My sick teenager repeating first year

Mr_Man2121

Hi, my 14 year old son has been sick and out of school since January 2017 (he was in first year at the time). He is well enough to go back to school but now he should be going into 3rd year in September. He is academically not ready for this since he missed half of first year and all of second year. He wants to restart in First Year as he feels it is not fair making him catch on so much in so little time and he is also still suffering from chronic fatigue. Can he restart first year?

gordongekko

Best to discuss this with the school but he'd probably be able for second year.

Stephen15

Could he go not go back and do second year and forget about the few months of first year he missed. 14 does sound quite young going into third year. It's not really that big a deal, teachers won't say this but the junior cert isin't that big a deal. I know somebody who missed a similar amount of secondary school and still went to do an excellent leaving cert and do very well in college too.

Mr_Man2121

After January in first year he missed 43 days and went home another 35 early. He weighs 5 stone and a half.

spurious

His health is far more important.
I would also suggest he go into second year rather than do first again. He will catch up quick enough.

Mr_Man2121

Thank you everyone

happywithlife

I would suggest 2nd yr with support from school / home tuition /grinds if needed to support him initially to get back into the swing of things. Did he have any home tuition at all last year? A reduced timetable might work if school can facilitate it

salmocab

If he’s still fatigued maybe going back to first year wouldn’t be a bad idea, he would likely find it relatively easy which under normal circumstances might be a bad move but if he’s constantly tired it might not be a bad thing.

GarIT

Half the time spent in school is wasted by the necessary admin tasks, moving between classes, breaks, unnecessary subjects, etc.

Contact the school and ask for a complete list of the chapters covered in every subject he does in first year and he should be able to get through them easily in 2-4 hours a day, 3-5 days week over the summer.

Get him to use duolingo to catch up on languages.

He'd end up more prepared than most for second year.

hasdanta

A lot of stuff learned in first year hardly appears in the JC exams and for the stuff that does, he can easily catch up on.

skooterblue2

I would say you are going to have to do summer school and do some home schooling to compensate