Westminster City School
Striving for Excellence, Learning for Life

Search the site

Modern Foreign Languages

Vision

The Modern Foreign Languages Department aims to offer every pupil the opportunity to study at least one modern foreign language in Key Stage 3 and the option for as many pupils who wish to do so to continue their study of that language into Key Stage 4. The study of a modern foreign language is seen as an important part of our pupils’ education as languages are part of the cultural richness of our society and the world in which we live and work. Learning languages contributes to mutual understanding, a sense of global citizenship and personal fulfilment. Pupils learn to appreciate different countries, cultures, communities and people.
The ability to understand and communicate in another language is a lifelong skill for education, employment and leisure in this country and throughout the world.

Staffing

Mr M. French Subject Leader for MFL
Miss C Bayout Teacher of French and Teacher responsible for Spanish
Miss E McQuaid Teacher of French and English

Curriculum

On entry into Year 7 all pupils are taught French for three periods per week. Pupils in the top ability group in the year are taught both French and Spanish on a rotational basis. This arrangement continues into Year 8 at the end of which pupils choose their optional subjects for GCSE and French is available for all those who wish to continue studying it and Spanish is also available for those who have previously studied it.

Key Stage 3:
All pupils follow the National Curriculum during the course of which they develop their basic ability in the four skills of Listening, Speaking, Reading and Writing and develop their general appreciation of language. Typical lessons would make use of the interactive whiteboard to introduce language and structures followed by practice of these through each of the four skills. These skills would be introduced and developed through a range of topic areas such as:

  • Personal and Family life
  • Where you live and the world about you
  • Hobbies and interests
  • Shopping and eating out
  • Travel and Holidays

 

As pupils develop their skills they will be able to understand longer texts and conversations and be able to express themselves in more detail in speech and writing and be able to use different tenses to convey meaning.

Key Stage 4:
Pupils begin their GCSE course in Year 9 and will follow the course for either two or three years. The school currently offers the Edexcel specification. Pupils continue the development of their four language skills from Key Stage 3 but widen their range of language and structures to enable them to understand more complex spoken and written material and have the potential to express themselves orally and in writing with greater accuracy and complexity.
Currently pupils take examinations in listening and reading comprehension skills and must undertake two controlled speaking tasks and two controlled writing tasks. The areas studied for these examinations are as follows:

  • Speaking and Writing Themes Listening and Reading Topic Areas
  • Media and Culture Out and About
  • Sport and Leisure Customer Service and Transactions
  • Travel and Tourism Personal Information
  • Business, Work and Employment Future Plans, Education and Work

Enrichment

The department believes that it is important that pupils should have the opportunity to visit the country where the language they are studying is spoken in order to appreciate the language and the culture first hand. For a number of years pupils in Year 7 have been offered the opportunity to go to Montreuil-sur-mer in Northern France for a day during the summer term and this remains an annual event in the school calendar. In previous years pupils have been offered the opportunity in Year 8 or Year 10 to spend a weekend in Paris. The opportunities for travel abroad vary each academic year.

Other support

In Years 10 and 11 pupils preparing for their GCSE examinations are offered additional support and revision sessions either after school or on a Saturday. These sessions may focus on specific skill areas, offering additional exam practice, or may offer additional teaching of a specific grammatical topic, such as the usage of tenses.
In Key Stage 3 the SEN department will often provide in-class support for pupils with specific language-learning difficulties.