From being spoon fed tasks to the imminent deadlines

Then came the results – albeit some worse than others- I had made it to sixth form. A tick on the educational checklist, a step up on the ladder of life, subjects chosen, clothes purchased, tears shed. Finally a sixth form babe. What will the next two years hold?

Although I was told it would be a big change I thought ‘ I was strong enough’ ‘You’ve got this LIZ’. Oh no, how wrong I was! How wrong we all were. When first I arrived at sixth form fresh faced from GCSEs and a ridiculous summer behind me, my new teachers quickly pointed out how big the jump from GCSE to A-Levels is. And then it clicks.

IT IS NOT EVEN A JUMP – IT IS A LEAP. A TRIATHLON IF YOU WILL

Yesterday, we were 16 year old GCSE students but today we are A-Level students and teachers expect more from us. Unprepared and unequipped, yet ambitious for the next steps in our journeys.The amount of subjects studied will be much less than at GCSEs; the content at A-level will be much more difficult. If you are one of the unfortunate individuals who was cursed into studying their parents’ wants/desires?, or even those who didn’t do as well to get onto the paths of their choice, this jump will be highly uncomfortable. As a result we will each need to be more dedicated, focused and resilient in order to grasp the concepts.

I’ve  quickly come to realise that unlike GCSEs,when studying  A-Levels,students need to be more independent. At this level we must each delve deep and develop insights, from formulating written arguments  to learning new content. In this first half term I’ve come to accept that the use of our freedom is the key to our success at A-Levels. Not only should we use our external study periods to study, we should be using them to find relevant wider reading, case studies and evidence for current pieces of work.

Despite the fact that we’ve only been in Year 12 for  half a term, we must prepare for a bigger workload to cover the depth and breadth of A-Level material. However, as we’ll only be studying three or four subjects, we will have the opportunity to delve into these subjects and narrow ourfocus.

The jump from GCSEs to A-Levels will be big. The daunting phrase echoing in our heads. Now half a term in we’re all swamped with essays, worksheets and flashcards, secretly wishing we were back in year 11. Oh the joys of being young and naive!!!