NKSK version 2

Yours and Ian's advice will actively cause this girl to lose something. i.e. the chance to secure GCSEs and the work completed over the last two years.

My advice simply causes a delay - absolutely nothing lost but everything gained.

Your strategy may work but you have no idea what the personal circumstances of this family will be in the future.

It just seems such reckless advice given that the girl only has three months to go.

scrubbedexpat020

So am I.

I don't automatically assume anything that applied to me will apply to anybody.

I proffer it as an experience to be taken or tossed aside.

It's not just my hard fought 'O' levels people don't want to know about it's now even my bloody degrees!

For me there came an age when people stopped asking me questions about what I did at uni and why.

It's a circle of life.

From my experience it was about 'A' Levels pre-uni, then post-uni what degree, and then post 30ish the degree gets you on the starting-line but nobody wants to know anything about it other than show me the certificate when they offer you the job.

I personally fail to see the importance of doing public exams at 16 if the kids are staying on. Fortunately, in Aus the kids don't have public exams at 16 although if you fail the school exams they will hold you back.

Life is stressful enough and there is no need to pile it on kids at 16 and then repeat the process at 18.

I think I'm becoming a trendy lefty in my old age.

NKSK version 2

Believe it or not I was actually thinking about this thread on my way home last night. Just kind of asking some hard questions of myself and the posts I'd written.

A similar conclusion to your point above sat in my mind of a long time. But I suppose the ultimate is that as long as the system exists - no matter how relevant or otherwise, flexible or otherwise - you have to allow your kids to make the best of that system and be given the best chance possible.

Gems

For us my son just did a couple of months of Year 10 here.
He found he had done some of the work before and some of it easy.
However we found he settled and adjusted to OZ life quick as he had no pressure of exams.
This allowed him to enjoy himself and muck about with new mates.

Jumping into unfamiliar school setting and heavy workload may make settling harder. Our son did a year of GCSE work and was supposed to be inline for getting A grades. However the stress of exams with a big move made us reconsider and so we just went with the move.

A couple of months later he started Y11 and is doing well. That couple of months in Y10 was waste academically, but socially and for his confidence it was very worthwhile.

It can work, my son is doing well and enjoys Australia. Hubby is a teacher so we know how important education is and didnt jump into this lightly.

Also have to agree, that nobody has ever asked about GCSE results apart from when applied for college at 16.

Gems