Sixth form possible appeal - any experience ?

[cheeseandjam]

DD will be receiving her GCSE results soon and is getting very nervous. She is at a grammar school which she has loved but hasn’t found the last 2 years that easy. On results day her plan is to collect her envelope and come and find me in the car and open them with me. Most will be opening on front lawn of the school with lots of excitement. She needs 48 points over 8 best subjects. It’s going to be a very close thing and by no means guaranteed. She has an offer at a college further away as a back up plan but is desperate to stay on with friends. We have discussed the advantages of the college to put a positive spin on it. They have been told if they haven’t met the required grades they can go and speak to the head of year to start an appeal. This must be done on the morning of the results. She wants us to appeal if she doesn’t get the grades. I’m sure they will be looking for extenuating circumstances which I totally get. Would it be appropriate to point out my husband was diagnosed with cancer 2 years ago and went through alot of gruelling treatment just before her GCSE course started? I don’t want to give her false hope but has anyone appealed a sixth form place. I believe it is down to the discretion of the school and it very popular sixth form.

Assuming you appeal and are successful will she find sixth form any easier than the last two years. It’s a grammar school and therefore by definition highly academic and she’ll be in classes with the very brightest. Might she not be happier in a college with a more mixed ability range.

I think she will be ok as choosing subjects that she enjoys and excels at eg Photography, Art and drama and theatre.

I’m sure they will be looking for extenuating circumstances which I totally get. Would it be appropriate to point out my husband was diagnosed with cancer 2 years ago and went through alot of gruelling treatment just before her GCSE course started?

Yes, IMO it would be - assume the school is already aware of this?

Yes they were all informed at the time. The trouble is DD didn’t want anyone to talk about it so although she was offered support and the option for counselling she refused. Her behaviour and concentration took a bit of nose dive though. I know it was 2 years ago now so wasn’t sure if they would think this in the past now and so shouldn’t affect her grades.

48 over eight subjects is eight grade 6 tho. Assuming she will get 7-8-9 in her chosen subjects, and at least a 5-6 in maths and two English and science she’ll be there won’t she?

I do think that if that’s not a likely outcome then a high performing grammar sixth form may not be the best place.

How formal is the appeal process? It sounds as tho it is just run by the school. I don’t know anyone who has done this but in DS2’s year, a couple of peers were advised to take a different subject after lower GCSE grades, and one student was refused a place. I think their grades were all below a 4 tho as they ended up retaking year 11 so probs not relevant to your dd. Hope she gets what she needs.

100%. We do this to an extent (not a grammar but an oversubscribed sixth form).

Students who have narrowly missed the overall grade entry but done really well in their chosen subjects can appeal and it is at our discretion. One thing (if you can do this) is to see if the head of the subject that she wants to do or her GCSE teacher of that subject is there and would be willing to vouch for her.

I have done this a few times (but only if I felt it was right for the child). Most of the time I am saying no, you not meeting entry requirements means the course here is wrong for you - so make sure she is prepared for that.

It can be tough to hear from a teacher that actually staying isn't the right thing for them and can really feel like rejection.

My daughters' school wouldn't let them take both art and photography, which I think is somewhat common, so may be less bankable?

OP, is the grammar school the best place for those subjects? My youngest went to a college for performing arts and had support with auditions, plenty of external workshops, etc. The girls doing dance at my eldest's school (not grammar but an academic sixth form college) had a fairly different experience.

I’ve sat on sixth form appeals. The panel will not be considering your daughter’s academic ability - they are not allowed to. What they will be determining is if it was a reasonable decision for the school to make. We ask questions of the school as to have any exceptions been made and if so, why. Was there additional support in place for SEN children? Was pastoral support, when needed, adequate? I’ve seen students allowed to remain when there have been very serious medical issues which impacted results but that is the only kind of appeal I’ve seen succeed.

If you don’t get the 48 points (or minimum in maths/english) then you’ll need to appeal but might it be an option to change subjects if you get the total points but not the right points for the current subjects?

Sorry I missed the post about the chosen subjects. Yes I am wondering if another setting might be better. Will the school allow her to choose art, photography and drama? Will be a lot of NEA.