How much are you involved in your year 10’s education?

[Thingsthatgo]

DS’s school is a bit shit at challenging the high achieving students, and a friend’s DD, who was predicted very high GCSEs got disappointing results.
I have been suggesting to DS that he does a bit extra than the set homework (which isn’t much at all) and so he does an additional 30 minutes going over the work they covered in class to ensure he understands it all. He is very strong on the humanities and so he spends time on maths and science.
He is not overjoyed, but is doing it without grumbling. He has aspirations to study at Oxford, so his GCSEs will count.
Am I asking too much?

This seems totally reasonable to me. DD is at a true comprehensive where top set marks vary from a 6 to a 9. That's a HUGE disparity. He needs to understand that the teacher isn't going to spoon feed the class Grade 9 material, he has to work for it.
Consolidation after lessons is a study aid and as is querying with teachers where you don't understand it.
He has to do the pushing and be motivated himself to do it (which it sounds like he is) but you can bring the horse to water. And maybe plait it's hair and give it a brush whilst you're waiting for it to drink.....

Perfectly reasonable and a good idea.

I've got a similar situation and approach. I don't think DS's school is great at teaching them how to study. So I'm encouraging him to make notes at the end of each day to make sure he has actually understood what was taught. I'm hoping that after a few weeks he will do this without me reminding him.

I have a DD in Y10 & she knows that i will support her in any way I can that I value education and hard work. She goes to a fairly typical comprehensive and I think the teaching is mainly good. I encourage her to look at stuff she has struggled with in class (& offer to help if she wants but this is almost always declined). I also encourage revision for tests and exams. However, i dont insist and always say ultimately it is up to her. She is normally motivated, but there are times when she hasnt done much/any revision. She does a lot of sport so doesnt have loads of free time & i do wonder how this will work out in GCSE years.

Perfectly sensible. I would assume that for maths and science they used some kind of app or website so he should also have access to additional resources/ questions. If not, there’s plenty on line. Getting familiar with exam style questions will be important (unfortunately). Our top maths sets also cover from those struggling to get a 6 upwards so a lot of time will be spent on the basics and it’s not always easy to constantly challenge the high achievers at the same time.

Definitely not asking too much given his aspirations. Oxford and other top unis look closely at GCSE profiles, and coasting on basic homework won’t get him the 8s and 9s he needs. The key is making sure that 30 minutes is active revision—like exam questions or using online platforms —rather than just re-reading notes.