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How many hours per week of GCSE teaching

5 replies

Kingsn · 11/05/2024 17:50

DD is in Y9 at a local grammar school. They have 35 periods of 50 minutes a week. In Y10/11 this is split as

Maths 4 periods - 3 hours 20 minutes
English Lit/Lang 3 periods each so 5 hours combined
Triple Science 3 periods per science so 7.5 hours combined
Combined Science 2 periods per science so 5 hours combined + 1 extra period in English and 2 in maths (this is for the bottom set only, top 3 do triple)
4 options - 3 periods/2.5 hours each
RE - 1 period
PE - 2 periods
PSHE/Citizenship - 1 period

I went to school in Scotland so had less options and to me this looks like not a lot of time per subject. Is this normal? What is it like in your child's school.

OP posts:
greglet · 11/05/2024 18:18

Yep sounds standard tbh. In the school I know best (high performing independent), pupils do ten GCSEs and periods are 50 minutes:

Maths x4
English x4
Science x6
MFL x3
Three options x3 each (9)
Sport x3
PSHE x1

Pythag · 11/05/2024 18:22

Kingsn · 11/05/2024 17:50

DD is in Y9 at a local grammar school. They have 35 periods of 50 minutes a week. In Y10/11 this is split as

Maths 4 periods - 3 hours 20 minutes
English Lit/Lang 3 periods each so 5 hours combined
Triple Science 3 periods per science so 7.5 hours combined
Combined Science 2 periods per science so 5 hours combined + 1 extra period in English and 2 in maths (this is for the bottom set only, top 3 do triple)
4 options - 3 periods/2.5 hours each
RE - 1 period
PE - 2 periods
PSHE/Citizenship - 1 period

I went to school in Scotland so had less options and to me this looks like not a lot of time per subject. Is this normal? What is it like in your child's school.

I teach maths at a grammar school. In years 10 and 11 they get 3 hours and five minutes per week (so less than you). It is fine. We move at pace through the curriculum, but they get great results.

clary · 11/05/2024 18:31

Pretty standard. When I taught in school we had five one-hour lessons in a day, options got two one week and three the next so five hours over two weeks.

FrippEnos · 11/05/2024 18:36

We do/did 3 hrs one week 2 hrs the next.
Maths and English got 3hrs p/w plus prioritised extras.

Greywitch2 · 11/05/2024 18:39

Standard. It's an absolute nightmare in History, I can tell you, to get through the huge amount of content in that time. I have 4 textbooks to cover.

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