French is compulsory for all pupils up to GCSE and all those in the IVth Form must choose either German or Spanish in addition to French. This choice is made after a “taster” course of three weeks in each language. German and Spanish are optional in the Vth Form and currently about 40 take Spanish and 18 take German.
Pupils are encouraged to carry on a language into the VIth Form, given the importance of language skills in today’s global market. Currently about 20 choose to study French, 12 take Spanish and 4 or 5 German. In addition, we have just introduced Italian into the VIth Form: this leads to an AS qualification from scratch over two years. In recent years, about 70% of those taking a language at A2 Level have continued with a language at university. For further details of the university destinations of linguists, please click here (link to RAC’s list of HE language courses).
Whilst other languages are not a formal part of the curriculum, several pupils have studied Russian, Portuguese and Chinese in recent years.
The curriculum is revised regularly; changes are therefore likely from time to time.
French
French is currently taught to all pupils up to GCSE level; we follow the OCR specification for GCSE and the pupils take the coursework option.
At AS and A2 Level, we aim to give an introduction to the culture, arts and politics of France and French-speaking countries and encourage pupils to explore a wide variety of topics. Recent themes have included the phenomenon of Nicolas Sarkozy; the Presidential elections of 2007; the riots of 2005; the colonialism of King Leopold of Belgium; Tintin; the influence of the films of Patrice Leconte; the future of the French language in Africa; the songs of Edith Piaf; and the defeat of France in 1940, to name but a few.
Pupils are encouraged to explore the culture and language in their own time through the use of the French news websites, interactive grammar sites and our own materials developed within the department. In addition every pupil has the opportunity to improve his or her spoken French in a weekly lesson with our French assistant.
German
All pupils have the opportunity to study at least three weeks of German when they enter the School in the IVth Form, as part of the ‘taster’ course. Following this, about 35 carry on with it each year and a class of about 18 or 20 carries on to GCSE. We currently follow the OCR specification at GCSE level and Edexcel at A Level.
We offer a wide range of topics to stimulate the linguistic curiosity of our VIth Formers during their AS and A2 courses, ranging from German cinema (from silent films such as ‘Metropolis’ to recent films such as ‘Der Untergang’ and ‘Die Welle’) to modern literature (‘Ich fühl mich so 50-50’, ‘Crazy’ and ‘Andorra’) and contemporary social and political issues. Pupils are encouraged to research areas which interest them for both oral exams and written coursework components, and they also have a wealth of interactive materials at their disposal to consolidate their learning in both a formal and informal environment.
Spanish
Two thirds of our IVth Form opts for Spanish, and we use our own materials and resources to back up the textbook. About 40 choose to continue to GCSE.
About a dozen start the Edexcel A Level course. The main purpose of the course is to maximise performance in the four language skills, but we also aim to discover as much as we can about the Hispanic world. We include an introduction to literature, give an outline of the last hundred years of Spanish history and an overview of key issues affecting Hispanic America. In recent years, candidates have undertaken personal study in such diverse issues as racism in Spanish football; poetic imagery in Lorca’s plays; reguetón (the fusion of reggae and Latin music); Picasso’s ‘Guernica’; the transfer to democracy in Spain; and the legacy of Pinochet in Chile.
Italian
Italian is available in the Sixth Form as a beginners' course, leading to an AS qualification after two years. It is expected that this course will appeal to pupils with an aptitude for languages, who have enjoyed studying another language at GCSE and have reached at least an A grade, or students with an Italian background. The course involves four lessons a week and follows the Edexcel specification. Pupils reach GCSE standard by the end of the Lower Sixth, then work towards AS Level in the Upper Sixth, taking two AS exams at the end of their final year.
Visitors & Prospectus 
