Introduction to GCSEs
Welcome to your Key Stage 4 Options Booklet. The purpose of this prospectus is to provide
information about the courses that are available to you in Years 10 and 11.
Some subjects are compulsory as they are essential for you to get a good grounding in skills and
knowledge that will help you as you prepare for the world of work or further education.
The purpose of this booklet is to:
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Present to parents and students the courses which are planned for GCSE studies from
September 2014.
Explain each syllabus content, course structure and their assessment criteria.
Help you to make informed decisions appropriate for the next and subsequent stages of
student life.
What GCSEs should I choose?
The main decision is really whether to be a specialist or a generalist.
Usually fewer in number, specialists are those who already feel confident that they know which sort
of subject direction they want to go in later life; humanities, arts, social sciences, business etc. They
choose a number of subjects usually within the same area. The advantage is the similarity of
learning and exam types between similar subjects; the disadvantage is the risk that you might
change your mind at a later stage (say, choosing A Levels) and you will then have to make a case
for picking up an A Level you didn't study at GCSE. This makes things marginally more difficult, but
it's not impossible by any means, particularly for able students. The moral of the story is that if you
feel a degree of confidence that there is one type of learning, a particular set of subjects you are
really drawn to go ahead and choose just from this area. Beware of the risks of lack of breadth, but
if you feel you definitely want to go in one direction, do that and ignore any advice about picking
"one of each type of subject."
Generalists, by contrast, are those who don't feel a strong pull in one direction or another.
This is perfectly normal at the stage of choosing GCSEs and don't be worried about those of your
friends who have a more definite idea. Try thinking about your favourite subjects and focusing on
whether you might have a specialist preference in one direction or another but if not, adopt a
generalist approach of trying to pick one of each kind of subject. For example, you might pick one
new subject, one arts subject, one language, one practical subject, etc. There are no fixed
categories, but try to plan a range of balanced ideas. This will give you the duration of the GCSE
course to consider more fully what your strengths and weaknesses, and areas of most interest, are.
You can narrow down more specifically come A Level. Your advantage is that you keep your options
open; the risk for you as a generalist is that you're not bothering to think hard enough, so really
check mentally, and in discussion with your parents, about whether you might have a specialism
after all.
Choosing to adopt a generalist approach (and with a spread of different types of GCSE) should be
the result of a considered decision to go for breadth, rather than because you haven't bothered
thinking about it.