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What to do now?

BillieTheBotBillieTheBot Posts: 8,721 Bot
edited March 27 in Work & Study
Before anyone mentions something about talking to someone in school about this, I'm talking to my tutor on Wednesday morning and am hoping to talk to the Head of 6th Form sometime as well.

Anyway:
At the start of Year 12 in September, we got told by the maths department that if we don't get a grade C (They've now changed it to a D now) we won't be able to do the AS level Maths - at the time, we were doing something called Foundations of Advanced Maths (FAM) and I got told that if I was to get one or two marks off the reqired grade, they'd think about keeping me on because of my conduct, behaviour, deadlines and the fact that if I get stuck, I ask for help - whether it's in the lesson or during my spare time. Anyway, I got the results last week and got an E. Also last week, I got Us (fails) in Law and Biology - the two lessons I'd be told that the Head of 6th Form would have to keep an eye on me in - for 2 different reasons. So anyway, we got told today in Biology that some of us would be getting kicked off (for same reasons that I might've been kept on in Maths, I think).

So, now I have a slight problem:
I have a feeling that I'm going to get kicked off Law and Biology because I'm not doing too well - even though I know that we're not expected to do as well in Law because it wasn't studied at GCSE.
Because now I've been kicked out of Maths, I'm not doing enough hours - meaning that I'd have to leave and probably get myself a job. I've been told that I'd have to English Resit again because I got a D (studying) in my own time, so even if I was to do that along with GNVQ ICT retake (well, re-submitting one unit)

Now, I am tempted to just leave 6th Form, get a job, reapply for Year 13 again and do some different A - Levels (atm, I want to do Chemistry, Law and Applied ICT, or something) and stay on until Year 14 and apply for Uni then, but would I be able to do this?

Another question, unrelated to what I've just said - what exactly are General Studies and Critical Thinking?
Beep boop. I'm a bot.
Post edited by JustV on

Comments

  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    Maybe you should consider other options other than A levels if the grades aren't working out for you. It may be easier to join a college and study and BNC or BND level course if you have decent GCSE grades (C's or above in main subjects). Its up to you but it doesnt seem wise that you continue studying A level from what youve put seeing as one year of your life is effectively wasted (no offence).

    Just check out all your options and you might find something better, a diploma will have no examination required just coursework which might better suit you i dont know.

    Good luck with your decision.

    Steve
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    A few of my friends at 6th form were failing in a lot of their subjects. Most of them chose to re-take the year and start from scratch. Most of them also dropped out halfway through retaking.

    I think, to be honest that you'd be better off in a college situation rather than 6th form. My 6th form was very academic orientated and if you weren't an A grader, you weren't worth bothering with. (It also went unnoticed that I studied for just 16 hours a week through year 13, and remained a full-time student! stupid 6th form haha)
    But yeah, I got through my A Levels through the skin of my teeth, but in hindsight I think I would've chosen college over 6th form if I'd have known their attitude to 'average grade' students like myself...

    By all means, talk to your tutor. But don't feel pressured to stay on and struggle if that's what's happening.

    Ilora x
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    mrbox99 wrote:
    Maybe you should consider other options other than A levels if the grades aren't working out for you.

    A friend of mine also suggested this - she was talking about NVQs and BTECs. What exactly is a BTEC?

    Anyway, thanks for your help (and you, Ilora)
  • **helen****helen** Deactivated Posts: 9,235 Supreme Poster
    Hi Sofie - a BTEC is a more vocational qualification - here is a more precise definition and information about how the award system works. ;)
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    Sofie wrote:
    A friend of mine also suggested this - she was talking about NVQs and BTECs. What exactly is a BTEC?

    Anyway, thanks for your help (and you, Ilora)

    I'm not saying it is the correct way forward but I'm currently studying a BTEC National Diploma(BND) for IT Practitioners and Im going on to Leeds University in September if i get the marks. So it is possible to move forward to university etc. Check out the definition or visit edexcel site to see what they offer.
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    Helen - thank you for the link.

    Bit of an update:
    Spoke to the Head of 6th Form again. She asked me other than maths. what else did I get a C at GCSE in. I told her nothing else and got Ds in everything else. She suggested that I do English and Psychology - but I remember overhearing her talking to another student a while back who also got a D at English that Psychology involved alot of essay writing (I also have a quick look at friends' textbook to see what Psychology actually involved). She also suggested that I do Applied ICT despite not passing GNVQ last year - I was one mark off passing. She told me that there were a few people who also didn't pass the GNVQ but are still doing the course, she told me to speak to the head of ICT and see what they think. I told her that I wanted to do Chemistry - but if I did, I'd have to do it at another school. She also said that this other school won't take me on because I didn't get a C at GCSE.

    She then told me to get the option block list thing and see what I wanted to do. However, I'm finding it hard to pick what exactly what I want to do next year, but I have a meeting with my tutor tomorrow morning to see what she thinks I could/should do.
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    reagardng the Law, not many people have done it before anyways so i dont think it matters, you say you are thinking of chemistry i beg you reconsider, i am doign it now and its very challenging especially at A21 i have never heard of FAM but it sounds like GCSE, anyways i think that you could to the less advanced stuff just to build up on your things, or take the gap year and study for the stuff in advance before you go back to school, like in maths you can begin to learn the stuff so ou know what they are talking about when you get there! and biology is such a beautoful subject, its so fascinating how you can elate this to yourself, just look at the text books! and for law, there is not point doing it cos its a mickey mouse subject (what people say) so id say do something else.

    other people may say do stuff that you enjoy, so do that!!! i hop i have shed some lihght on your situation!!!
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    vmong wrote:
    i have never heard of FAM but it sounds like GCSE

    Yes it is, kind of, it's not that much different to Higher Maths GCSE. Anyone who did Intermediate Maths at GCSE has to take this course before they can then go on to do AS Level Maths.

    Anyway:
    I got kicked off Biology because apparantely I don't do work outside of school or something - but they've decided to keep someone on who NEVER turns up to the lesson! :rolleyes: And for the record, I did do the work - unless 5 pages (roughly 2 hours or so) of revision over Christmas isn't work... :rolleyes:

    I was meant to talk to the Head of 6th Form about this yesterday just before registration to discuss what I was going to do next year. She didn't turn up and didn't tell me that she was going to kick me off Biology (she also taught me Biology) so now I'm only doing one AS Level (Law).

    Next year (well, September) I'm hoping to do an NVQ in Child Care or something. Did get told/advised to see the Careers Officer person but he's just useless...
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