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GCSE options dilemma. Higher tier vesus lower tier?

Supercrumpet

My 13 year old Son has Aspergers and ADHD and is in mainstream school. He has to pick his options this month and the dilemma we face is that he excels in Science (level 7) and is good at Math (level 6a) and he really wants to do the triple Science award. His Science teacher is all for it and said he should sail through, but, he has been allocated the lower tier GCSE band and that means he cannot do triple science.

We have spoken to all of his teachers and they feel that he would cope in higher tier, his German teacher was the exception, he said that although he was top of the class at the moment (my Son is in set 3 of 6 sets in his year 9) he didnt feel he would cope at GCSE level. We went to the Deputy Head to discuss whether he could do higher tier so that he could do triple science but the Dep Head was just awful, so patronising and had no real interest in helping. He told our Son that it would involve extra work after school and that he wouldn't cope.The new English Baccalaureate is also being introduced so the school have told us that higher tier pupils MUST take a language and a humanity

We've worked hard to make sure our Son has the same chances as the other kids, we're just heartbroken to fall at the GCSE hurdle. We appreciate that our child may not achieve as well in all of his subjects as he will in Science and Maths but I'm at a loss as to how to challenge the schools belief that he shouldn't even be given the chance to shine at the subjects he is genuinely good at.

Has anyone else had this problem? Does he have to take the full set of GCSE's or can he drop some? I feel that fewer good exam results would be better than a higher number but with weaker results.

Parents

  • Hi Huda,

    Sorry to hear that school is tough at the moment but please don't give up hope.

    In my experience I've found that high school can be very short-sighted with regard to ASD kids so I made a pact with my Son to do extra work at home to make up for what he feels he's missing in school hours. I'm very lucky because I'm a stay at home Mum and have plenty of time to help with homework and to encourage my Son to push himself. I know that lots of kids don't have someone who is around all the time to help out but if you feel that school isn't willing to put the extra effort into your education then I strongly recommend that you take some time at home to help yourself.

    No kid wants to hear that they should have to do extra work outside of school hours but the GCSE years are very, very important and if you want to take A levels then, sadly, sometimes the only way to get what you want is to do it all for yourself.

    My Son was told at his last parents evening that he shouldn't bother taking German as one of his options because the teacher felt that he wasn't good enough. We had a couple of months, after the teacher said that, to prove him wrong......and we DID prove him wrong. Every night after school my Son did an extra 15 minutes of German revision and when he took his FCSE he got a brilliant result (he got a D grade GCSE equivalent even though he was only in year 9).

    Don't misunderstand, my Son HATED all the extra work and some nights he got grumpy with me when I told him to knuckle down but he really wanted to prove his teacher wrong.

    My son has gone into the top sets of the lower tier GCSE group so if he does well he can do the higher tier exams, I'm pretty sure that this is applicable in all schools so be sure to ask your subject teachers about this when you have your next parents evening.

    At parents evening I asked all of the teachers for worksheets to do at home and asked about websites that would help too. Teachers, even ones you don't like, are still there to help. Use them !!

    If all else fails, remember that there is always further education. It's not too early to start looking at college prospectus' and seeing what courses are available or GCSE re-sits. You are entitled to your education, if it all goes to pot and your GCSE's don't turn out the way you hope remember that it isn't the end of the line and there is no shame in having another shot at your exams.

    You could do with someone to turn to. Is there a SENCO or your form tutor you can talk to about this? Do you have a parent or carer who can arrange a meeting with school to discuss your concerns? It's annoying and sometimes a bit embarrassing to have to go into school and nag the staff but your thoughts and feelings are just as important as any other pupils so don't be put off or wary of fighting your own corner.

    Try and stay strong. If they limit you to a top grade of C then work with that. If it means it takes a bit longer to achieve your goals then accept that and go for it. Please keep trying, the more ASD kids who prove to schools that they can cope and that they are worth the extra effort, the better.

    Good luck and let me know how it all goes.

    xxxx

Reply

  • Hi Huda,

    Sorry to hear that school is tough at the moment but please don't give up hope.

    In my experience I've found that high school can be very short-sighted with regard to ASD kids so I made a pact with my Son to do extra work at home to make up for what he feels he's missing in school hours. I'm very lucky because I'm a stay at home Mum and have plenty of time to help with homework and to encourage my Son to push himself. I know that lots of kids don't have someone who is around all the time to help out but if you feel that school isn't willing to put the extra effort into your education then I strongly recommend that you take some time at home to help yourself.

    No kid wants to hear that they should have to do extra work outside of school hours but the GCSE years are very, very important and if you want to take A levels then, sadly, sometimes the only way to get what you want is to do it all for yourself.

    My Son was told at his last parents evening that he shouldn't bother taking German as one of his options because the teacher felt that he wasn't good enough. We had a couple of months, after the teacher said that, to prove him wrong......and we DID prove him wrong. Every night after school my Son did an extra 15 minutes of German revision and when he took his FCSE he got a brilliant result (he got a D grade GCSE equivalent even though he was only in year 9).

    Don't misunderstand, my Son HATED all the extra work and some nights he got grumpy with me when I told him to knuckle down but he really wanted to prove his teacher wrong.

    My son has gone into the top sets of the lower tier GCSE group so if he does well he can do the higher tier exams, I'm pretty sure that this is applicable in all schools so be sure to ask your subject teachers about this when you have your next parents evening.

    At parents evening I asked all of the teachers for worksheets to do at home and asked about websites that would help too. Teachers, even ones you don't like, are still there to help. Use them !!

    If all else fails, remember that there is always further education. It's not too early to start looking at college prospectus' and seeing what courses are available or GCSE re-sits. You are entitled to your education, if it all goes to pot and your GCSE's don't turn out the way you hope remember that it isn't the end of the line and there is no shame in having another shot at your exams.

    You could do with someone to turn to. Is there a SENCO or your form tutor you can talk to about this? Do you have a parent or carer who can arrange a meeting with school to discuss your concerns? It's annoying and sometimes a bit embarrassing to have to go into school and nag the staff but your thoughts and feelings are just as important as any other pupils so don't be put off or wary of fighting your own corner.

    Try and stay strong. If they limit you to a top grade of C then work with that. If it means it takes a bit longer to achieve your goals then accept that and go for it. Please keep trying, the more ASD kids who prove to schools that they can cope and that they are worth the extra effort, the better.

    Good luck and let me know how it all goes.

    xxxx

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