GCSE PE -a whinge - why are no martial arts included as sports in AQA assessment?

[Sunshineonararainydayyy]

Just having a look at GCSE options with DC. One of them is a fairly decent level in martial arts and has been doing it a few years and will have achieved a good belt standard by that time.

Why on earth do AQA not include karate, judo and kickboxing as sports?
https://www.aqa.org.uk/subjects/physical-education/gcse/physical-education-8582/scheme-of-assessment

DC plays local football but other than that I'm wondering whether they should now swap martial arts for another sport that can be assessed? They've got boxing in there so why not martial arts?

My DD is doing Brazilian jujitsu for her GcSE PE. It's not officially on the syllabus but judo is so her teacher said she could still use it. We're in Wales though so different exam board. Can't believe judo isn't included. It's an Olympic sport!

The PE should be able to ask if the pupil can do a martial art as their assessment.

In most cases the lists given are not absolute.

I agree @massistar it should be allowed and good luck to your DD.

Unfortunately I don't think they can @FrippEnos as it says 'Students can only be assessed in activities identified in our specification, which are those stipulated in the Department for Education’s GCSE PE activity list. Students cannot be assessed in any other activity'

So it's actually the DfE I should be grumbling about: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/944828/GCSE_PE_activity_list_revised_2020.pdf

If there's anyone from the new Government on here, this should be a straightforward one for you to sort out😁

It used to be. My son submitted his karate as one of his sports. However in around 2018 ish the exam boards significantly reduced the sports assessed so no more windsurfing or sailing or archery or rounders - the latter was useful for the team sport element for those who were excellent at individual sports. It's also got far more technical and sciency with some content from A level moved down and a lot of physics (hinge joints...) and biology (understandable). It is a tough subject to do well in.

My son does weight lifting and that's not included either which is a shame

@raffegiraffe it’s odd isn’t it as with those sports they can show clear progression, i.e. for your son an increase in weights lifted or with karate and judo the belt gradings and katas, I can’t see a valid reason to exclude them especially if boxing is allowed.

Maybe it’s the sports Mr Gove favoured!

We were looking at this too as my son will be in Y9 this year, and was thinking of doing GCSE with MA as a one of the sport choices!

I think it's because with their "list" of sports there are much clearer boundaries of standards, whereas with Martial Arts there are so many disciplines, and the belts are meaningless at some clubs.

e.g. my son and I started at Matt Fiddes Martial Arts and they literally passed anyone who paid the (extortionate) grading cost. Even I got up to their "panel grading" standard and close to a black belt and I was crap! You could literally get a black belt in 3 years if you paid! We then changed to a new club and had to go right the way back to the beginning.

I guess boxing is a specific type of martial art so easy to set clear criteria. But why does it state that only male pupils can perform the competitive boxing on AQAs GCSE specification?!?

DS1 did GCSE PE in 2020. At the time he was a 16year old black belt in Taekwondo competing at National level and training 5 days a week. It wasn't accepted as a sport and he ended up dropping it as a GCSE after a year.

Dd was a brown two stripe belt in karate when she took her GCSEs. She fully expected to use that as her sport. Dropped PE as a subject when she found out she couldnt. Has since gone on to gain her black belt.

I am a Pe teacher who teaches AQA GCSE and A level PE. The lists are absolute and they will not accept any sports that are not on there - ridiculous but it has been like that for many years now. It is not just AQA, the government make the lists and all exam boards are the same. I think they have added a couple of extra sports recently to the list but there is a long process they go through and exceptions would not be made for individual students.
I agree that it is crazy that martial arts are not on there, yet some very obscure ones are! But nothing we or any other schools can do about it...

Does anyone know how to reinstate petitions (if that's possible)? We signed this one but it was put on pause due to the election. I don't know if it can be resurrected?

https://petition.parliament.uk/petitions/657717

No mountain biking in any form either on that list. PE/sports science by far my DS best subject, but just changed a-levels as can't do the sport he competes nationally in. It's rubbish. Especially when things like "snowboarding on snow" are on the list...