French

Board: AQA GCSE (Higher or Foundation)

If you study French, you will enhance your ability to understand and communicate in the only language spoken on all five continents and gain some excellent transferable skills. In many cases, you will already have seen the main structures covered at Prep School and in Year 9, so it is simply a case of furthering understanding and enjoyment as we continue the GCSE course.

At the end of the course, not only will it be possible for you to go to France or a French-speaking country and converse confidently, you will also gain an insight and appreciation of French culture whilst expanding your own individual interests. You learn key soft skills through study of a language, and you are taught to think on your feet, communicate/respond to feedback, and to react positively to critique, all of which enable pupils to develop an entrepreneurial mindset.

In Year 9, pupils start their GCSE course and almost all pupils will have studied French before. When moving into Years 10 and 11, pupils are put into set based on ability, and this allows us to choose whether a pupil is examined at either foundation or higher level in Year 11. We follow the AQA French course and this provides an excellent grounding for A level and IB study. Pupils take final exams in all four essential skills – listening, speaking, reading and writing.

Exam= 25% speaking; 25% listening skills; 25% reading skills and 25% writing skills.

Entry requirements: Grade 6 in GCSE French.

Linguists are in constant demand and French – and the same is true for any Modern
Language – is viewed by Russell Group universities as a facilitating subject, which means
that it is better respected by Russell Group universities and employers, and it will open
more doors for you.

Linguists are trained to think structurally, to express themselves articulately and present
focused arguments, which are skills that employers seek and value highly. Language
graduates are sought after by employers not merely for their linguistic skills, but for the
intellectual rigour and cultural understanding which their course has offered. Young
people with language skills are in short demand and so by taking a language you place
yourself in an advantageous position in the job market. Furthermore, having spent a
year abroad you are a more mature, adaptable and independent individual, what is
termed a “global citizen.”

According to recruitment consultants a language can add 10-15% to your salary and most
language graduates do jobs where languages are advantageous, but not central to their
work. Furthermore, linguists have one of the lowest unemployment rates overall.
They find their way into a wide range of jobs – including banks and other financial
institutions, the travel and hospitality business, the media (including journalism),
advertising, PR, retail, education, charities, international organisations and many others.
About 10% choose to work abroad, mostly in commercial and business areas.

The course is assessed at the end of the 2 year linear course and is separated into the following components:

• French Component 1: Listening, Reading and Translation. 2hrs, 40% Section A: Listening – comprehension questions and translation from French to English.
• French Component 2: Written response to works and translation, 2hrs 40mins, , 30% Section A: Translation from English to French and an essay on literature and film.
• French Component 3: Speaking. 21-23 minutes, 30%

Entry requirements: No previous knowledge of the language is required but you must have studied another language at GCSE.

Linguists are in constant demand and French – and the same is true for any Modern
Language – is viewed by Russell Group universities as a facilitating subject, which means
that it is better respected by Russell Group universities and employers, and it will open
more doors for you.

Linguists are trained to think structurally, to express themselves articulately and present
focused arguments, which are skills that employers seek and value highly. Language
graduates are sought after by employers not merely for their linguistic skills, but for the
intellectual rigour and cultural understanding which their course has offered. Young
people with language skills are in short demand and so by taking a language you place
yourself in an advantageous position in the job market. Furthermore, having spent a
year abroad you are a more mature, adaptable and independent individual, what is
termed a “global citizen.”

The five themes of the IB course are:

• Identities
• Experiences
• Human Ingenuity
• Social Organisation
• Sharing the planet

• Internal Assessment: Oral Component 25% 7-10 minutes plus 15 mins of formal preparation time.
• External Assessment: Productive Skills 25% Paper 1: Writing (1 hour)
• External Assessment: Receptive Skills 50% Paper 2: Reading ( 1 hour) Listening (45 mins)

Entry requirements: Grade 6 in IGCSE or equivalent.

Linguists are in constant demand and French – and the same is true for any Modern Language – is now viewed by universities and employers as a facilitating subject, which means that it will help you with whatever subject you ultimately choose to study, and whatever career you take.

Linguists are trained to think structurally, to express themselves articulately and present focused arguments, which are skills that employers seek and value highly. Language graduates are sought after by employers not merely for their linguistic skills, but for the intellectual rigour and cultural understanding which their course has offered. Young people with language skills are in short demand and so by taking a language you place yourself in an advantageous position in the job market. Furthermore, having spent a year abroad you are a more mature, adaptable and independent individual, what we now term a, “global citizen.”

The five themes of the IB French B course are:

• Identities
• Experiences
• Human Ingenuity
• Social Organisation
• Sharing the planet

The course is examined at the end of the 2 year linear course and consists of 70% External Assessment and 30% Internal Assessment

• External Assessment: Paper 1, Productive Skills (1hr 15mins standard level, 1hr 30 higher level, 25%)
• External Assessment Paper 2, Receptive Skills (1hr, 45mins standard level, 2 hrs higher level, 50%)
• Internal Assessment: Oral, 12-15mins, (plus 15 mins formal preparation time at standard level and 20 mins at higher 25%), which is based on a visual stimulus at standard level and an extract from a literary work at higher level.

The Department organises theatre and cinema trips for French pupils. Every year, we enjoy the French play put on by the UEA French Department in Norwich. We have seen Le Bourgeois Gentilhomme and Rhinocéros in recent years.

We also have links with France and facilitate individual trips where pupils improve their fluency as well as their individual confidence.

The French Department also is involved in wider Modern Foreign Languages Department events such as Translation workshops and Language Days, inviting specialists and native speakers to add their input to our full, varied and exciting curriculum.

We benefit from excellent language assistants and all Sixth Form pupils have a weekly individual speaking slot with the French Assistant, whilst pupils in Years 9 – 11 will have increased exposure as they near their GCSE exam.