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French, German and Spanish
Contact Head of Faculty: lesley.grinstead@jhanson.hants.sch.uk
It is a common misconception that everyone around the world speaks English. In fact, at least four fifths of the world’s population speak no English at all. As part of the European Union, young people have more opportunities than ever before, for studying, living or working in another country. Following Brexit, such opportunities will continue to exist and it is argued that having a work force with language skills will be even more important to the ongoing success and prosperity of business and enterprise in the UK. Modern Foreign Languages are, therefore, a valuable part of every student’s education at John Hanson. New for September 2018, we are glad to be delivering 3 Modern Foreign Languages, as we introduce Spanish to our curriculum; in addition to French and German. These are 3 of the 5 most important languages post-Brexit, according to an extensive recent British Council survey.
Key Stage 3
Year 7 pupils have 4 lessons per fortnight. At transition time, Year 7s are offered the opportunity to express a strong reason for studying French, German or Spanish. Thereafter, students are allocated to groups, with roughly a third of students doing each language, overall. In year 8 and year 9, pupils have 4 lessons per fortnight, and continue with their allocated language, from year 7.
Regardless of which language is studied, pupils are taught the key skills of Listening, Reading, Speaking and Writing, Grammar and Translation covering such topic areas as: Yourself, family & pets, leisure, where you live, lifestyle, travel, school and social media.
Key Stage 4
Students in years 10 & 11 follow the AQA GCSE course in French, German or Spanish, pursuing their Key Stage 3 language of study. They have 5 lessons per fortnight and continue to develop their abilities in the 4 key skills. Students are assessed by terminal exam for Listening, Reading, Speaking and Writing each worth 25% of their final grade.
From September 2024, onwards, Key Stage 4 students will follow the new Edexcel GCSE.
Homework
Students are usually set 2 home learning tasks per fortnight. Length of tasks will vary, but on average are between 30-60 minutes. Home learning tasks are largely internet based, we use specific websites with quizzes and tasks based entirely on the language being taught, to consolidate students’ learning and positively impact their progress in class. At Key Stage 4 there are increasing numbers of revision / exam practice tasks.