Blog

Should British pupils give up studying French?

Tue, 21 Sep 2010 12:53:59 +0000

The aftermath of the decline of languages at GCSE continues with a story on the BBC News Magazine web site which explores some of the key reasons for this. Language learning expert Paul Noble, who teaches French and Spanish on CDs by Collins, makes a telling observation. "Students realise that even if they do get a GCSE in French, they still won't be able to speak the language. Even students who come out of doing French A-levels can be surprised at what they can't say - the teaching should be far more conversationally based."

If we're to stop the decline of languages in school, surely now seems like a good time to revisit the way languages are formally assessed as part of the curriculum.

Michael Gove wants baccalaureate qualification for England

Thu, 09 Sep 2010 09:21:56 +0000

The new baccalaureate qualification proposed by the UK Education Secretary, Michael Gove, could be a positive initiative for foreign languages. According to the Guardian, The "English bac" would not replace GCSEs, but would be a certificate to reward pupils who pass at least five of the exams, at grade C or above, including English, maths, one science, one foreign language and one humanity. Could this be an acknowledgement by the UK government of the vital need for languages as a core skill in a polyglot world?

GCSE results: Why we should mind our languages

Thu, 26 Aug 2010 17:20:53 +0000

Further to yesterday's article about the decline of languages as a subject at GCSE and A Level in the UK, another one in today's Telegraph which looks at the rationale for why languages are important in the school curriculum. The writer makes the business case for languages and, in particular, that the EU and the UN are trawling for British people with command of foreign languages and then saves the "astuce" until the end. Apparently, studying languages is a great way to get into Oxbridge. One in two applicants for modern languages is offered a place at Oxford, while the success rate for Politics, Philopsophy and Economics is just 7.6 per cent. Anyone with high hopes for their children's university education should take note!

GCSE results: French 'no longer a popular subject'

Wed, 25 Aug 2010 19:46:27 +0000

The number of children leaving school with a decent grasp of foreign languages has plummeted to a record low in the UK, according to an article in today's Telegraph. For the first time, French no longer appears in a list of the 10 most popular subjects at GCSE level. Furthermore, exam entries have dropped by almost 50 per cent in a decade. The problem can be traced to Labour's decision to make languages optional for the first time in 2004, allowing thousands of pupils to drop the subjects at 14. Apart from campaigning to make a language subject compulsory again at GCSE level, more needs to be done to convince educators and pupils of the relevancy of languages in the world today. After all, with the spread of English, Spanish, and for that matter, Chinese, the global village is becoming increasingly bilingual. In tomorrow's world, this will leave monolingual Anglophones at a disadavantage unless something is done fast to address the problem.

Why a second language is crucial in business

Fri, 09 Jul 2010 10:46:39 +0000

Good to see an article in Exec Digital about the business need for languages that pulls no punches. The article points out that the old adage, 'You can buy in your own language but you must sell in the language of your customer' is illustrated by UK export figures where we are losing out because of a lack of language skills. Where the language of UK customers is not English, we buy more than we are able to sell. We have £20,801m worth of exports to Germany, against £33.628m of imports; £13.596m and £16.673m respectively with The Netherlands and so on. The article mentions that the International Student Placement Office (ISPO), responsible for arranging placements for students of other EU member states with companies across the UK, has never been busier because of the deficit of linguistic ability in the UK. Unfortunately, the new government does not appear to be getting the message, judged by a recent article in the Daily Telegraph about the battle over EU civil service exams where Britain is seeking to relax the requirement that all candidates must complete entry examinations in a second language rather than improve the language skills of candidates. Plus ça change!

Raising Bilingual Kids

Thu, 20 May 2010 10:24:20 +0000

Does foreign language learning promote child development? According to a blog post on Babble, new studies suggests that kids who grow up with two languages are better at certain tests of "executive function" — a crucial skill that allows us to pay attention, focus, plan, and decide. This is another piece of welcome research which helps to promote the wider positive benefits of language learning as an essential "life skill".

Fancy learning French from a footballer?

Thu, 13 May 2010 12:21:59 +0000

Imaginative school trips could be the secret weapon to increased take-up of languages at secondary school level. According to The Guardian a growing number of links between sporting organisations and education are making it possible for language students to visit places such as football clubs as part of their coursework assignment and meet and talk to foreign football players in their native languages. This welcome initiative gives a whole new meaning to jeux sans frontières.

Pimp your vocab...the handbook of student slang

Thu, 22 Apr 2010 16:19:15 +0000

Helpful article from the Guardian on how to decode the latest Student-speak argot. You probably feel, like me, too "Teek" to understand "Wagwan"!

Grow Story Grow: a storytelling website for learning languages

Mon, 29 Mar 2010 13:10:01 +0000

Interesting blog post by a primary school teacher about her experiences using Grow Story Grow, a storytelling website for learning languages. This new service uses stories which start off very simply and 'grow' with the addition of high frequency words. The idea is that young learners can start off with minimal language and slowly build their confidence and language knowledge as they progress through the levels. The good thing about this approach is that children are not required to make a conscious effort to memorize vocabulary. The high-frequency word technique combined with spaced repetition is also employed in popular language courses for adults such as the Michel Thomas and Pimsleur methods.

Voila! Primaries lead national culture shift

Fri, 26 Feb 2010 12:01:02 +0000

Primary children are at the forefront of a culture shift in favour of language learning, a three-year study has shown, according to a recent article in the TES. The major academic investigation concluded that the UK Government's long-standing policy of compulsory language teaching in primary schools may be helping to change a widespread national cynicism towards learning foreign languages such as French, German or Spanish. If, as thje survey suggests, Children enjoy learning a second language, why does the government not go on to make the study of a second language compulsory again at GCSE? Maybe we'll have to wait for an EU initiative on this.