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THE ALLOCATION OF GCSE SUBJECTS
THE ALLOCATION OF GCSE SUBJECTS
Whilst we strive to be able to accommodate all students' preferences, in some cases we may require students to consider alternatives. Having students select six choices gives us the best possible chance of being able to allocate students' choices successfully. As such, it is important students are prepared to study all of the choices they submit. While it is very unlikely we will need to ask a student to consider alternative choice this may happen due to certain constraints on the timetable.
This is more likely to happen where students have opted for subjects which:
1. May be oversubscribed and the number of classes are limited, this is often the case in technology subjects and art.
2. Form part of a combination which has not proved popular within the cohort, this varies year to year
3. Has not been a popular option choice within the cohort and it is therefore not possible to run that subject
These are explained in more detail below.
1. Over-subscription in subject areas
1. Over-subscription in subject areas
Due to staffing and resourcing constraints there are some subjects where the number of classes of a particular subject is limited, this may also include a strict student maximum for health and safety reasons in the classroom.
At present we have limitations on the following subjects; ASDAN, art, design & technology, drama, and food & nutrition. If subjects are oversubscribed, we will employ a random lottery to allocate students. We assure you this process is always conducted in a fair and equitable manner.
2. Subject Combinations
2. Subject Combinations
Student cohorts vary year to year and whilst some subject combinations may be popular in one year, they may not be the next. If a student has chosen a combination that has not been popular within the cohort then this is often difficult to accommodate. This can be even more so if the subjects chosen are also subjects within categories 1 described above.
3. Viable class size numbers
3. Viable class size numbers
Appropriate class sizes are key to ensuring the best teaching and learning is delivered. However, if a class size is too low the restraints on staffing and timetabling may result in the subject not running in September 2025.
STUDENT PREFERENCES & NOTIFICATIONS
STUDENT PREFERENCES & NOTIFICATIONS
It is therefore necessary to reiterate the importance of ensuring students are prepared to study all of the the subjects they have opted for on their choice submission. It may not be possible for students to change once allocations have been made.
It is our aim to try and meet as many students’ choices as possible and we work extremely hard to obtain the highest number of student choices. If, however, we are unable to accommodate your child’s choices we will contact you in the summer term to consider alternatives. We appreciate this can be extremely disappointing for students and we will do our best to support them in considering alternatives. Students who need to do so will be interviewed by Mr Guyan and will have priority over subjects before students are able to request changes. Please note this refers only to students for whom we have not been able to allocate 4 of their choices.
Students who have been allocated their choices will not be eligible to request amendments until students who have had to consider alternatives have been interviewed and re-allocated. It is important to note that changes may not be possible due to timetable conflicts or over-subscription of subjects and/or class capacity has been reached.
All students will be notified of their allocations in the latter part of the summer term. Students can request changes following allocations, subject to availability.
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