Why would a secondary school NOT offer triple science GCSEs?

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A friend's DD is in year 7 and they've discovered that the school doesn't offer triple science GCSEs only combined science GCSE. The school does have a have a sixth form and offers biology, chemistry and physics A Levels. This is a big, well funded school that offers a range of different GCSEs and A Levels plus a lot of vocational qualifications.

Why would the school only offer combined science GCSE, and does it matter if the DC wants to go on to take science A Levels at the sixth form?

At DD3's school they are taught each of the three sciences separately and the decision is made in about February of year 11 as to which option (foundation/higher, trilogy, separates) they'll take. Even within the top set they will have some who take the trilogy option and others taking separates. They teach all science lessons at the same time, so that students can be moved up or down sets fluidly.

In terms of GCSEs, they take English Literature, English Language, Maths +/- Further Maths, Science (2) or Science (3), then they have 3 options, one of which must be History/Geography/Spanish/French. So they end up with 8, 9, or 10 GCSEs.

This is exactly my experience: triple science is not necessarily any harder than double but it is a lot more content and often squeezed into either the same amount of curriculum time or occasionally an extra period. This is why it is usually only offered to high prior attaining students in non-selective state schools.

I am not sure if I am missing a subtext in @WombatChocolate 's (rhetorical?) question 'I suppose a good question is why state grammars and selective independents tend to offer separate sciences. They clearly think there’s some merit to it.' The answer is very very simple. It suits the ability profile of their selective cohort and it is expected by parents.

What is worth celebrating is how widely triple science is offered in English state schools. It is rare to find a school where students have no option at all to take separate sciences, as low as 7% nationally in this Teacher Tapp survey (https://teachertapp.co.uk/articles/triple-science-teaching-arrangements-in-schools/#:~:text=In%209%25%20of%20schools%2C%20everyone,not%20be%20open%20to%20all).).

Grammar school my kids went to only offered double science. Two of my DD's friends are now doctors, I know others did medicine/vet science/dentistry as well as other science courses after A levels. My own kids also did A levels in biology and physics and got top grades so it didn't seem to be an issue.

Thank you to all who've contributed, some replies have really made me stop and think, and realise I have very little knowledge of how schools actually work!

My friend is going to ask if triple science will be offered to the higher performing cohort. I guess there's a chance that might happen. They certainly feel more reassured that doing combined science won't adversely effect their DC if they choose to go on and take science A Levels.

Definitieoy feel you can ask the school about these issues. Don’t feel you can’t or be fobbed off as being annoying.

Find out too about any implications of choices now for A Level options. You don’t want doors closed that you didn’t realise were being closed.

It makes no difference later on, many of us went on to do degrees/postgrad/work in science based fields with ‘only’ double science gcse. My 90s comprehensive didn’t offer all sorts of things I later learnt were available widely elsewhere!

I’m sure some schools

• don’t have the teaching staff to offer triple
• don’t have enough pupils they feel would benefit from triple to run the separate course
• haven’t had pressure from anywhere to do it differently

I'm so old when I went to school we didn't to all three sciences. So I dropped chemistry. And now I work with chemists everyday. Oh well.

A bit random I know but this school isn’t in Hackney by any chance, is it?

Our schools offer both double and triple. We don’t have school sixth forms and the colleges don’t make any particular allowances for those having done double award so any students going on to A-level sciences would struggle. I suppose it is different in an area where students stay at their school to do A-levels.

@Moglet4 No, Devon.

" the colleges don’t make any particular allowances for those having done double award so any students going on to A-level sciences would struggle." The very many double award kids in our circle who went on to do 3 A levels don't appear to be struggling.

IMO the angst over double/triple award is mostly down to snobbery. A school is not better because it offers triple. Or worse because it also offers vocational subjects.

Did their sixth form make allowances for the fact that they did double award though? Help them catch up etc. That's my point - the college A-level teaching works on the assumption that you have triple sciences so any gaps in knowledge will be down to the student to address.

Hardly anywhere does it state schools. My parents asked around a lot as we thought was needed to get into medicine. Definitely isn't. I did double at gcse (a* x2) then biology chemistry for IB

"Did their sixth form make allowances for the fact that they did double award though?"
Their 6th form didn't offer science A levels. They went on to college or to the grammar school.

DS's state high school offers triple science to the top 50 or so highest performers in Y9 science tests, but with a lower limit of achieving 75% in these tests. They teach triple science in the same time allowance as double.

DDs school does the opposite... they all do separate sciences. Shes in Yr8 and already has separate lessons weekly for all 3. I was quite surprised.

At GCSE they have 3 option slots, which can be any combination of GCSE and BTEch. The school is quite well regarded academically and vocationally... except languages admittedly.

Dd did double science and then did Biology A level, got a B in her A level.

edited to add, she also moved school for sixth form and in the new school most of the kids had done triple science. But she managed fine in A level.

If triple science is often only offered to high achievers - does that make the exams harder ad the cohort are brighter? As in kids will get a lower score at triple compared to the cohort ad they're all bright than if they did double?!

All of the sixth forms in the area we're looking in (south Oxon, Berks, Surrey and North Herts) all offer science A levels to combined science GCSE students. They normally require 6;6.

College A Level teaching is responsive to the intake. If they know they have a significant cohort who have studied dual award then they will plan accordingly. All pupils are going to need some sort of recap of previously taught content, even if they took triple science.

It can be argued that triple science is good if you are weak in one science but good at the others. Back in the day I did all three but was pretty poor at physics. So I scrapped through in physics but got good results in chemistry and biology (and went on to do A Levels in both). Had the double award been around back then my poor physics performance might have reduced my double award so much that I wouldn't get the required 6;6 and wouldn't have been allowed to do A levels.

Yes because they have to study an extra third for each science so it’s more challenging. Grade boundaries are also moved every year though so it probably evens out most years

If this applies there is the further benefit that you can enter the separate sciences at varying tiers - so you could do Higher in chemistry and biology but Foundation in physics (and perhaps you did?). This isn't possible in the dual award and you have to take either Higher or Foundation for the full qualfication.

Yes, good point @ThanksItHasPockets.

My nephew's school only offers triple to the top science set and it's in addition to their optional subjects. My son's school offers if to everyone but the additional science is one of their options. I prefer my son's school's way of doing it.