Intent of curriculum 

“A different language is a different vision of life.” Federico Fellini. 

Modern Foreign Languages (MFL) are an important part of our young people’s education. There are so many clear personal, cultural, social and career benefits in being able to communicate confidently in another language that every child in our school should have the chance to develop their own modern foreign language skills. We want our pupils to be enthusiastic, engaged and challenged and to develop their ability to use and understand another language. Our MFL curriculum also aims at encouraging the awareness of our pupils of what lies behind a different language, enhancing the richness and the diversity of different cultures by using authentic resources as well as making links with pupils from different countries.

All pupils in the school study either Spanish or German from Year 7 and in their lessons, our pupils will gain systematic knowledge of key vocabulary and structures, grammar and phonics of the new language and a better understanding of how these are used by Hispanic and Germanic speakers. We want to develop confident and independent pupils who are not afraid to communicate in a different language. Gifted linguists have the opportunity to study French from Year 8 onwards.

Implementation of curriculum 

“Learning another language is not only learning different words for the same things but learning another way to think about things.” Flora Lewis. 

Pupils in all year groups benefit from the opportunity of learning either Spanish or German. Through this, we feel that it is important that our language teaching gives them explicit language knowledge and strategies which can help them with future study of other languages.

All pupils are taught all four key skills of listening, speaking, reading and writing and each of these skill areas are practised, consolidated, reinforced and assessed on a regular basis. There is a positive and innovative approach to target language teaching, and we encourage our pupils to use the language for their own purposes. At Bishop Heber High School, teachers of MFL want to promote a more spontaneous and accurate use of the target language. We also continue to be supported by German and Spanish language assistants.

We strive to develop our pupils’ independence and communication in languages by developing these core skills:

• Vocabulary and sequencing (including verbs.)
• Knowledge of phonics.
• Explicit use and understanding of grammar.
• Use of enriching and stimulating material, including reading of authentic resources, films and regular contact with native speakers

This is an outline of our Modern Foreign Languages Curriculum.

Our curriculum continues to be enriched with residential trips to Valdepeñas in Spain and Boppard in Germany.

Impact of curriculum 

“One language sets you in a corridor for life. Two languages open every door along the way.”  Frank Smith 

We know our curriculum is working in the MFL department through the engagement of students throughout the school, both observed and recorded. The quality of teaching and learning in MFL has often been praised in learning walks by both external and internal observers. Many of the students who study A-Level MFL courses choose to continue studying foreign languages at university, either as a full degree or as a module. Perhaps most importantly, students frequently express their enjoyment of the lessons and the subject, mentioning the quality of the teaching, the support and the opportunities from which they have benefitted.

Formative assessment data from ongoing observation of in-class activities such as role-plays, listening and reading comprehension and written exercises help MFL teachers at Bishop Heber High School monitor the pupils’ understanding, knowledge and skills and inform planning that is suitable for supporting and challenging the pupils at every stage of their progress. Summative assessments take place twice per year testing listening, speaking, reading and writing in order to track pupils’ performance with interventions being implemented as necessary.

At Key Stage 4, the end of year grade that our pupils receive are a culmination of all 4 skills (listening, speaking, reading and writing) that have been tested at least once throughout the academic year.

The MFL department at Bishop Heber High School has a long track record of large cohorts of students achieving high grades in a foreign language. Each year is slightly different, but we produce strong results at KS3, GCSE level and at A-Level when compared with schools with similar large cohorts.

We have students who go on to study languages at university. In recent years, 80% of our A-level students have continued to study languages at university.

“If you talk to a man in a language he understands, that goes to his head. If you talk to him in his own language, that goes to his heart.” Nelson Mandela