WELCOME NEWS AND EVENTS CURRICULUM PASTORAL STUDENTS PARENTS SIXTH FORM John Kyrle High School and Sixth Form Centre << Home Page Modern Foreign Languages Why should you study languages? Here are our top 10 reasons... 1) You fall in love with the subject. 2) English is not enough! It's really important that you learn to speak and understand other people no matter where they are from. 3) You can travel to new places around the world. 4) It’s the perfect way to meet new people and discover new cultures. 5) Speaking another language really makes you stand out from the crowd. 6) Learning a foreign language can help you understand your own language and make it easier to learn others. 7) You develop 4 key skills; listening, reading, speaking and writing. 8) You'll have fun learning about a wide range of topics from shopping, to sport, to food and entertainment. 9) Speaking more than one language increases your brain capacity and you have better memory too. 10) It’s an impressive achievement to speak a foreign language and you'll have better options for your future! For further information about the benefits of studying a language, please visit: http://www.whystudylanguages.ac.uk/ https://successatschool.org/advicedetails/371/Why-Study-Languages%3F https://www.tulsacc.edu/programs-courses/academic-schools/school-liberal-arts-communication/why-study-world-language MFL Mission Statement We are a team of specialist linguists who teach all three languages from Year 7 to Year 13. We not only believe in providing languages for all, but we also want to empower our students to choose the languages they love to learn. We encourage our students to choose their language options and therefore we provide a 3,1,1 Key Stage 3 curriculum. All students study three languages in Year 7 in a carousel format; one language per term, they then choose which language they would like to continue with for Year 8 and Year 9. This choice is invaluable, and languages are perfect facilitating subjects that offer employers a wide range of skills. We provide a thorough curriculum, which focuses on knowledge, vocabulary, grammatical understanding, and practical skills. We like to offer students the opportunity to use their language skills outside of the classroom, therefore we run a Christmas Markets Trip to Cologne and a French Culture Trip to northern France, with other future trips in the pipeline. MFL Rationale Our curriculum is based on the principles of language learning being phonics, vocabulary, and grammar: these are the key components in allowing students to develop their linguistic ability and self-efficacy. Vocabulary acquisition is an important component of language knowledge. To support vocabulary learning, regular vocabulary revision and testing across all Key Stages is consistent. Vocabulary is carefully selected to include high frequency vocabulary, topic specific vocabulary and cross topic vocabulary. Grammar is taught explicitly throughout our curriculum, tailored to the complexity and ability of the students, and practised through listening, reading and in productive use in writing and speaking. Our starters focus on retrieval practice to promote distributed/spaced learning to allow students to gain and consolidate vocabulary and revisiting grammatical understanding, learning more, remembering more. Our use of classroom target language not only develops students’ understanding of phonics but encourages students to use and practise target language themselves. Teachers’ use of target language is carefully planned and tailored to students’ ability level, whilst building on prior knowledge. Target language is intentional for classroom routines, praise. Our curriculum allows for the four modalities of language (speaking, listening, reading, and writing) to be developed and reinforced through authentic resources; the use of the language lab further enhances this experience. Assessments at KS3 are based on the four modalities, including translation L1-L2 and L2-L1. Speaking assessments are built to develop skills needed at GCSE to develop confidence and self-efficacy whilst consolidating and practising vocabulary and grammatical structures planned in the KS3 curriculum. Assessment at KS4 and KS5 is planned carefully to ensure that both exam technique and skill is developed throughout the course using past papers, Kerboodle and authentic resources. The staff’s passion for languages for all, is pivotal in the running of our department, we believe in the opportunities that languages offer our students, not only during their time in school but also the horizons they broaden in later life. Languages give our students experience and confidence like no other subject; a freedom to explore, appreciate and celebrate other cultures. Our students have been enthused to go on to not only study languages at university, but also languages in their careers, working in Martinique, Nicaragua, Mongolia and Austria amongst others, all whilst keeping in touch and doing their bit to enthuse future linguists. Teaching Staff Mrs H Bolt (Spanish & French) – Head of Department, email: mfl@jkhs.org.uk Mr J Salway (German & Spanish) – Second in Department, email: mfl@jkhs.org.uk Ms E Colclough (French & Spanish) Mrs S Gunter (French & German) Mrs S Kimmenauer (French & Spanish) Mr C Regan (German & French) Mr Jordan Salway Second in MFL Mrs Helen Bolt Head of MFL Key Stage 3 At KS3 students are fortunate to be able to study 3 languages – French, German and Spanish. Students will participate in a wide range of activities which aim to develop their linguistic competence in listening, speaking, reading and writing in a range of situations and contexts. They will apply linguistic knowledge and skills to understand and communicate effectively, and understand how a language works and how to manipulate it. They will learn a variety of problem solving skills to recognise that languages differ but may share common grammatical, syntactical or lexical features. We would like our KS3 languages students to use their imagination in expressing thoughts, ideas, experiences, feelings and opinions and to gain enjoyment and intellectual stimulation through a variety of teaching and learning styles and activities. In preparation for a GCSE in French, German and/or Spanish we offer a 3,1,1 route through KS3 to allow students to opt for the languages that they prefer to study. All students will study three languages in Year 7 within a cycled term rotation. At the end of this year they will opt for their favourite language to specialise in in Year 8 and 9. This will then be the language they will study for GCSE.(There is still an option for dual-linguists at GCSE) Key Stage 4 The curriculum we follow is that guided by the WJEC Eduqas exam board. We then build our curriculum time around these topics. Identity & culture Youth culture: Self & relationships Technology & social media Lifestyle: Health & fitness Entertainment & leisure Customs & traditions: Food & drink Festivals & celebrations Local, national, international & global areas of interest Home & locality: Local areas of interest Transport Germany / France / Spain: Local & regional features and characteristics Holidays & tourism Global sustainability Environment Social issues Current & future study & employment Current study: School / college life School / college study World of work: Work experience & part-time jobs Skills & personal qualities Jobs & future plans Applying for work / study career plans French GCSE Specification >> German GCSE Specification >> Spanish GCSE Specification >> Key Stage 5 To be able to do a language at A-level, you need to aim for at least a grade 5 at GCSE. The A level Modern Language course is structured so that you will study four modules each year. These will form the basis of the reading, writing and listening exams and also the speaking test. Translation also forms part of the course. There is no coursework for this A level. With around (five) hours of class time a week dedicated to learning your language, this is a fast-paced environment, where you will quickly see noticeable improvements in your language skills. You will have to do exams in both years of study. The topics that you cover will be really varied, so you not only greatly improve your language speaking ability, use of grammar, different tenses, and know more vocabulary, but you will also learn about culture, history, literature, society, the environment and lifestyle. A measure of the success of language learning at John Kyrle is the number of students who go on to read modern languages at university. Employment rates after languages degrees are amongst the very highest, with employers particularly welcoming graduates with good communication skills and who offer one or more modern foreign languages. MFL Careers In this new era of globalization, learning a second language is now becoming a vital part of the basic preparation for an increasing number of careers. Even in those cases where the knowledge of a second language does not require you to be fluent in those languages, many report that their foreign language skills often enhance their mobility and improve their chances for promotion and professional development. Russell Group Universities see Languages as key Facilitating Subjects for further study and for professional development. Those wanting to pursue careers in Law, Engineering, Medicine, Linguistics, Translation, Finance and Politics, just to name a few, would see benefits from learning a language and the skills they would possess would help them in these professions French A2 Specification >> French AS Specification >> German A2 Specification >> German AS Specification >> Spanish A2 Specification >> Spanish AS Specification >> ABOUT US John Kyrle High School and Sixth Form Centre is a fully comprehensive 11-18 school in the rural town of Ross-on-Wye. To report any issues with this site please email webadmin@jkhs.org.uk. ADDRESS Ledbury Road Ross-on-Wye Herefordshire HR9 7ET (For sat nav use HR9 7AJ) Tel. (01989) 764358 Email: admin@jkhs.org.uk © 2018 John Kyrle High School