sciency ds did DT GCSE, and has gone on to do it at A level (with maths, physics and biology) and absolutely loves it. At his school it involves a lot of CAD modelling so went well with his Comp Sci GCSE and is creative as well as technical. He's doing an engineering cadet gold thing as well alongside the A level and they get so many real world skills out of it.

I'd pick geography and DT in your Ds's case

Original poster
pasok1000 · 03/03/2023 21:43

He said Design and probably German but i feel language he can learn from going to country not like studying at the desk...
RS/Divinity can give him essay writing skills

OP posts:
Beamur · 03/03/2023 21:50

He's taking History and English though - they're essay subjects.

Twilight7777 · 03/03/2023 21:52

I’d go with DT and German. Handyman skills always handy lol

Original poster
pasok1000 · 03/03/2023 21:54

RS can give critical thinking skills... what do u think?

OP posts:
TizerorFizz · 03/03/2023 23:45

@pasok1000
RS, History and English are all essay subjects. He has no art, so DT is nearest to that. GCSEs are about keeping as many options open as possible. No one can keep everything going.

By not doing German, MFL in the future is reduced. Doing 2 MFLs if you are good is a better academic route than RS when you already have History and English. He is lucky to be offered it. Geography is another humanity so do that if he’s interested in the environment and possibly with DT for engineering at university. Or indeed interested in Geography. What he wants seems fine to me and RS doesn’t add much. Thinking skills come later! GCSEs are formulaic!

Talipesmum · 04/03/2023 00:04

He’ll get plenty of essay writing and critical thinking skills from history and English. It’s not that easy to just pick up another language by going to the country - unless you plan to really move there and dedicate yourself to it. Learning languages is a great brain development skill as well. Frankly, they’re all good options with a lot to offer - I’d let him choose the ones he’s most motivated by.

TeenDivided · 04/03/2023 06:19

Talipesmum · 04/03/2023 00:04

He’ll get plenty of essay writing and critical thinking skills from history and English. It’s not that easy to just pick up another language by going to the country - unless you plan to really move there and dedicate yourself to it. Learning languages is a great brain development skill as well. Frankly, they’re all good options with a lot to offer - I’d let him choose the ones he’s most motivated by.

Agree.

Housewife2010 · 04/03/2023 06:31

My children are choosing their options at the moment. Which subjects does your son enjoy the most and have the best grades in? We have listened and advised our children but the choice is theirs. I definitely wouldn't let a stranger choose. Your son will be studying the subjects for two years so I'd let him choose the ones that he enjoys the most. There are benefits for all of them.

RSintes · 04/03/2023 06:44

German and geography.

Two languages extremely useful and like a PP has said, once you get the hang of how one works, the other is very easy indeed.

Nice to see some schools still making it possible for students to do more than one language at GCSE. Rare breed of school these days.

cptartapp · 04/03/2023 07:35

Geography. It closes no doors. He could pursue it at A level and as around 20% of that is coursework, is a clever choice for maximising the chance of a decent grade towards uni A level requirements, even if he doesn't want to do Geog as a degree.

Original poster
pasok1000 · 04/03/2023 07:37

So the subjects which have coursework can maximise your chance of preparing good grade before exams?
Do i understand ot correctly?

OP posts:
TeenDivided · 04/03/2023 07:44

pasok1000 · 04/03/2023 07:37

So the subjects which have coursework can maximise your chance of preparing good grade before exams?
Do i understand ot correctly?

Subjects with a high % of coursework means you can bank marks before the final exam period.
They then tend to have less content to revise for and fewer exams, leaving more time for revision for other subjects.

However I'd dispute that about geography. It may be board dependent, but DD was due to have 3 exams for geography.

That said, if your DS has a strong preference, and understands the pros & cons, then go with his preference.

cptartapp · 04/03/2023 07:47

DS1 did Geography A level. He got a grade A which was great for uni admission criteria of AAB (particularly as one of his other subjects was maths which he struggled with and got a B), and found he could really excel at the the 20% or so coursework element of Geog, taking the pressure off the exam a little.
If he's thinking on uni, think long term. There's an element of doing what will get you the best grades to get where you want to go, and that ultimately starts with GCSE's. It's a bit of a balancing act.
I thought high marks in the A level languages for example, were quite difficult to achieve?

TeenDivided · 04/03/2023 07:59

Oh come on.

Surely we aren't advising a 13yo to take a subject he may be less keen on at GCSE so he can then take it for A level to maximise his chance at a uni admission?

That way madness lies.

May09Bump · 04/03/2023 07:59

We have similar options to yours plus further maths and RS as required by the school but my DS has enjoyed it so far, quite good for debating. We gave some direction to his decisions in relation what he wants to do in university - he had autonomy on humanities choice, he hates geography but better grades than in History, which he has picked - we agreed he would need to work harder on that.

DT was a backup choice to Computer Science and he's really enjoyed the 3D modelling.

Fairislefandango · 04/03/2023 08:02

The only sensible advice is that he should choose what he enjoys most. And shouldn't drop anything that would be necessary for a particular career path if he happens to have one at all firmly in mind.

cptartapp · 04/03/2023 08:04

Well he has to be keen on the subject of course. That's a given.
But if it's a difficult decision two or three, why not? You have to play the game. Vocational courses are different naturally.
Worked for my two.

TheTeenageYears · 04/03/2023 08:24

Do they really do 11 GCSE's?