The MFL Faculty at Sir Graham Balfour

The MFL faculty currently consists of four members of staff, all of whom teach a range of classes across Key Stages 3 and 4 in French, German and Spanish, and Key Stage 5 French. Equal importance is attached to all three Modern Languages in terms of practical usefulness and ease of learning.

At the start of Year 7, pupils are assigned to a foreign language, which will either be French, German or Spanish. They will continue to study that language into Year 9. Pupils learn to communicate about themselves, their home life, school, friends and their free time activities through listening, speaking, reading and writing activities. We currently use resources from Pearsons Studio, Stimmt and Viva to deliver the curriculum at Key Stage 3.

We have also for several years provided the opportunity for Key Stage 3 to partake in overseas residential trips to France, Germany and Spain. These have always been popular with our students and have increased their enjoyment of speaking in a foreign language.

For GCSE, students at present follow the AQA GCSE course. We currently use resources from OUP AQA French, German and Spanish, alongside Pearsons Key Stage 4 materials. We start teaching the GCSE course in the last term of Year 9 and across Years 10 and 11. Pupils are assessed in Listening, Speaking, Reading and Writing across three main Themes: Identity and Culture, Local and International areas of Interest, and Current and Future Studies of Employment.

There is currently A level provision for French, where students also follow the AQA course. Students study technological and social change, look at diversity, French-speaking artistic culture through texts and film, and learn about political engagement and who wields political power in the French-speaking world.

The faculty is housed in purpose-built accommodation, consisting of three dedicated language rooms. The classrooms are all fitted with IWBs and a digital projector for use with a laptop.

One of the many strengths of the faculty is the willingness of staff to work together, sharing resources, ideas and skills. We are a well-organised, friendly and supportive faculty which is highly regarded within the school. As a faculty in Sir Graham Balfour, we aim to provide not only an enjoyable and exciting experience of learning a new language through innovative lessons, but also an insight into different cultures and traditions in France, Spain and Germany.

Kate ThorndykeHead of MFL