Dod101 wrote:Well OK . I stand corrected but certainly Scotland seems to me to provide a much broader general education in later years than England does. I am no expert and have not been near the education system for many years, (Except doing a Maths degree at the OU a few years back)
Dod
The five highers (the odd school manages six in fifth year) certainly permits options to be kept open, though timetabling can always be an issue as subject choices are partially dictated by the school timetable, especially for aspiring medics say taking Maths, English, Physics, Chemistry and Biology.
The secret up here (though hardly a secret) seems to be to take as a minimum Maths and one science to hold open flexibility, remembering that sixth year is there to add other highers/take advanced highers if career decisions change (and that is the Scottish system's big plus point)
With a possible five subjects to take a parent can be a little more relaxed they are not closing options (unless they want to be a doctor), so each of ours got one non parent influenced course, my son's was Computer Science rather than Chemistry my daughter's was Graphic Communications (As she got the class prize for it in fourth year it would have been churlish to curtail her ability and she rewarded us with getting the class prize again in her fifth year)
I am lucky though, my wife works in a local secondary school so was a great source of information when the choices started needing to be made, however notwithstanding trends, fashions etc as far as I was concerned both of mine had to get Highers in both English and Maths, this was not negotiable
And career wise both kids have pursued, to a degree, their initial degree choices, my son is a software engineer/developer my daughter now, alongside her Sustainable Development MA, has an MSc in Urban Planning and is now training as a Chartered Town Planner with a firm of planners.