Foundation stops at grade 5. Higher runs from 4 to 9. Getting that choice wrong costs a grade before revision even starts, so we read the mock marks with you first.
In Maths and the sciences a student sits one of two papers. The easier route is capped at grade 5, so a child aiming higher has to be entered higher, ready or not.
A Foundation paper cannot award more than a grade 5, whatever the student writes. For a child targeting 6 or above it closes the door before the exam.
Higher runs from 4 up to 9. Entered too early it can produce a lower grade than Foundation would have, because the questions assume more ground is covered.
Entries are fixed by the school, normally once mock results are in. That makes the weeks after the mocks the window where the conversation is still useful.
Ten specialists covering Foundation and Higher. The overlap questions, graded 4 and 5, appear on both papers and are where a borderline entry is won or lost.
Tiers apply here too, and the choice between Combined and three separate sciences comes first. We teach to whichever route the school has entered.
French, Spanish and Arabic are tiered as well, and the speaking test sits earlier than the written papers. Rehearsal has to begin well before the others.
A tutor who tells every parent their child should sit Higher is not advising, they are agreeing. Ours read the marks and say what the marks support.
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Photograph the marked paper, not just the grade. Where the marks were lost decides the advice far more than the total does.
Someone who teaches that subject looks at which topics failed, and whether the gap is content, timing or technique.
A clear recommendation with the reasoning, in time to discuss it with the school before entries are fixed for the year.
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A group class teaches to one tier, whichever most of the room is sitting. A tutor you chose from profiles may not know the tier rules at all.
| Feature | Home teacher Travels to you | GCSE Tutors Online, one-to-one | Tuition centre Group classes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Time with the tutor | The whole hour | The whole hour | A share of the hour |
| Review later | Nothing to go back to | Full recording each week | |
| Board and tier | Rarely specified | Matched to both before lessons start | Fixed for the whole group |
| Range of tutors | Limited to your neighbourhood | 29 specialists to choose from | Set by the timetable |
| Travel time | 30 to 60 minutes each way | None, lessons start on time | A school run twice a week |
The grades available. Foundation awards 1 to 5 and Higher awards 4 to 9. The content overlaps at grades 4 and 5, but Higher papers go well beyond that range.
It depends on where the mock marks were lost, not the total. Strong on basics but slow under time usually points to Foundation. Patchy coverage with good reasoning often points Higher.
Sometimes, if the school agrees and the deadline has not passed. That is exactly why the discussion is worth having in the weeks right after the mocks.
Yes. A secure grade 5 from Foundation is a good outcome and opens most college routes. Treating that tier as second class is how students get written off.
Yes, in both Combined Science and the three separate sciences. The earlier choice between Combined and separate sciences also shapes what is realistic at either tier.
Usually, if the mocks show the content is largely there. A grade 6 or above is only reachable on Higher, so a capable student entered Foundation is capped artificially.
Most humanities and English have a single paper where the full 9 to 1 range is open. There the work is about which band each answer reaches, not entry.
Immediately. Even three or four lessons before entries close can change what is realistic, because they show whether a weak mock was content or just timing.
Send a photo of the marked mock and the subject. A specialist reads it and comes back within 24 hours with a view you can take to the school.
Reading a mock paper and giving a view costs nothing.
