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WHY STUDY A MODERN FOREIGN LANGUAGE?

Students are able to continue with the language they began in Year 7 (French, German or Spanish) and complete a GCSE qualification. Students can also begin the study of an additional language as one of their option choices (see GCSE MFL AQA)

Knowing a different language is a valuable skill and offers many benefits to young learners. As well as broadening students’ minds and developing cultural awareness, research shows that learning another language boosts academic achievement and helps with reasoning, problem-solving and creativity. MFL directly links to a wide variety of curriculum areas; from literacy and grammar in English, to culture, traditions and landmarks in the humanities, and logic and analytical thinking in maths and the sciences.

Additionally, the ability to be able to speak another language is not only useful for travel, but also boosts future career opportunities. In our increasingly globalised world, there is an ever-growing demand for language skills in a wide variety of job sectors. With just 20% of Britons stating that they can hold a conversation in a language other than English, studying a language for GCSE, is both a unique and sought after skill.

Why French?

French is the official language of many of the world’s organisations, such as the United Nations, NATO, UNESCO, the International Red Cross Association and numerous other international committees. Apart from English, French is the only language spoken on every continent. 

Why German?

200 million people speak German worldwide, and it is the most widely spoken language in Europe. Germany is an important trading partner because it is the world’s second-largest exporter, and a key economy within Europe. In the UK, German language skills are in high demand, especially in sectors such as management, sales, technology and engineering.

Why Spanish?

Spanish is a global language spoken by at least 350 million people worldwide.
Spanish is spoken as a first languages in 21 countries and with more than 400 million native speakers worldwide, it is the second most spoken language after Mandarin Chinese. Hispanic culture is incredibly rich and diverse, as reflected by the major contributions Spanish-speaking countries have made to the arts, architecture and literature.

DESCRIPTION OF COURSE

Our KS3 curriculum is carefully considered and sequenced to enable students to succeed in KS4. The GCSE course is divided into three key themes which are the same regardless of the language studied:

Theme 1: People and lifestyle

Theme 2: Popular culture

Theme 3: Communication and the world around us

Through these three themes students will develop an understanding of the language in a variety of contexts, the ability to communicate effectively in the language, knowledge of important vocabulary and grammatical structures and an insight into the culture(s) of the target language-speaking countries.

HOW WILL STUDENTS BE ASSESSED

This is a linear course and students are assessed at the end of Year 11 through examinations. Students will sit four papers (listening, speaking, reading and writing), all of which have an wdy one or more modern foreign languages possess a unique skill highly regarded by universities and businesses. A GCSE in French, German or Spanish can lead to careers in a wide variety of sectors, including international relations, teaching, law, interpreting, journalism, commerce and science.

Further information on this specification is available from the qualification website:

French: https://www.aqa.org.uk/subjects/french/gcse/french-8652/specification 

German: https://www.aqa.org.uk/subjects/german/gcse/german-8662/specification 

Spanish: https://www.aqa.org.uk/subjects/spanish/gcse/spanish-8692/specification 

KEY CONTACT AT TGASMrs Jackson