My son did badly in his AS levels because he didn't work

Question

Asking this for someone else.

Their son did really badly in their AS levels, as he didn't work. He did amazingly in GCSE, and had 2A*s, 7As a B and a C. They could have done so much better.

However, this made him complacent and the 12 week break made him demotivated and not work throughout the entire year.

Anyway, he got a B in biology, an E in chemistry, an E in maths and a D in physics. He could have done so much better. Now the parents aren't sure what to do.

They have several options, with lots of pros and cons for each

Also, he wants to drop biology, as he hates it. He refuses to carry on with biology as the exam was really easy, and apparently it was a fluke.

Option 1: Retake the year at same school. (so do year 12 again)

Pros:

• Can scrap poor AS results and start again.
• Government Funded
• University

Cons:

• The new A-Levels seem horrible.
• The year below are not a very good year, with poor results and lots of not very nice people (chavs)
• Would lose current friends a year down the line when they go to university.

Option 2: Retake the year at another school

Pros:

• Fresh Start
• Has a good chance of going to university (long term goal)
• Will improve social life, and makes new friends.

Cons:

• Risk of not making friends (slightly socially awkward as bullied at school).
• Gambling if school will be right, as no time for open days.
• Social side holding them back. There is a risk of not settling in well.

Option 3: Retake AS papers and do A2 at same time

Pros:

• Only take a year
• No losing friends

Cons:

• Less social life (there is a higher chance of having new friends at a new school, and going to parties and things)
• Increased workload (doubled)
• High risk of not passing and not getting into university.
• Will get no offers and will have to apply through clearing for university.

Are there any other plausible options? I have listed the first three options they have thought of.

Note: The son does not want to go to college.

He has no idea what to do either. He needs AAB for university in the total A-Level.

They're in West Kent, in England.

Edit: I'm what this question is about ;)

I haven't taken drugs

I just think I just let my social life take over my work life

Answer 1

Retake year 12 at the same school. Hopefully this will have woken him up to the merits of dossing. He doesn't need to lose his current friends, but then again he will see them less in lessons and that may not be a bad thing. There needs to be a cost to him of doing this, and if he bears that cost he will have learned a great life lesson.

He will still see his friends outside of lessons, and if the new crowd is a bad year that'll help him greatly. Practically, for his future desires (he wants to go to uni in the UK) he needs to retake yr 12. Going to another school means maybe not seeing his friends much at all, and that can be isolating at a time when he needs to also process his own failure.