Modern Foreign Languages

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Intent

We believe that learning a foreign language is a liberation from insularity and provides an opening to other cultures. It should foster students’ curiosity and deepen their understanding of the world, as well as providing opportunities for them to communicate for practical purposes, learn new ways of thinking and access authentic materials in the language. It should provide the foundation for further language learning, equipping students to study and work abroad, thus broadening their future educational and career horizons and aspirations.

Our MFL curriculum vision is that students should leave Oulton Academy with an international perspective, developed through the study of foreign languages and exposure to other cultures. The raising of intercultural understanding arising from the study of a modern language represents a distinctive component of a knowledge-rich curriculum; students learn about different ways of life, festivals and traditions, and through our extra-curricular provision experience French and Spanish theatre, foreign films and music. Students’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development is thereby enhanced.

Our ambition is that it should become a given for Oulton Academy students to pursue the study of a language throughout their 5 years, enthused by both the experience of learning a language and the process of engaging with a world beyond their own, providing them with the tools for life in our increasingly global world. The core aim of reducing educational poverty informs our determination that all students should have access to learning a language. We seek to remove barriers to learning by ensuring that all students are individually supported in response to their needs.

In learning a language, students develop a host of transferable skills, including interpersonal skills such as communication, presentation skills and team work: all empowering skills in the modern workplace. Students will develop problem-solving skills, be challenged to be creative and reflective, and will be given the opportunity to develop their independence as learners. The focus throughout is to help learners develop long-term knowledge and skills: to create lifelong learners.

The MFL curriculum seeks to reflect core school values, including the fundamental of respect towards others. The rigorous nature of the curriculum engenders resilience, individual responsibility and resourcefulness. Students develop self-confidence when learning to apply pronunciation and grammatical rules in expressing themselves in the foreign language, especially when speaking out loud. Taking the lead when working in pairs, and when modelling good practice in front of the class, develops leadership capacities. Motivation is recognised and rewarded, and we seek to embed a culture of reflection at the heart of the learning process: by reflecting on how to improve, and setting their own targets for improvement through a process of regular metacognition, students are able to take ownership of their own learning journeys. As well as respect, students’ appreciation of the British Values of tolerance and individual liberty is also reinforced; and the development of empathy and understanding of others helps create young people who are able to form successful personal relationships of their own.

In short, our intention in the MFL Department at Oulton Academy is to raise our young people’s cultural capital by developing a love of, and facility for, language learning, and an understanding of other cultures, whilst equipping them with practical skills that will enable them to operate as successful and fulfilled citizens of a global world. We aim to instil a drive in our students to aspire to excellence, to become the very best that they can be, thereby preparing them for success in life. 

Objectives

We strive to create an MFL curriculum which:

  • Enables students to make substantial progress in one language (French or Spanish).
  • Lays the foundations for further language learning at KS4 and beyond, motivating students to continue studying the language at GCSE and post-16.
  • Focuses on practical communication: understanding and communicating ideas, facts and feelings in speech and writing.
  • Features an appropriate balance of spoken and written language, as well as developing the skills of listening and reading in the target language.
  • Develops knowledge of phonology, grammatical structures and vocabulary -the core skills underpinning language acquisition and progress, and which are central to the new GCSE.
  • Encompasses numeracy and broader literacy skills where appropriate.

Implementation

(Pre KS3) + Key Stage 3:

Co-ordination with our feeder primary schools ensures that students are given the opportunity to continue the language (French or Spanish) which they have begun studying at KS2, ensuring continuity of progress, where possible, between the two phases.

The Y7/8 curriculum is based around key themes which provide the basis for deeper study at GCSE: describing self and others; talking about school; free-time; family life; home & local area; technology; visiting a French/Spanish -speaking country; ambitions and future plans. Key grammatical concepts such as the importance of gender, adjectival agreement and verb conjugation are introduced. In Year 8, students start to be able to express themselves using a second tense (past events or future plans).

The Year 9 curriculum for those students who have elected to continue with a language to GCSE provides for in-depth study of the first key topics that will form the basis of GCSE. Students’ vocabulary is broadened and their grasp of grammar is deepened, with a constant focus on developing the 4 skills of listening, speaking, reading and writing (each of which comprises 25% of the eventual GCSE examination).

Key Stage 4

Y10/11 focuses on continued study of the remaining GCSE topics.  As well as the continued focus on grammar and vocabulary, there is an emphasis on developing the specific skills required for the AQA GCSE examination.

Our MFL curriculum is sequenced to facilitate progress, with essential knowledge and skills building on prior learning in a coherent manner. Regular, iterative retrieval practice and interleaving strengthen memory and help maximise cognitive development, ensuring that key knowledge is both reinforced and applied across a variety of contexts. Frequent opportunities for in-learning formative assessment enable teachers to gauge levels of understanding and retention. Metacognition enables students to identify gaps in their own learning, and set personal targets for improvement, giving students a genuine sense of ownership of their own learning. Every MFL lesson features a ‘Gold Zone’ activity, in which students work entirely independently to apply and demonstrate learning, replicating some of the features of the examination experience. Identified summative assessment points measure students’ understanding and recall of essential knowledge and skills, enabling staff to benchmark students according to what they know and don’t know; this informs explicit teacher feedback and future curriculum planning, to help reduce identified gaps. The focus throughout is to help learners develop long-term knowledge, skills and understanding.

Review and evaluate 

Oulton MFL teachers are themselves reflective, lifelong learners, constantly striving to refine and develop their own practice in line with the needs of our students, curriculum innovations and the latest pedagogic thinking. Underpinning everything we do is a desire to achieve the very best outcomes for our young people; as such, our curriculum is very much a ‘living document’, subject to continual review, evolution and development.

Further Information

If you require more detailed information, please email the Head of Department. Mr Gleisner:

 

Year 7

What will I be studying?

FRENCH:

The Year 7 curriculum is based around key themes which provide the basis for deeper study of French: talking about yourself and family; describing our school life; discussing free time activities; describing home life and the town where we live, including making plans to go out. Throughout our study of French, we learn how to offer opinions and give information relating to our own experiences and those of other people in countries and communities where the language is spoken: this process starts in Year 7. Key grammatical concepts such as the importance of gender and singular & plural, adjectival agreement and verb conjugation are introduced in Year 7. Towards the end of Year 7, students start to be able to express themselves using a second tense, when talking about future plans. There is also an emphasis on learning pronunciation rules: an understanding of French phonics enables pupils to make links between spellings and key sounds. Pupils’ language proficiency is developed, and assessed, across the 4 skills of listening, speaking, reading and writing.

SPANISH:

The Year 7 Spanish curriculum is based around some key themes: describing yourself (talking about your personality, your birthday, your pets); talking about your hobbies and activities you do in your free time; describing your subjects, facilities and teachers at school; talking about your family and friends; describing your environment (your house and your town/city). Throughout our study of Spanish, we learn how to understand and give opinions, understand gender and number in a foreign language, understand adjectival agreement and refer to events in the future tense. There is also an emphasis on pronunciation and speaking skills. Pupils’ language proficiency is developed, and assessed, across the 4 skills of listening, speaking, reading and writing.

Career Links

  • The tourism industry: travel agencies, hotels, catering, airline cabin crew, resort staff, tourist guides.
  • Roles in international business, finance and law. French and Spanish are both widely used languages in international business.
  • Customer services roles in a whole range of professions.
  • Translation & interpreting (international conferences).
  • For those interested in politics and global justice: working for an international NGO, in the government diplomatic service, or in intelligence in a French-speaking country.

How will I be assessed?

  • Weekly 10-word vocabulary tests on key language taught the previous week.
  • Approximately every 8 weeks: end of module assessments (5 per year). At each assessment point. students will be assessed in 2 of the 4 skills of writing, reading, listening and speaking. Each assessment will cover language taught over the module of study that has just been completed (it will typically take 8 teaching weeks to cover a module).

Which websites should I use to support my learning?

www.languagenut.com

Every Oulton Academy student will be given a personal account, with their own unique user name and password, for Languagenut. Languagenut is a fabulous online site that is used to reinforce the learning that takes place in the classroom. Pupils will be given weekly assignments to complete on Languagenut, which support learning of the language required for that week’s vocabulary test or end of module assignment. Languagenut is packed full of engaging, motivating activities, all of which are self-marking, generating running league tables of learners’ performance, enabling pupils to gauge their progress against that of their classmates and other Oulton students, as well as against all Languagenut users globally! Weekly and half-termly prizes are awarded to the best performers in each year group, along with, at the end of each half-term, the highest-ranked classes. The names of winners are displayed on screens around school every week.

Year 8

What will I be studying?

FRENCH:

The Year 8 French curriculum builds on the grammatical foundations laid down in Year 7, introducing the past tense, and giving pupils practice in using all 3 time frames (past, present and future). There is a continued focus on developing pupils’ abilities across the 4 skills of listening, speaking, reading and writing, whilst the vocabulary taught is centred around topics such as holidays, festivals and celebrations, talking about local area home life and routine, and discussing sport.

 

SPANISH:

The Year 8 Spanish curriculum builds upon the grammatical knowledge acquired in Year 7 and introduces the past and future tenses. There is a continued focus on developing pupils’ abilities across the 4 skills of listening, speaking, reading and writing, with topics such as recent holidays, planning a party and talking about hobbies providing the vocabulary focus. Themes with direct practical application to real life situations abroad include ordering food and drinks, and asking for and giving directions. 

Career Links

  • The tourism industry: travel agencies, hotels, catering, airline cabin crew, resort staff, tourist guides.
  • Roles in international business, finance and law. French and Spanish are both widely used languages in international business.
  • Customer services roles in a whole range of professions.
  • Translation & interpreting (international conferences).
  • For those interested in politics and global justice: working for an international NGO, in the government diplomatic service, or in intelligence in a French-speaking country.

How will I be assessed?

  • Weekly 10-word vocabulary tests on key language taught the previous week.
  • Approximately every 8 weeks: end of module assessments (5 per year). At each assessment point. students will be assessed in 2 of the 4 skills of writing, reading, listening and speaking. Each assessment will cover language taught over the module of study that has just been completed (it will typically take 8 teaching weeks to cover a module).

Which websites should I use to support my learning?

www.languagenut.com/

Every Oulton Academy student will be given a personal account, with their own unique user name and password, for Languagenut. Languagenut is a fabulous online site that is used to reinforce the learning that takes place in the classroom. Pupils will be given weekly assignments to complete on Languagenut, which support learning of the language required for that week’s vocabulary test or end of module assignment. Languagenut is packed full of engaging, motivating activities, all of which are self-marking, generating running league tables of learners’ performance, enabling pupils to gauge their progress against that of their classmates and other Oulton students, as well as against all Languagenut users globally! Weekly and half-termly prizes are awarded to the best performers in each year group, along with, at the end of each half-term, the highest-ranked classes. The names of winners are displayed on screens around school every week.

Year 9

What will I be studying?

SPANISH:

The year 9 Spanish curriculum is based on 3 broad topics: local, national, global and international areas of interest; current and future study and employment: identity and culture. These topics have been chosen as they reflect the ambitions of the National Curriculum, and also challenge students beyond this. They have been carefully sequenced to build progression into a student’s learning journey, and to equip them well for using Spanish in real life situations and in the future. Along the way, students are assessed, and topics will be revisited in end of module assessments, to keep each stage of this learning journey alive. 

Within these topic areas, students will learn to talk and write about booking and experiencing holidays; their own school life and school life in Spain; social media and new technology; relationships. 

Running through each topic, as throughout every stage of language learning at Oulton Academy, will be the 3 essential strands of vocabulary, phonics and grammar.

Career Links

  • The tourism industry: travel agencies, hotels, catering, airline cabin crew, resort staff, tourist guides.
  • Roles in international business, finance and law. Spanish is a widely used language in international business.
  • Customer services roles in a whole range of professions.
  • Translation & interpreting (international conferences).
  • For those interested in politics and global justice: working for an international NGO, in the government diplomatic service, or in intelligence in a French-speaking country.

How will I be assessed?

  • Weekly 10-word vocabulary tests on key language taught the previous week.
  • End of module assessments (3 during Year 9). At each assessment point. students will be assessed in 2 of the 4 skills of writing, reading, listening and speaking. Each assessment will cover language taught over the module of study that has just been completed.

Which websites should I use to support my learning?

  •  

Every Oulton Academy student will be given a personal account, with their own unique user name and password, for Languagenut. Languagenut is a fabulous online site that is used to reinforce the learning that takes place in the classroom. Pupils will be given weekly assignments to complete on Languagenut, which support learning of the language required for that week’s vocabulary test or end of module assignment. Languagenut is packed full of engaging, motivating activities, all of which are self-marking, generating running league tables of learners’ performance, enabling pupils to gauge their progress against that of their classmates and other Oulton students, as well as against all Languagenut users globally! Weekly and half-termly prizes are awarded to the best performers in each year group, along with, at the end of each half-term, the highest-ranked classes. The names of winners are displayed on screens around school every week.

KS4 - French or Spanish

AQA GCSE SPANISH & FRENCH

What will I be studying?

KS4 study in both languages focuses on the 3 broad GCSE themes of Identity & Culture (self, family & friends; free time & hobbies; festivals & traditions), Local, National, International & Global Areas of Interest (holidays; local area; environmental & social issues) and Current & Future Study & Employment. Students’ vocabulary is broadened and their grasp of grammar is deepened, with a constant focus on further developing the 4 skills of listening, speaking, reading and writing.

Career Links

  • The tourism industry: travel agencies, hotels, catering, airline cabin crew, resort staff, tourist guides.
  • Roles in international business, finance and law. French and Spanish are both widely used languages in international business.
  • Customer services roles in a whole range of professions.
  • Translation & interpreting (international conferences).
  • For those interested in politics and global justice: working for an international NGO, in the government diplomatic service, or in intelligence in a French-speaking country.

How will I be assessed?

  • Weekly 20-word vocabulary tests on key language taught the previous week.
  • Regular grammar tests.
  • End of module assessments (3 during Year 9; 2 during Year 10). At each assessment point. students will be assessed in 2 of the 4 skills of writing, reading, listening and speaking. Each assessment will cover language taught over the module of study that has just been completed.
  • Additional assessed writing tasks, following the same format as those on the GCSE writing paper, marked in line with GCSE mark schemes.
  • PPE (mock GCSE) examinations: in June of Year 10, followed by December & March of Year 11.
  • Final GCSE exams, May-June of Year 11: papers in listening, speaking, reading and writing, each of which constitutes 25% of the eventual GCSE grade. Students are entered for either Foundation or Higher tier examinations.

Which examination board am I following?

AQA GCSE Spanish (8698)

AQA GCSE French (8658)

Which websites should I use to support my learning?

  •  

Every Oulton Academy student will be given a personal account, with their own unique user name and password, for Languagenut. Languagenut is a fabulous online site that is used to reinforce the learning that takes place in the classroom. Pupils will be given weekly assignments to complete on Languagenut, which support learning of the language required for that week’s vocabulary test or end of module assignment. Languagenut is packed full of engaging, motivating activities, all of which are self-marking, generating running league tables of learners’ performance, enabling pupils to gauge their progress against that of their classmates and other Oulton students, as well as against all Languagenut users globally! Weekly and half-termly prizes are awarded to the best performers in each year group, along with, at the end of each half-term, the highest-ranked classes. The names of winners are displayed on screens around school every week.

Languagenut features GCSE skills activities that provide excellent exam-style practice; and grammar and phonics activities are also especially useful for students preparing for GCSE.

 

  •  

BBC Bitesize contains good summaries of the GCSE French and Spanish themes, along with engaging videos, useful for listening practice, and practice tests.

 

  •  

GCSE Pod features very good video summaries of key grammar points and vocabulary themes.