Should i have a go at an A Level in maths when my current Mock grade is a Low 4/C?
Before joining The Student Classroom i was thinking about studying these subjects for my A Levels: Maths, Physics, Sport/Physical Education and Engineering. After watching a YouTube video i found out that for an A Level in Mathematics you need to be working at a grade 6+. After taking my year 10 Mocks i have found out that i am working at a low grade 4, same thing with physics (grade 4). I am completely clueless about anything to do with schools as i have no one in the family to guide me; as they sat their exams in another country. Its not as if i am bad at maths because i understand everything being taught, its just that a grade 4 is probably the grade for me. I am a Set 3 Mathematics student (Foundation paper, grades 1-5) and a Set 2 Science student (Higher Paper, grades 1-9). I would like some insight on what steps i should take for a future in Civil Engineering or Sports (Possibly a PE teacher) as an alternative option. Grade 6 in English Language (Set 4), Grade 4 in Physics and Chemistry, Grade 3 in Biology(Set 2), Grade 6 in Physical Education/ GCSE PE.
Original post by DavidM1989
Before joining The Student Classroom i was thinking about studying these subjects for my A Levels: Maths, Physics, Sport/Physical Education and Engineering. After watching a YouTube video i found out that for an A Level in Mathematics you need to be working at a grade 6+. After taking my year 10 Mocks i have found out that i am working at a low grade 4, same thing with physics (grade 4). I am completely clueless about anything to do with schools as i have no one in the family to guide me; as they sat their exams in another country. Its not as if i am bad at maths because i understand everything being taught, its just that a grade 4 is probably the grade for me. I am a Set 3 Mathematics student (Foundation paper, grades 1-5) and a Set 2 Science student (Higher Paper, grades 1-9). I would like some insight on what steps i should take for a future in Civil Engineering or Sports (Possibly a PE teacher) as an alternative option. Grade 6 in English Language (Set 4), Grade 4 in Physics and Chemistry, Grade 3 in Biology(Set 2), Grade 6 in Physical Education/ GCSE PE.
Well your sitting foundation paper for maths so I don’t know. When I joined sixth form they said to me that I needed a 7 in maths to do a level maths which I got. No offence but if you’re struggling with GCSE maths you will defo struggle with a level maths. Just to put it into some context I found GCSE maths soooo easy and I did the higher papers and when doing a level maths I found it quite difficult. So unless you become excellent at gcse maths no I don’t think you can do a level maths. Probably the same with physics
Original post by B7861
Well your sitting foundation paper for maths so I don’t know. When I joined sixth form they said to me that I needed a 7 in maths to do a level maths which I got. No offence but if you’re struggling with GCSE maths you will defo struggle with a level maths. Just to put it into some context I found GCSE maths soooo easy and I did the higher papers and when doing a level maths I found it quite difficult. So unless you become excellent at gcse maths no I don’t think you can do a level maths. Probably the same with physics
Thanks, as a foundation student the highest grade i can get is a 5 (which i would love to say that i can achieve, but i am unsure). And there is no point in me requesting to join a set 2 class just so i can study for the higher papers (which are difficult compared to what i do in class) and have to learn random things that i should have learnt in year 10, so at the moment A Level maths is a No. However in Physics i got a grade 4 (15/70 or 80) and one of my friends got a Grade 7 just by getting 37 marks. What im trying to say is that Physics is definitely a subject that i can get up to a grade 7 but maths i dont think i can. Thank you very much for the information.
You need to sit the higher paper to realistically have any chance. A-level maths pretty much starts with the grade 7-9 GCSE topics and you should ideally go in being confident with these. (quadratics, simultaneous equations, curves, etc.) Some people do A-level maths with a 6 at GCSE but I'm not sure how good the outcomes are. (on the old spec, the outcomes were pretty poor with people starting with a B in maths even of those who saw the whole course through without dropping it) It probably depends a lot on the circumstances in which you get that grade and whether you were performing at your best. You should really be aiming for at least a grade 7.
(edited 9 months ago)
(Original post by _gcx)You need to sit the higher paper to realistically have any chance. A-level maths pretty much starts with the grade 7-9 GCSE topics and you should ideally go in being confident with these. Some people do A-level maths with a 6 at GCSE but I'm not sure how good the outcomes are. (on the old spec, the outcomes were pretty poor with people starting with a B in maths even of those who saw the whole course through without dropping it) You should really be aiming for at least a grade 7.
Thank you for the info.
Thank you for the info.
What is it you want to do after your A-levels? That might be the best starting point to reverse engineer what A-level subjects are needed, and then see if based on your GCSE results that is feasible.
That said: while I think it's perfectly reasonable to do A-level Maths if you're sitting on a comfortable B equivalent at GCSE (I guess a 6, maybe a high 5), I think for a C equivalent it's not likely to be a realistic option. Especially since you are doing foundation and thus may not even be covering all the material assumed in A-level Maths, and will be spending less time on the topics which you do need to have a good grasp of for A-level Maths, I don't think that's realistic.
Equally I don't think jumping from a 4 to a 7 in physics is as likely as you think it is. Just because they got a grade 7 on a paper with low grade boundaries does not mean that will translate into you getting a couple more correct questions meaning you jump three grade boundaries. Likewise I think getting less than a B in physics at GCSE may not translate into success in A-level Physics.
However, it may well be that neither of those is necessary for what you wish to do at degree level and/or later in life, so that's why it's good to think about that as well. If those subjects are necessary then you may need to think about why they are necessary and that if you are struggling with them now, does that mean you will struggle with whatever degree or job requires those?
That said: while I think it's perfectly reasonable to do A-level Maths if you're sitting on a comfortable B equivalent at GCSE (I guess a 6, maybe a high 5), I think for a C equivalent it's not likely to be a realistic option. Especially since you are doing foundation and thus may not even be covering all the material assumed in A-level Maths, and will be spending less time on the topics which you do need to have a good grasp of for A-level Maths, I don't think that's realistic.
Equally I don't think jumping from a 4 to a 7 in physics is as likely as you think it is. Just because they got a grade 7 on a paper with low grade boundaries does not mean that will translate into you getting a couple more correct questions meaning you jump three grade boundaries. Likewise I think getting less than a B in physics at GCSE may not translate into success in A-level Physics.
However, it may well be that neither of those is necessary for what you wish to do at degree level and/or later in life, so that's why it's good to think about that as well. If those subjects are necessary then you may need to think about why they are necessary and that if you are struggling with them now, does that mean you will struggle with whatever degree or job requires those?
for physics, a 6 or above would be ideal. (a 7 or above would be great) Perhaps wait until your next mocks come around. Even though the number of raw marks might not seem like a lot, this might represent quite a considerable gap in knowledge.
(edited 9 months ago)
Original post by artful_lounger
What is it you want to do after your A-levels? That might be the best starting point to reverse engineer what A-level subjects are needed, and then see if based on your GCSE results that is feasible.
That said: while I think it's perfectly reasonable to do A-level Maths if you're sitting on a comfortable B equivalent at GCSE (I guess a 6, maybe a high 5), I think for a C equivalent it's not likely to be a realistic option. Especially since you are doing foundation and thus may not even be covering all the material assumed in A-level Maths, and will be spending less time on the topics which you do need to have a good grasp of for A-level Maths, I don't think that's realistic.
Equally I don't think jumping from a 4 to a 7 in physics is as likely as you think it is. Just because they got a grade 7 on a paper with low grade boundaries does not mean that will translate into you getting a couple more correct questions meaning you jump three grade boundaries. Likewise I think getting less than a B in physics at GCSE may not translate into success in A-level Physics.
However, it may well be that neither of those is necessary for what you wish to do at degree level and/or later in life, so that's why it's good to think about that as well. If those subjects are necessary then you may need to think about why they are necessary and that if you are struggling with them now, does that mean you will struggle with whatever degree or job requires those?
That said: while I think it's perfectly reasonable to do A-level Maths if you're sitting on a comfortable B equivalent at GCSE (I guess a 6, maybe a high 5), I think for a C equivalent it's not likely to be a realistic option. Especially since you are doing foundation and thus may not even be covering all the material assumed in A-level Maths, and will be spending less time on the topics which you do need to have a good grasp of for A-level Maths, I don't think that's realistic.
Equally I don't think jumping from a 4 to a 7 in physics is as likely as you think it is. Just because they got a grade 7 on a paper with low grade boundaries does not mean that will translate into you getting a couple more correct questions meaning you jump three grade boundaries. Likewise I think getting less than a B in physics at GCSE may not translate into success in A-level Physics.
However, it may well be that neither of those is necessary for what you wish to do at degree level and/or later in life, so that's why it's good to think about that as well. If those subjects are necessary then you may need to think about why they are necessary and that if you are struggling with them now, does that mean you will struggle with whatever degree or job requires those?
Thank you so much for the information. What other options are there instead of A Levels? Are BTEC's also something that is studied at Sixth Form?
Original post by _gcx
for physics, a 6 or above would be ideal. (a 7 or above would be great) Perhaps wait until your next mocks come around. Even though the number of raw marks might not seem like a lot, this might represent quite a considerable gap in knowledge.
Thank you once again.
Original post by DavidM1989
Thank you so much for the information. What other options are there instead of A Levels? Are BTEC's also something that is studied at Sixth Form?
You've still not said what is you might want to do longer term. There's no reason to suggest A-levels wouldn't be a viable option - just possibly not those subjects. That said if you're just entering year 11 you still have plenty of time to course correct, but if you consistently struggle with maths and the sciences then doing A-levels in those subjects, or a degree requiring those subjects, or a job requiring a degree requiring those subjects is probably not the best approach, as you won't be playing to your strengths! Plus if you struggle with those subjects chances are you'd find doing A-levels/a degree/a job directly related to them a bit of a miserable experience.
Sorry I am not sure what you mean by long term. I'm guessing you mean job wise which I said that I would like to go into civil engineering/engineering or Sports/Pe Teaching. I was thinking about going to university after my a levels but so far two of the a levels for civil engineering are math and physics which I'm not great at. I am in my year 10 summer break and will be going into year 11 in September. After finding out this information I think it would be best for me to apply for apprenticeship in engineering. Correct me if I'm wrong as I am clueless about school, grades and career choices.
Original post by DavidM1989
Sorry I am not sure what you mean by long term. I'm guessing you mean job wise which I said that I would like to go into civil engineering/engineering or Sports/Pe Teaching. I was thinking about going to university after my a levels but so far two of the a levels for civil engineering are math and physics which I'm not great at. I am in my year 10 summer break and will be going into year 11 in September. After finding out this information I think it would be best for me to apply for apprenticeship in engineering. Correct me if I'm wrong as I am clueless about school, grades and career choices.
Why are you clueless? And with engineering you need to be good at maths. Most unis asking for at least A or A*
Original post by DavidM1989
Before joining The Student Classroom i was thinking about studying these subjects for my A Levels: Maths, Physics, Sport/Physical Education and Engineering. After watching a YouTube video i found out that for an A Level in Mathematics you need to be working at a grade 6+. After taking my year 10 Mocks i have found out that i am working at a low grade 4, same thing with physics (grade 4). I am completely clueless about anything to do with schools as i have no one in the family to guide me; as they sat their exams in another country. Its not as if i am bad at maths because i understand everything being taught, its just that a grade 4 is probably the grade for me. I am a Set 3 Mathematics student (Foundation paper, grades 1-5) and a Set 2 Science student (Higher Paper, grades 1-9). I would like some insight on what steps i should take for a future in Civil Engineering or Sports (Possibly a PE teacher) as an alternative option. Grade 6 in English Language (Set 4), Grade 4 in Physics and Chemistry, Grade 3 in Biology(Set 2), Grade 6 in Physical Education/ GCSE PE.
I would really not recommend doing Maths or Physics at A-Level, unless you get at least 7s in the GCSE for them. Some schools might allow you do do it with a 6, but the likelihood is that you would end up with a C/D/E grade, so you would be better off doing something else in my opinion. I can’t image any school would let you do A-level maths with a grade 4 in GCSE maths.
(edited 9 months ago)
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