German

‘The German Advanced Level course at King Edward’s is aimed at keen, successful GCSE students who wish to develop their existing knowledge of the language to a high degree of fluency and to explore a wide variety of aspects of the modern culture of German-speaking countries’.

Skills Required

Course Overview

There is a strong emphasis on fluency and oral competence and authentic materials are used on topic areas that are chosen to be relevant to young people in a social, vocational, educational, literary or political context.

Students receive tuition from two or three teachers in the Lower Sixth. There is full access to IT facilities on the school’s network and the internet. In addition, students are given time for Directed Study in which they are expected to undertake independent research. There is also a weekly lesson on an individual basis with a language assistant to enhance oral competence. These arrangements allow for thorough coverage of all skill areas and flexibility in meeting the varied needs of the individual student.

The more complex grammatical structures required for the Lower Sixth are supplied in an intensive structured programme especially designed to bridge the gap between the less rigorous nature of GCSE and the demand for independence expected of the more mature student.

The German A Level course is recommended for a variety of students: not only those who wish to make languages the focus of a Higher Education course but also for those who wish to study German in combination with other disciplines. For interested students this is a rewarding and stimulating A Level choice. The successful A Level student will make full use of our excellent facilities and resources and will embrace all opportunities available in school: borrowing DVDs or library stock and taking part in study trips. Independence and commitment outside the classroom are a great help.

The two main areas of study during the German A Level are; social issues and trends and political, intellectual and artistic culture.

Methods of Assessment

Paper 1 Listening, Reading & Writing

Students will listen to and read passages from a range of contexts and sources, and then answer questions in German. They will also translate from both German to English and vice-versa.

Paper 2 Writing

Students will answer two essay questions in German on a book and a film studied in lessons.

Coursework Speaking

Students will have a 20 minute speaking assessment, where they will have a discussion on a certain theme and present and discuss their own research project.