MFL GCSE

The Importance of Languages How many languages are spoken throughout the world? A) 100 B) 200 C)300 D)More than 500 Around 7,000

The proportion of the world which does not speak English as its first language is:- A) 1% B)25% C)63% D)94% 94% The Importance of Languages

What proportion of the world speaks no English at all? A)75% B)60% C)50% D)25% 75%

How many UK companies are losing business because of language barriers? A)1 out of every 100 B)1 out of every 50 C)1 out of every 5 1 out of every 5

What percentage of employers are looking for school leavers with language skills? a) 10% b) 25% c) 50% d) 74% 74%

Universities At the moment, UCL requires a language GCSE for degree courses and if you do not have a GCSE at grade C or above in a language, you have to do a languages course in the summer or first year to catch up. Other Russell Group universities may follow suit. A GCSE in a foreign language is part of the EBacc. A GCSE in languages can lead to an A Level in languages, which makes your university application stand out, because languages are known to develop higher order and critical thinking skills.

Employment Languages is one of the university subjects with the highest rates of employment, with 86% of 2012 graduates going into jobs or further study within six months. Teaching, translation, travel and tourism, finance, law and politics are all career options for language graduates. And even if you don’t go into a career in which you’re regularly using your language skills, a degree in languages gives you a huge range of transferable skills that will appeal to any employer. In an overcrowded graduate job market, having a foreign language on your CV makes you stand out.

Other benefits Studying a foreign language, you examine things like grammar, sentence structure and syntax. This can improve your use of English and make it easier to learn further foreign languages. Opportunities to travel and live abroad. Recent studies have shown that bilingualism boosts intelligence. Brains, like muscles, need exercise to grow, and thinking in two different languages is the equivalent of a long hard session at the gym. Knowing another language can create exciting opportunities, for example, working with an Olympic team as a gamesmaker thanks to language skills!

GCSE Course Like in KS3, students work on and are tested on the following skills:  Listening Speaking  Reading  Writing

How the four skills make up your final grade:

Listening and Reading  Both exams are at the end of year 11.  Students can do foundation or higher.  All questions and rubrics are in English.  There is no French/German at all on the listening paper, but one question in French/German on the higher reading paper.  Students only need to write two or three words per answer.

Speaking and Writing Students are assessed by controlled assessments, which are taken throughout the two year course. Two pieces are entered for each skill We usually do at least three so we can enter the best marks. Students have around 3/4 hours of lesson time to prepare for their task.