French

Course summary

The course consists of listening comprehension, reading comprehension, translation into and from French, essay writing and oral work. Although many of these aspects will appear familiar to a GCSE student the emphasis changes from facts to ideas. For example, in reading and listening tasks the candidate draws conclusions from the material and in the oral examination there is a strong emphasis on expressing opinions and producing an individual research project. Pupils will enjoy the A-Level course as it allows students to explore aspects of artistic culture such as cinema or music, aspects of a changing French society and contemporary social issues such as law and order or politics and immigration. In the A-Level course there is the opportunity to study a novel in the target language and look at the work of a film director. Pupils enjoy the challenge of prose and translation and the meticulous approach to grammar. With a working knowledge of the main tenses it will be possible to sustain a conversation on most topics by the end of the course. Pupils will have eleven periods per cycle with a minimum of two colleagues plus an additional lesson with the French Language Assistant. Pupils should be expected to prepare work for each lesson they attend. Some of this work will be for class discussion; some will be handed in for marking. Throughout the course, students will be expected to do listening and reading comprehension exercises and to prepare answers to oral questions. Success comes from ready participation in class, from a conscientious approach to private study and from a willingness to become involved in the subject by consulting the periodicals in the library, by watching films and news broadcasts, by reading about the history, geography and politics of the country and by going there whenever possible. The A-Level course material closely follows the specification by AQA and is supplemented by online resources that students can access from home. Middle school studies provide a working knowledge of French. Those who want to refine and develop that knowledge and are prepared to devote the necessary time and energy to these ends, should seriously consider the A-Level courses.