Failure To Achieve Entry Requirements

[jamesnan]

My niece has several problems, including dyslexia and diabetes. She struggles with her education, and her grades are always low. She is now thinking about what to do after Year 11, ie go on to 6th form, or college but we were wondering what happens if she fails the grades required to enter these places. She has to stay on in education till she is 18 but if the grades are not achieved, where does she go?

[EDDIE51]

Has she been 'statemented' , assessed as having 'special educational needs' and a statement of her needs made? If not why not? This should have been done as soon as her problems were noticed. Having a 'statement' would mean she gets extra help with her education. My son was severely dyslexic and the education authority placed him in a private boarding school where he got 1 to 1 tuition.

[Sycamore3House]

My son who is now 24 is dyslexic. He left school without any GCSE's. He did go to college to do mechanics but did not want to do this as a job. He is not academic at all but is practical. He could not wait to leave. Since he left college at 18 he has never been out of work.
He worked in restaurant kitchens for awhile and enjoyed that. Gaining in house qualifications such as food Hygeine, health & safety,Customer service. He passed his driving test and worked in a warehouse and got his forklift licence. Every job he has had has given him something and from that he gains confidence along the way. He now works as a scaffolder and is the designated driver on some jobs.
I always instilled in my son that he would work and he would enjoy it and it would be better than school. He recalled a few months ago when he got a pay rise what the teachers used to tell him. 'You'll never get a job if you have do not get good results' how wrong they were.

[Buenchico]

'6th form' usually means studying for A-levels (or, at least, for AS levels). Some school 6th forms (and 6th Form Colleges) now offer much more but, on the assumption that only the traditional model is on offer to your niece, 6th form almost certainly isn't for her.

She needs to be looking for a place at a Further Education College and seeking a course suitable for her interests and likely qualifications.

Here are the entry requirements for the various courses on offer at 'Suffolk One', which is one of our local colleges combining both traditional 6th form learning with some of the BTEC courses traditionally offered at FE colleges:
http://www.suffolkone.ac.uk/courses/entry-requirements/
You'll see that entry to Level 3 BTEC diploma courses only requires 4 GCSE passes, with either English or Maths at Grade D being one of them, but with the others only requiring a Grade E. There aren't many such courses (at Suffolk One anyway, but there might be far more elsewhere) but something listed here might be of interest to her:
http://www.suffolkone.ac.uk/courses/diploma-courses-level-2/

A traditional FE college, such as West Suffolk College, offers far more courses at Level 1 or 2:
http://www.westsuffolkcollege.ac.uk/courses/course-search.aspx?mo=Full+Time

Part-time education might also be a possible option for your niece. A young friend of mine didn't achieve any great results at GCSE but he still got onto a plumbing course at West Suffolk college that was really designed for 'sandwich' students (i.e. with part of the week spent at college and part learning 'on the job'). He actually spent the first year of the course spending part of his time at college and part of it working for Tesco. However he had to find a part-time plumbing job (instead of working for Tesco), for the second year of the course, which I helped him to do. He's now 29 and a successful, fully-qualified plumber. Something similar might be of interest to your niece. (It doesn't have to be plumbing, although there's obviously no reason why it couldn't be. There are plenty of courses in what are traditionally regarded as girls' studies, such as hairdressing).

[Buenchico]

^^^Oops! Typo!
"You'll see that entry to Level 3 . . . ." should read "You'll see that entry to Level 2 . . ."

Sorry!

While I'm here, I suggest researching FE providers in your niece's area, to see what courses they've got on offer.

[DaisyNonna]

Another balls up in education. Did they not see this coming when they raised the school leaving age yet again? Merely massaging unemployment figures whilst putting unacademic pupils through misery. There are just not enough training courses or apprenticeships to cope.

[Buenchico]

>>>Did they not see this coming when they raised the school leaving age yet again?

Actually the first phase of raising the school-leaving age to 18 was passed into law in 1944. (The Education Act 1944 states that all young people should spend at least one day in formal education up until the age of 18, although that provision was never actually brought into effect). So we've had 70 years to get ready for it!

[DaisyNonna]

And failed.
Most Sixth forms and Sixth form colleges have examination pass requirements. Fewer and fewer schools have sixth forms. Where are those youngsters who do not have the requirements meant to go?
What will happen to them? Families fined for non-compliance? Young people scared of prosecution?

[Sycamore3House]

DaisyNonna, My unacademic son certainly went through misery at school. He was statemented and he received 1 hour one to one each week. Wow. He was so miserable he & I could not wait for him to leave.

[DaisyNonna]

Sycamore, I feel for you and your son. We live in a society where one way is supposed to fit all. It does not.

[DaisyNonna]

Buenchico, do you not understand? There are many young people who are' for many different reasons, incapable of any grades.