Son got 5s in his mocks. Doubting he can do A levels. Any advice?

[Kago2790]

My son got his mock results today. 5s across the board (except 6 in music 4+ in Spanish). He is hoping to do A level Maths, Physics, Music.

He was expecting higher, 6s at least and he is quite upset.

Speaking to him about it, the problems are as follows:

He says he doesn't know how to revise. I think he watches too many YouTube videos that explain questions. Isn't it better to just do past papers, mark them, the ones you get wrong you work out where you went wrong and then repeat those type of questions until you get good at them. Then do more past papers and repeat the process. That is what I will suggested. His response to this is that he learns a question but of course the exact same question doesn't come up in the exam, it comes up in a different form and he struggles to recognise it is the same question he revised just with different wording or form. How do you improve on that?

He is forgetful. He can learn something one day, get it, but it is forgotten quickly. How do you get it to stick? I realise some people are blessed with a good memory which is valuable for learning but since he has a bad memory what can he practically do?

Is it too late for a tutor? We haven't used one but maybe a few sessions could be valuable? We asked his teacher at parents evening in the autumn who said he doesn't need one if he attends the extra classes the school provide which he has been going to.

Finally, if he gets 5s on the real exam I assume 6th form is a no? If so, what do kids typically do. He hasn't got a back up option. Are things like apprenticeships etc applied for before the end of school or is it something he could apply for after results day in August? I suppose he could redo GCSEs next year at a college but he hasn't applied for that of course, is that something they can do in August?

He is a hard worker but it seems it is about quality of revision from now, not quantity.

Any advice welcome.

It's not the questions he needs to learn, it's the process of deciphering them and then answering them. Which isn't going in when he's looking passively at a video because it's not using what he needs to make it stick - the physical looking, the reading, the thinking, the actual writing.

No more YouTube 'revision'. He needs to use his whole body to learn, not just hoping his eyes can do it all for him.

Is this a massive suprise? You should've had a relatively rough idea of predicted grades beforehand etc. It really depends on context.

There are lots of threads on this board about how to revise so look there (not trying to be lazy – just there is no way I could recall all the suggestions) – there will be a way that works better for him. With my DS1 for example, it was a case of taking a past paper (even one he had done before) and going out for a walk while talking it through. If he sat with his books he got nowhere.

So take a look and see what might work. But the key is targeted revision – not vaguely Physics but x topic or y calculations. And set time for it then recap in some way (maybe you testing him).

Sorry but there is no way he should do maths A level with a 5 or even a 6 IMHO. What are his PGs from the school – do they suggest he could do better?

Nothing wrong with a sweep of 4/5/6 grades but it doesn’t really suggest A levels would be productive. Have you looked at courses at a local college? Something that requires ongoing coursework may be a better option for him. Have a look and call some up next week. It won't be too late I am sure.

Does he know what he wants do afterwards?

Not too late for a tutor, they should be able to help with exam technique and at least get him up to some 6s.
6 was the minimum grade for doing most A Levels at DS's sixth form, but you needed a 7 in maths to do physics.
There are alternatives, our sixth form does some level 2 applied courses eg business studies with the the aim of progression onto level 3 after a year. (Level 2 is gcse, level 3 is A level).

I would say even with 6s those A levels are very tough. My son got a high 7 in Maths with tutoring and a 6 for physics. He really really hated doing them as A levels and struggled massively ending up with 2 Ds. I regretted getting him the tutoring as if he'd got a 6 in maths he wouldn't have been allowed maths or physics and may have been forced into codes which were better for him.

On the other hand, he got a 5 in product design (more to do with v disruptive class and bad teaching) and ended up with a B at A level. So it is possible to turn it around but depends on the reasons for the low grades.

You are right over doing past papers and he is wrong. He is not currently A-level material, no.

If he puts the screens away and works through the questions, pen on paper, he may come to understand more of the subject and then do better in his GCSEs.

Honestly, have a back up plan for next steps. A level maths and physics are hard subjects. DS is doing them. He excels with numbers but he's found the transition tough.
College or sixth form is still an option for him or an apprenticeship, but if he's getting 5 at this stage, maths and physics probably aren't for him for further study.

Past papers, writing out answers, flashcards, no youtube etc.

He could do BTech at sixth form. Lots of unis accept b tech, apprenticeships, and its marked as you go. Worth same ucas as alevel in most cases.

Best thing is talk to the school. See what they think, talk to a teacher you both like though.

As long as he passes he will be able to do a levels.
School should be helping with revision. My DD can go to revision lessons daily at her school.

I recommend this video: ncase.me/remember/

Does he actually know the content? He should learn that before he looks at exam technique. Find some topic tests to identify his weaker areas and then he can make sure he understands them.

He was predicted mostly 6s on average, his Maths teacher thinks he could get a 7.

What is a good btec/apprenticeship for someone whose interests are maths/physics/music.

He is interested in becoming a pilot via RAF but changes his mind a lot.

Pass means a 5? Really, that would be some stretch wouldn't it from a 5 in Maths to Alevel maths?

Loads of things he can do instead of A Levels. T Levels, BTech, apprenticeships. Find what areas he interested in and look at your local FE college offer. Not all kids are going to get great GCSEs. Mine didn’t but did b techs and still went on to university. The other now doing a degree apprenticeship.

Revision should be ‘knowledge transforming’ - that means active not passive. So make cue cards, posters, do past questions, make a video, record notes - that will make it stick.

Divide the day into threes - revise for two out of three parts. Taking breaks helps it stick.

5s will be no good for maths and physics - you need at least 7s, but preferably 8s or 9s. But other subjects will take 5s - maybe business, media, tech? But there will probably still be a limit on what can be achieved - but 3Cs can still get you into uni.

BTec applied science? T Level health science? Loads. Search up local colleges.

Thanks. He was using an app (typical teenager) which I think was the Anki one mentioned in the article. Is the shoebox method better?

Music tech btec?
engineering T level or btec
You can also join an airline after GCSEs for pilot training. Easy jet is one.
At my place we would accept 5s for btec but not A levels.
A tutor sounds like a good option.

If he's interested in music and physics and maths, then how about a BTEC in something like music production?

That could potentially lead on to things like degrees in sound engineering, or continuing with music production. Lots of good, interesting and well paid jobs in those areas.

Some sound engineering degrees do want physics A level, but he could always do that alongside.

Maybe look at somewhere like ELAM if you are London based. It's very competitive, but applications are still open. They do music (performance or production), TV & film making and computer game design. The kids there also do A level maths or English alongside.

DS17 is doing an apprenticeship rather than ALevels. He applied for it in the October while he was in Y11, interviewed in the Feb before mock exams and was conditionally offered (needed 5 passes 4+ inc Eng, Maths, Sci) it in March before exams had taken place. This is for a large UK company. Smaller companies tended to have adverts out much later in the school year in my experience.
We started looking at the apprenticeship route after a poor set of end of year 10 exams and doubt that he would get on to ALevel courses unless his grades jumped significantly. As it happens he did get better real results but still would only just have scraped on and potentially could have struggled.

And definitely get a tutor - my DD has gone up 2 grades in 3 months with hers.

Ok, tutor search this weekend then

Got an online Maths tutor for my son last Easter for 6 weeks and it raised his predicted grade from a 5 to a 6 that he achieved in the exam. Cost about £120, for 6 lessons, which was money well spent. He didn't want to do anymore after the first set of lessons, but could have done more right up to the exams, so there's still time to raise that grade if you wanted to.

For revision I made flashcards. You can buy these for most subjects, but didn't find them as helpful. There are website online that you can use to help make these, and old exams are available to download and practice questions on. BBC Bitesize has a lot of great stuff. Making mind maps are meant to be really good too, My son wasn't so keen on this, but his older sister used them and did really well in her exams, so do think they're a good tool.

My son also has a terrible memory, so just before the exams, I drew out a giant paper timetable with all his exams mapped out & stuck it on a door, that way he could easily see exactly when the exams were and plan out what last minute revision to do

There are actually some great videos on YouTube for exam revision, but your son needs to implement what they say, take notes, make flash/revision cards, mind-maps etc. There is a direct corelation between writing things down, and how well/how much is remembered, so the more he does of that, the better.