Thamesmead School Year 9 Options Information
What are we going to cover? • Subjects your child must study • Change to the number of option choices • Option choices • New vocational courses • The English Baccalaureate • Practical information • Completing the options form • Post-16 information – Principal of Woking College
What subjects will students continue to study? • English Language • English Literature • Maths • Core Science (Combined Trilogy) • Religion, Philosophy and Ethics • Core PE
Change to the number of option subjects • Students will have 3 option choices meaning they will study 9 GCSEs • New GCSE courses are much more demanding in terms of content, difficulty and structure of final assessments • Only Design and Technology, Dance, Drama, Food and Nutrition, Music and PE now has a coursework element • An average student sits between 22 and 25 exams during the GCSE exam period depending on their option choices • More students are experiencing anxiety around exams than ever before
Change to the number of option choices • Students are having to spend more time after school attending catch-up sessions • Students don’t need to study 10 GCSE subjects to gain a place at college • Universities including Oxbridge require 8 GCSEs – it is the quality of the 8 that matters • The National Average number of GCSEs studied is 9 • Other local schools offer 9 GCSEs
What if I want my child to study 10 GCSEs? • This can be done through Fast Track Triple Science providing that their GCSE target grade for Science is 7 or above • The student will study the Triple Science content in the time allocated for Core Science on their timetable plus one hour after school • This would give them 3 further option choices resulting in 10 GCSEs being studied
Option choices • Students will be able to choose 3 option subjects in order of preference plus one reserve which they must be happy to study • Students must choose at least one subject from Computer Science, French, Geography, History, Spanish or Triple Science • If a student chooses a language it must be the one he/she is studying in Year 9
Option choices • Other option subjects students can choose from are Art, Business and Enterprise, Dance, Design Technology, Drama, Food Preparation and Nutrition, Health and Social Care, Music, GCSE PE, BTEC First Award in Sport • If a student was given a place at Thamesmead based on his/her Performing Arts ability, then that subject must be one of their choices
New Vocational courses • Health and Social Care – Miss Phillips • BTEC First Award in Sport – Mrs Robins-Kent • GCSE equivalent courses • Greater practical element • More project based • External exam
English Baccalaureate • To qualify for the English Baccalaureate students need to have gained a GCSE in English, Maths, Science, a Modern Foreign Language and either Geography or History • If a student has aspirations to go to University, then it would be advisable to consider options that qualify for the English Baccalaureate to ensure academic breadth
Further information • Most subjects do not have an entry requirement • Computer Science is an exception – students should have a Year 11 target grade in maths of at least grade 5 to be able to cope with the mathematical content of the course • Certain subjects may have limits on the numbers that can study them • Should too few students opt for a subject then it will not be able to be run
Other information • The Options booklet is available on the school website – please encourage your child to read it carefully • All Year 9 students are going to have a 10 minute meeting with a teacher to discuss their option choices • Students should choose subjects that they enjoy or feel they are good at • They should think about their career plans when selecting their options • It is difficult for students to change options once they have started the courses in September
Completing the options form • This will be done electronically from Wednesday 6 th March • Mrs Garraway will be going into Computer Science lessons to explain how the form is to be completed • Students can see Mrs Garraway in the Learning Centre if they need help with completing their options form • Deadline for the form to be completed – Tuesday 12th March
Th Thamesmead amesmead Op Options ns Even ent Brett Freeman Principal, Woking College woking.ac.uk | @ wokingcollege
Getting it right at GCSE … … to ensure the widest set of post -16 choices What are the best & worst decisions you can make? woking.ac.uk | @ wokingcollege
Getting it right at GCSE … 1. Aiming to be proud of what you do 2. Being fully engaged in your own learning 3. Not making choices simply based on what your friends are doing 4. Not making the wrong options choices woking.ac.uk | @ wokingcollege
What are e College leges s looki king ng for when recrui cruitin ing? g? • Engaged and interested students • Good grades at GCSE • Some sense of life-direction! woking.ac.uk | @ wokingcollege
Which subjects should / shouldn’t you pick? • There are none! • Depends on the individual student • BTEC Qualifications? • Art, humanities, performing arts, PE? woking.ac.uk | @ wokingcollege
Un Univ ivers ersity ity & a appren entic iceship eship exp xpect ectat atio ions? s? • Facilitating subjects?? • Medicine? Engineering? Art? Languages? • Grade expectations? • Top Universities woking.ac.uk | @ wokingcollege
But t ove verall rall yo you ne need ed to: Di Discover cover yo your r pa passions! sions! woking.ac.uk | @ wokingcollege
Getting it right at GCSE … Questions … ? woking.ac.uk | @ wokingcollege
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