Sixth form with weak English skills

[notnowbernadette]

My child has ADHD and dyslexia so whilst overall they are quite bright there is a distinct risk that they will need to redo English GCSE in sixth form. If they are in this position on results day does anyone have experience of

1. Whether sixth form colleges are equipped to support neurodiverse students who have struggled with English at school
2. Whether they will be able to progress onto level 3 courses. The likely choices are several Arts Alevels.

Some sixth forms will allow DC to progress on to level 3 courses whilst resitting English, but others won’t. You need to ask the sixth forms DC holds offers for.

SEN support also varies from college to college. Some are better than others. You will need to speak the college directly. Did you speak to them before applying/during open nights?

Does DC have an EHCP?

As above, you need to look at the entry requirements for your chosen places of study. Some will allow 1 resit alongside A levels, others won't accept you 'for timetabling reasons'.

The other option would be to do a level 2 course alongside resitting English, and then progress to the A levels later.
However, have you looked at the level of writing required for the chosen A levels? Is that going to be an issue with poorer English skills?

I have tried to get them to look at BTECs but they are dismissed as their preferred college doesnt do arts ones. The challenge here is they want independence and it should be they're choice but I dont think the options are being properly considered.

I've started to look at where they could do a level 2 course but my concern is without a change in teaching methods I'm not sure the outcome will change. They dont have an EHCP so got very little support at High School.

My DD2 turned out to have dyslexia, she hasn't yet passed her Eng Lang GCSE though that is more to do with stamina than anything else.

What I did find was at college they focused far more on 'this is what you have to do to pass' rather than 'here's all the fab things you could include'. If DD2 had been well enough to cope I think that could have made a big difference.

With BTEC / T-Levels the written element demands seem consistent (DD1 did a L3 BTEC, DD2 has done a L1 City&Guilds). You can get passes quite easily by including required contents in a basic way. To get the Merits and Distinctions you need to be more expansive and analytical.

My DD1 struggled on her L3 BTEC because she struggled to be expansive. She never wrote a sentence when a word would do, or a paragraph when she could use a single sentence. So she hardy ever managed to be detailed enough for higher grades.

Remember if she starts with A levels and it is a disaster she can restart the next September on a BTEC/T-level.

I really think you need to be speaking to the college. They are the only ones who can answer the questions of whether pupils are accepted whilst resitting, what SEN support they can offer, is the teaching style is different…

You should also consider requesting an EHCNA.