GCSEs

[Mammadrama]

DS wants to do higher sciences but teachers advise foundation due to v poor mock exams in January. Exams are in May. He still wants to do higher but obviously I don’t want him to fall on his face. The suggestion of doing foundation upsets him. I don’t want him to think I don’t believe in him but I’m just frustrated on how to handle this. Help!

I wonder if @Gratitudegal's teacher has a genuine misconception - there is a 'safety net' narrow grade 3 for students who just miss a grade 4 on the Maths higher paper (NB this is not the case for science). I wonder if she's assumed that the reverse is true for foundation. She's wrong, in any case.

Err NOT lying, thanks! If you mean me by 'this person' I don't appreciate that at all. I was speaking to the teacher AFTER the mocks at a parents evening which was specifically about the mock results which is why I am very clear on what she said. It was in the context of my son being capable of a 5 or even a 6. I said it's a shame then that he's only doing foundation which is when she said what she said. I have said before maybe she is wrong and am totally fine if she is as the likelihood of my child doing that well is slim I think. But she did say it.

I think foxes meant that the teacher was lying surely. Or had misunderstood (tho that is concerning). Either way they are wrong.

In the past when MFL GCSE involved 60% coursework it was possible to gain a grade B (=6) while sitting F tier reading and listening exams – if your CW was of a really high standard. In fact I had a student do just this. So maybe the teacher was thinking of something similar from pre-2017 with science?

But the F tier is definitely capped at a 5 – in England.

@Mammadrama sorry I am not familiar with the spec/grades in NI but sounds like F is best for your DS. What grades did he get in mocks? It's really not long till exams and if his H paper grades were ? D and E then foundation will certainly be better.

Get him to do some higher past papers under exam conditions and see how he does.
Research his 6th form options and see what they actually need (not what school tell you).
Remember he only needs Maths, English and 3 other GCSE's to do A levels. Better to focus on quality, not quantity at this stage.

Yep!! Exactly! @Snorlaxo !! I just got the truth out of him ( he is very tearful about all this) he is afraid he will look stupid to his friends- apparently they teased him for doing an ordinary math gcse! Gave him a good talking to on how ( with age) you will not care what everyone else thinks but I know at 15 that can be hard to fathom -

Thanks Clary, but why would the teacher lie?! such a strange assumption for anyone to make, she's a lovely young woman who is a good teacher and I am sure doing her best. As I say, it makes no odds to me, happy to not be right, glad to have been corrected by those who know better, don't appreciate people making assumptions about if people are telling the truth though, unnecessary.

sounds like she's wrong from what others have said. She's quite young I think, seems very bright but we can all get hold of the wrong end of the stick. She has no reason to lie about it certainly.

Well someone lied, whether that's due to misinformation or not, it's impossible to get a 5 on a foundation paper so saying it is, is a lie. How lovely the teacher is is irrelevant.

Well I am thinking more that the teacher was not as much lying as just got it wrong? Thought they were correct but were not. Which is misleading at best.

It’s not great if they are telling you wrong info but it does happen of course.

Is he going to be more motivated if he does the higher paper? Is he willing to put in the work? If so I'd let him do it. If it's just about his mates then I wouldn't.

@Jade520 put it this way- he is struggling with physics homework tonight, so it’s going have to be the foundation courses- that’s what my gut says and going by teacher’s advice. It’s too late in the game and going to play it safe.

Is he doing foundation maths OP or the higher tier paper for maths? Gently, he might also want to reconsider if A-Level sciences are suitable for him if he’s struggling with science GCSEs so much. You normally need a minimum of at least a 6 to study any of the A-level sciences and even then level 6 students struggle as most of the cohort choosing to do science A-levels will be high level 7’s, 8’s and 9’s.

The jump in difficulty from GCSE to A-level is significant. Science is also a subject that gets exponentially more challenging as you go throughout your secondary and tertiary school years. You have to work harder and/or cultivate a higher aptitude the further along you go in order to maintain even the same grade.

Tbf @Mammadrama doesn't say he wants to take A level science. She says he doesn't know what he wants to take. But level sciences are certainly not feasible with a top grade of a C.

Are his mock grades better in other subjects? Might he want to take those for A level? I am surprised that he hasn't had to submit some subject choices by now.

This is true. My apologies for the mix up.

If you simply agree with teachers I would sign the form and say it's not really optional. The fact he's at best on the cusp now probably means A level science wouldn't be a great choice anyway.

My instinct would be try to have a conversation with one of his science teachers, at least. They may be much more forthcoming verbally than they will put down in an email. They're the ones who saw his mock papers.

As @Octavia64 says the decision can be made very late indeed. But if he is not likely to pursue A level science then he might be better off investing more of his time in other subjects and maximising grades in his A level subjects.

Some sixth forms offer a Level 3 Applied Science for students who want to keep studying science but miss the grades for A levels.

@blackbird77 @clary @Maladie
totally agree, I’ve emailed his tutor and the general consensus is foundation science ( which I’m totally ok with , he isn’t doing high level maths so I just think it’s more of a “ my mates will think I’m dumb” issue) I had a huge talk with him tonight ( albeit he was upset but he had to be realistic, sorry, that’s life! ) but I feel he thinks I don’t have faith in him but I have to do what’s best for him as o rather him feeling good with hopefully a decent mark rather than an awful one

Well done for getting it out of him OP. It's understandable he's upset now. I bet he'll feel happier in a few days once he's processed it. You might even find he is relieved.

@Maladie thanks, I hope he feels better about it too. Teenagers are tough to handle , emotional minefield! I always worry if I’m doing the right thing as a Mum. But in this case I’m trying to stop a potential academic from happening, plus he has other subjects to do! Ugh. I don’t think he is mature yet for GCSEs but 🤷‍♀️