Education should equip students with the necessary knowledge, skills, qualifications and mind-set to contribute positively to society, irrespective of their backgrounds.
In the MFL department, we strive to be outstanding educators who inspire our pupils through an ambitious and varied curriculum. We aim to shape fluent, confident and literate learners with a deep understanding of language and culture, who can share their knowledge and challenge the wider world as global citizens. We are passionate in our drive to impart new knowledge, which is embedded through practice. Learning a language opens up opportunities, regardless of background, and will give all learners the chance to explore a culture different to their own, and the links they can make with their own lives and experiences.
At KS3, students will learn how to describe themselves, talk about school life, free-time activities, life at home, the local area, holidays, festivals and celebrations, future plans and jobs, environmental and ethical issues and the wider world. The curriculum is taught as a spiral, so students never learn a topic once – they will encounter the topic at least once more before the end of KS4. Every topic area includes the four main language learning skills – reading, listening, speaking and writing. At KS3, students will also learn a Foundation of key grammar, including communicating in the perfect, present, near future, simple future and conditional tenses (also touching on the imperfect in Year 9) as well as encountering reflexive and modal verbs. By the end of KS3, students are expected to be able to communicate in three tenses, use some complex phrases (such as a subjunctive phrase), be able to justify opinions including using connectives and accurately include negatives and adjectives in their work.
KS4 builds on the topics, skills and grammar studied at KS3. Students will learn more about describing themselves, their family and friends, leisure activities, festivals and celebrations, their home and local area, holidays, school life, future plans and jobs and environmental and ethical issues. Every topic has been encountered at least once before at KS3. The same four skills apply at KS4 – reading, listening, speaking, writing – with an exam in each skill at the end of Year 11. By the end of KS4, students are expected to be able to communicate in a mixture of the perfect, imperfect, present, near future, simple future and conditional tenses, use complex phrases (including some in the subjunctive), justify opinions and use negatives, adjectives, connectives and modal verbs accurately.