Sailing in A level PE dropped
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Printed Date: 07 Jul 25 at 9:52am
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Topic: Sailing in A level PE dropped
Posted By: piglet
Subject: Sailing in A level PE dropped
Date Posted: 07 Sep 16 at 9:18pm
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I am hoping someone who knows education reads this and can advise.
No.2 son has enrolled on AS level PE (AQA 7581) as was his long term plan. Today he got told by head of dept. that he can't do sailing as his main competitive sport as it's been dropped from the list as of this year. This is a real body blow which we didn't see coming, having come through the RYA squad system he hasn't competed in any other sports outside of school and the course requires some level of sporting excellence. I can't find said 'list' of sports on the AQA website, but the wife phoned them and they confirmed the situation. What to do? |
Replies:
Posted By: Rupert
Date Posted: 07 Sep 16 at 10:03pm
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I did a critique of a video for one of my junior group students for their A level PE last year, and I can see how difficult it must be to accurately compare disparate sports and end up with fair grades. Have they taken other "outlier" sports off the list?
As to what to do: either a different sport or a different A level. ------------- Firefly 2324, Puffin 229, Minisail 3446 Mirror 70686 |
Posted By: JimC
Date Posted: 07 Sep 16 at 10:25pm
https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/447744/GCE_AS_and_A_level_activity_list_for_PE.pdf The document appears to be dated January 2015.
To include skiing and snowboarding (on real snow only) and exclude sailing seems more than a bit ridiculous. |
Posted By: piglet
Date Posted: 07 Sep 16 at 10:26pm
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I don't know.
What makes this hard for us is that this has been in the planning for over a year and there was no warning. Would there be any point appealing? and to whom? |
Posted By: Noah
Date Posted: 08 Sep 16 at 12:05am
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There was a parent and child(ren) discussing how best to film sailing for exams in the HISC boat park the other day. I confess to not paying too much attention as mine is way beyond that age, but it was July/Aug so not for the 15/16 school year. Exam board wasn't mentioned, but the mere fact that they were working out how to do it implies it must still exist as an option. ------------- Nick D-Zero 316 |
Posted By: Rupert
Date Posted: 08 Sep 16 at 7:53am
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Just don't get the Olympic broadcaster to film it...
------------- Firefly 2324, Puffin 229, Minisail 3446 Mirror 70686 |
Posted By: GarethT
Date Posted: 08 Sep 16 at 7:53am
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There have been a number of social media campaigns about this over the last couple of years, and the RYA put out a statement quite recently that they were lobbying to get it overturned.
Amongst the windsurfers it was a hot topic years ago, as it influenced a number of sailors GCSE and A level choices. |
Posted By: RS400atC
Date Posted: 08 Sep 16 at 8:43am
| I'd suggest dumping the PE and picking a more academic subject. |
Posted By: piglet
Date Posted: 08 Sep 16 at 11:26am
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There speaks an acedemic! I emailed AQA and got a hard line response, as I expected. Don't matter how good you are it don't fit in our boxes. |
Posted By: piglet
Date Posted: 08 Sep 16 at 12:02pm
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Blood really boiling now. It's set by the Dept. of Ed. so out of AQA hands and out of ours. Sailing/Windsurfing/Kiteboarding was listed in 2014 as one of 40 activities P15. http://filestore.aqa.org.uk/subjects/specifications/alevel/AQA-2580-W-SP-14.PDF Not listed in the current which now has 42 activities https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/447744/GCE_AS_and_A_level_activity_list_for_PE.pdf and the following statement on P.4: "The proposed list has been reduced considerably from the previous offers with the view that a PE practitioner should be able to recognise the key skills, fluency of movement, etc., in the activities proposed. The awarding organisations have removed activities that are so specialist or niche that specific expertise in that activity is required in order to assess them, for example martial arts" Yet boxing is in along with equestrian & skiing? |
Posted By: turnturtle
Date Posted: 08 Sep 16 at 12:02pm
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it's very easy to assess snowboarding or skiing compared sailing skills. freestyle /slopestyle has set tricks that can put to an independent test based on technical competence to complete them. Plus downhill gives timed descents for racing disciplines which can be benchmarked against a known standard, e.g. a ranked racer. I honestly don't know how you would quantify sailboat racing performance outside of a proper regatta format.... which then to me stinks of getting an A-Level, or at least part thereof it, in an extra-curricula activity. They will have had good reason for dumping it. Despite popular opinion to the contrary, exams are getting harder and pass mark criteria is getting tighter.
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Posted By: iGRF
Date Posted: 08 Sep 16 at 12:34pm
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I'd disagree with snow assessment, how can that be carried out here? You can't say sliding down a fridge or dry slope has any bearing on true mountain skills, whereas sailing, kite & windsurf can be assessed locally.
Sounds like a petition is required could we raise 100,000 signatures across all three sailing disciplines? ------------- https://www.corekite.co.uk/snow-accessories-11-c.asp" rel="nofollow - Snow Equipment Deals https://www.corekite.co.uk" rel="nofollow - New Core Kite website |
Posted By: Rupert
Date Posted: 08 Sep 16 at 12:50pm
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I'm surprised skiing is in, not that sailing is out. The path is exactly the same as all the other subjects. Narrow things down so they are easily measurable and schools can be ranked. The children are just interchangeable numbers, so surely they can all play a sport that a PE teacher has a chance of grasping? Football, maybe, or football? ------------- Firefly 2324, Puffin 229, Minisail 3446 Mirror 70686 |
Posted By: iGRF
Date Posted: 08 Sep 16 at 12:57pm
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Skiing is in because there's nothing teachers like more than heading up the school ski trip, not that they can always ski, I once rode a couple of valleys over to another resort where my daughter was on a trip only to note the lead teacher not only couldn't ski, but ignored everyones advice not to go up the lift and then presented the nightmare scenario of a complete beginner with absolutely no experience at the top of a red. I had to tell my girl to stay as far away from him as possible at all times and ignore anything he might say to her and remember dads advice at all times even though she was a snowboarder being made to ski against her wishes. So how that teacher would be able to assess my girl I have no idea. ------------- https://www.corekite.co.uk/snow-accessories-11-c.asp" rel="nofollow - Snow Equipment Deals https://www.corekite.co.uk" rel="nofollow - New Core Kite website |
Posted By: RS400atC
Date Posted: 08 Sep 16 at 1:32pm
Sorry for the terse reply this morning, got interrupted. I don't know where he wants to go beyond A level, but having known a few sports studies students, I would suggest that 3 core subjects opens a lot more doors. Having said that, one of my mates at school was a county level tennis player. He failed A level maths, but when we were about 25 he was earning about twice my engineering salary as a tennis coach. |
Posted By: RS400atC
Date Posted: 08 Sep 16 at 1:37pm
Probably more jobs for someone with an A level in skiing. |
Posted By: turnturtle
Date Posted: 08 Sep 16 at 1:39pm
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I said independent assessment, not teacher assessment - and Grumpf, I think you'd find the competition side of freestyle is very much geared to cater for park rats in domes as much as the kids from Utah and Alaska - X Games and Winter Olympics isn't just about bombing down hill. Christ, most of the Slopestyle teams train in Dubai and Landgraaf during the summer months as the security can be locked down so they derive new tricks and techniques in private, away from the cameras and competitors, the way the L2A glaciers or NZ seasons can't.... Whilst I appreciate that that doesn't teach mountain awareness, it really is no different from lake sailors who could win world championships in dinghies but wouldn't stand a chance of making it alive on a Sydney-Hobart.
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Posted By: turnturtle
Date Posted: 08 Sep 16 at 1:41pm
Chalet Maid? I do hope the Spag Bol module is up to scratch- extra marks for al dente and a basil reduction dressing?
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Posted By: RS400atC
Date Posted: 08 Sep 16 at 1:50pm
Classic gap year! Then off to a 'former polytechnic' to do a degree in tourism and hope for a job as a guide on the tourist coach? |
Posted By: turnturtle
Date Posted: 08 Sep 16 at 2:24pm
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worse ways to spend your twenties..... as I'm approaching 40 a lot my peers who went on to study for professional qualifications post (good) universities are strongly regretting their early adult life choices. I guess they'll spend the next 20 years in a cathartic state of mortgage clearance to appease it. I feel very fortunate to have taken the leap of faith to self-employment. I guess I should feel some sense of sorrow for them, but then it wasn't like we weren't warned:  |
Posted By: JohnJack
Date Posted: 08 Sep 16 at 2:42pm
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How do they assess students in sports? Is it purely competitive? This is only a portion of the A-Level is it not?
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Posted By: piglet
Date Posted: 08 Sep 16 at 2:44pm
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My understanding is the student has to break down techniques & coaching, but it does have to be at a suitable level. Please correct if wrong. |
Posted By: JohnJack
Date Posted: 08 Sep 16 at 3:00pm
For me this is a missed opportunity, this is where governing bodies should be engaged. For example, if a student was doing football, this part of the assessment should be carried out by an FA Qualified Coach, the the A-Level could be FA Endorsed. Alternatively assess a student with a RYA Coach and so on and so on. PE Teachers are usually quite good at a few sports, the usual mainstream ones, however are not masters at every craft. There probably isn't that many Teachers who hold Skiing Teacher Quals. Or is this what currently happens?
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Posted By: GarethT
Date Posted: 08 Sep 16 at 3:33pm
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http://www.rya.org.uk/newsevents/news/Pages/rya-takes-steps-to-reinstate-sailing-and-windsurfing-in-gcse-pe.aspx
The governing body is engaged. Amanda Van Santen was asking people to sign a petition in January 2015. This isn't new news. I can't believe schools are surprised by this. If someone can explain (very simply) how to make that link work I'll fix it. |
Posted By: turnturtle
Date Posted: 08 Sep 16 at 3:40pm
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%3cspan%20style=" rel="nofollow - scratch that, forum doesn't like auto-line breaks and I can't be arsed to bit.ly the link
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Posted By: piglet
Date Posted: 08 Sep 16 at 3:51pm
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I havent checked this years policy on GCSE but sailing was in last year, the boy did it. The school would have known if they had checked but the last A level student to do sailing was a couple of years ago so why would they? Here's a thought: Being as the IC is administered by the BCU is that not canoeing? |
Posted By: MerlinMags
Date Posted: 09 Sep 16 at 2:21pm
| http://www.rya.org.uk/newsevents/news/Pages/rya-takes-steps-to-reinstate-sailing-and-windsurfing-in-gcse-pe.aspx" rel="nofollow - http://www.rya.org.uk/newsevents/news/Pages/rya-takes-steps-to-reinstate-sailing-and-windsurfing-in-gcse-pe.aspx |
Posted By: JimC
Date Posted: 09 Sep 16 at 2:58pm
Yes, but I imagine that there would be more to it than that. I doubt the canoeing includes every aspect of the sport administered by BCU - Canoe Polo and white water rafting for example... |
Posted By: zippyRN
Date Posted: 09 Sep 16 at 8:20pm
| but although coming under the BCU doesn;t the IC use The Racing Rules of Sailing ? |
Posted By: JimC
Date Posted: 09 Sep 16 at 8:52pm
IC Championships and International Events use the http://www.intcanoe.org/sharedimages/documents/IC-Rules-2009.pdf" rel="nofollow - INTERNATIONAL CANOE FEDERATION CANOE SAILING COMPETITION RULES , which in turn specify the International Racing Rules of Sailing "where appropriate". There are not insignificant differences in detail on the administrative /organisational side and I don't know how that would be worked out if there came to be a need. |
Posted By: winging it
Date Posted: 26 Sep 16 at 11:33am
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As has been said, this is not new news. I have moderated a GCSE sailing exercise, and helped with filming for others. The problem is, there is no correlation between the standards of the various exam boards, and most PE teachers are unable to contribute towards rectifying this. The RYA are trying to help with the situation, but it needs the exam boards to co operate with each other, and, ideally, the appointment of suitably qualified regional people who could act as moderators. Take solace in the fact his squad sailing will look good on his UCAS statement. ------------- the same, but different... |