A Levels

hbloomers

Music teacher based in Newcastle here! If you look, there are lots of schools with 6th forms offering Music in Newcastle, towards the coast and in Gateshead. I'm teaching in a school with only one pupil doing A level music at the moment, so some school do run it with very small cohorts.

I know off the top of my head that St Cuthberts and Sacred Heart in Fenham come together at Sixth Form to offer courses to both sets of pupils, so it's not unheard of for schools to do it.

Soleil_lune

College is too grown up for him Devil's advocate??? :think: Crikey. College is a BRILLIANT way for children to make a gradual move into young adulthood. Staying on at sixth form is just like still being at school, they don't grow, the teachers treat the kids the same, they still have to wear their uniform (usually,) they have much longer days than college hours, and often, the subjects offered are limited.

I know quite a few people whose kids went to college and quite a few whose kids went to sixth form, and the college kids fared much better.

I strongly recommend letting your son go to college. As someone said on the previous page; there is something not quite right if you think college is too grown up for your son. Why do you think that?

daisiegg

Soleil_lune wrote: »

College is too grown up for him??? :think: Crikey. College is a BRILLIANT way for children to make a gradual move into young adulthood. Staying on at sixth form is just like still being at school, they don't grow, the teachers treat the kids the same, they still have to wear their uniform (usually,) they have much longer days than college hours, and often, the subjects offered are limited.

I know quite a few people whose kids went to college and quite a few whose kids went to sixth form, and the college kids fared much better.

I strongly recommend letting your son go to college. As someone said on the previous page; there is something not quite right if you think college is too grown up for your son. Why do you think that?

This is really, really not true everywhere. All the sixth forms local to me and in the area where I trained as a teacher and in the area where my husband's daughter lives (other end of the country) are nothing like what you describe. For a start, I don't know any sixth forms where they wear school uniform. Our sixth formers are treated like young adults and expected to be responsible and independent. They can come and go and leave the school site. It is a huge leap from Year 11 to Year 12 and is nothing like still being a schoolchild.

Maybe it is just the area that we live in but all sixth forms are like this round here. Most of the local colleges, in contrast (with only one very notable exception) are much more oriented around vocational studies and are not the place to send an academic young person who wants to do A Levels and go to university. Not that there is anything wrong with going to college and doing something vocational, but the OP talks about her son doing A Levels.

Anyway, I don't know whether the schools and colleges around where the OP lives are more like what I describe or what you describe, as it obviously varies wildly, but I just wanted to point out that what you have said in your post is not the case universally.

Savvy_Sue

Mine went to the 'school' 6th form, although it was in a separate building and did take in a lot of extra pupils at that stage. They didn't wear school uniform. I don't know at what point I'd have been told if they were bunking off lessons (I never was), but I do know some pupils were asked to leave if attendance / application to studies was lacking.

At least one of my nephews went to a school 6th form elsewhere. They were expected to wear 'business dress', ie suits and ties with white shirts for the boys. A letter came home expressing concern that not all pupils were adhering to this dress code, coloured shirts were being worn, for example. About the same time, my sibling discovered BY CHANCE that nephew wasn't always attending lessons and had failed to hand in some homework / coursework. Their comment: "I don't know about you, but I'm more concerned about his attendance than about what he's wearing!" and I had to agree.

Going back to the OP's son, there are various reasons why they might have felt the college they visited was 'too grown up' and that he wasn't ready for it yet, and those reasons might be as much about the college as about their son. Equally, he might feel he's not ready for that environment yet: we don't know and the OP doesn't have to justify what may have been a casual remark and not very well expressed.

However, it's worth saying one thing, and that is that impossible though it seems, nearly all of our teenagers do 'grow up' quite fast at some point, and it seems to me that for most of them, it's when they get the chance to do so - ie when we stop doing it all for them and letting them mess up for themselves.

I am still convinced that one of mine could get lost inside a paper bag, yet he managed to cycle home from University at the end of his final year (it's a two hour drive, and I have wiped from my memory how late home he arrived.) Another has an unerring sense of direction, but is apparently incapable of finding any important pieces of paper (P45s, P60s from the last few tax years are the latest 'loss'). And the youngest says he doesn't need to check his course timetable / exam times / emails / departmental noticeboard, because his friends will tell him anything he needs to know, but it hasn't stopped him reaching his final year.

dawyldthing

I know when I was at 6th form there was a non uniform rule and we just wore our normal clothes. I also did night school to do an a-level and they funded that as they get I think its about 8k per pupil so its more beneficial for them to try and help put things on for you where possible or find ways for people to study different things where possible

DevilsAdvocate1

Sorry for not coming back to this thread earlier, life got in the way.

My son's sixth form will be in a separate building to the main school and they don't have to wear a uniform. The building is a new extension to the school which opens in a couple of months time. From the plans it looks like the facilities will be really good. They are treated more as grown ups but have the backup in that the staff already know them.

As for the 6th form college my son was the one who said it seemed too grown up! The atmosphere felt exactly like the university I went to. Great when he is 18, but not at 16! I went to 6th form college but it wasn't such a big step. At this one they just attend for the required lessons, so may be there from 1pm to 4pm one day and from 9am to 11am another day. I personally think he is more suited to a structured day. Its really hard just getting him up on a morning, but at least when we all leave together I know that he is up. It is also an hour on the bus each way whereas I drive past his school to take his younger brother's to their respective schools.

Also, as someone else mentioned, he wants to continue with the school orchestra. He currently attends 2 in the school - one for his year and another where he helps the years 7 and 8 pupils.

Anyway, to the reason for my post. We attended the school's open evening a couple of weeks ago. They don't have any links with other schools. However, the headteacher made a beeline for us and told me how proud he was that my son was considering staying on. I explained about the issue of the music A Level and he said that he was sure that something could be worked out.

Anyway, the school where he has his piano lessons tutor A level music. So I am hoping he may be able to do this with them and do 2 A Levels at his school's 6th form. We have a meeting in a couple of weeks.

Thanks for all the replies. I'll let you know how we get on.