Does anyone else’s DC not really have any GCSE study leave? Ours is finishing so late!

[FedUpOfThisGCSEmalarkey]

My DC’s school made the decision this year that they’re keeping them in school until 12th June!! Their last exam is 15th!

I can see pros and cons of this approach tbh, so I’m not necessarily adverse to it, but I’ve yet to hear of another school doing this?

Having taught for nearly twenty-one years I can cheerfully confirm that most sixteen-year-olds certainly do not learn better when they are on their own. Some? Certainly. Many? Perhaps. Most? Definitely not!

And it's not just the demotivated ones or the ones who struggle, and it's not a new phenomenon. I was very academically successful and my prevailing memory of my GCSE study leave in the 90s is of watching the repeats of ER on daytime Channel 4 .

My experience is different. I’ve just spent 2 hours teaching an English Lit bootcamp to a packed classroom of extremely well behaved, focused Y11s who were grateful and keen for last minute support and guidance - we even had printed worksheets 😉 Big urban comp. Many of our students would not thrive on study leave due to many factors: not enough space or no quiet space to study; they’d be called on to pick up/care for younger siblings - in fact quite a few are young carers to adults, so school is THE space where they can focus on studies; their parents, though most well-intentioned, may not have have the academic background of, for example, uni educated mumsnet posters who can guide revision; they don’t have laptops let alone printers. They’re brilliant, clever kids and they benefit from being in school until the bitter end. If parents want to pull them out, I guess there’s nothing stopping them. But I’m all for withdrawing study leave for most young people.