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Learning Lessons
Volume 3 Issue 7 December 2012Author: J Breen
Editor: J Breen
The Research Publication of King Edward VI Grammar School, Chelmsford www.kegs.org.uk
Why are European
football teams so much
more successful than
England? Is there a
specific football gene that
enables you to play moreskilfully, with breathtaking
panache, a football gene
our European neighbours
inherit that means they
play exciting football? Are
they born better
footballers, or is it just that
they approach the whole football business differently?
Thirteen years experience with the German Exchange at
KEGS has often prompted a similar question: what makes the
Germans think they are better linguists? Is there something
in the soil on mainland Europe that drives a desire to become
proficient in English? Do European teenagers study harder
or have a much better strategic vision of their own working
future and educational needs or is it that other countries
approach the whole language learning business differently?
A study of the OECD statistics (Figure 1) comparing
language learning in the EU makes dismal reading. Only
5.5% of students in the UK studied 2 or more foreign
languages at level 3 (A level) in 2010. That makes the UK 2nd
from bottom (26th
/27) in the
league tables. If we look at
what is happening in the other
EU states, though, we see that
in 50% of countries more than80% of students study 2 foreign
languages at A level while in
65% of countries 75% or more
of A level students are studying
2 foreign languages.
Now lets consider the PISA
report 2012 and UK rankings here. In reading and
mathematics students in the UK scored average but
science scores placed the UK statistically significantly above
the average. Just imagine, though, what would happen if the
UK standing in the OECD stats comparing language learning
were to be reflected in the PISA rankings: UK would be 2nd
from bottom globally (a position currently occupied by
Azerbaijan) only marginally better than bottom of the table
Kyrgyzstan. There would be national outrage, the like of
which we have never seen before. It would be a national
emergency demanding serious measures.
So what is happening to improve UK language learning
statistics? The government is reconsidering the Primary
Strategy. But how will an hour a week of a range of possible
languages, frequently taught by non-specialists, in a
nationally adhoc and uncoordinated programme ever hope
to have serious impact and effect lasting change? This is
merely tinkering with problem solving. Our attempt at
Primary language learning is rather like a drop in the ocean
when you compare 1 hour (at best) a week here for 10 year
olds with nearly 4 hours in Germany. Sadly our education
system is denying students the same opportunities to
compete and succeed globally afforded to the students in EU
partner states. The government introduction of the E-Bac is
a welcome recognition of the importance of language
learning for all, but it is not enough. Students in UK schools
deserve better. We need a national and fundamental rethink
of language learning not mere lip-service to change.
Why England cant win theWorld Cup.
Figure 1: language learning in EU member states.
Source: Eurostat and UNESCO Institute for Statistics (UIS), OECD.
Students studying 2
foreign languages at
A level
UK 5.5%
50% of EU Partners 80%
65% of EU Partners 75%
Winning Teams
Germany
Italy
England
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It is not fair to compare the success of language
teachers and language learners in the UK with our
counterparts in Europe because its not a level playing field.
Language teachers in the UK do a tremendous job, working
against the odds to promote their subject and engage
students, trying to give students the language, cognitive and
communication skills they need to compete globally in the
21
st
century. They are trying to reach the same outcomes asour European partners in a fraction of the time. Its not fair.
Something has to change. If you are Chelmsford City Football
club with a stadium capacity of several thousand its lunacy
to expect you can compete equally, either financially or in
terms of winning, with the likes of Barcelona, Manchester
City or Chelsea.
The KEGS storyThis is where the KEGS story begins; a story where
World Cup victory isnt a blip every half century, but a real,
achievable and sustainable dream. For when KEGS became aLanguage College in 2008 we revolutionised the landscape of
language learning. As a result, over the past 2 years typically
70% of students in each year group have gone on to study
French or German at AS level. Languages has lost its elitism
and we now have boys who have embraced the challenge of
AS study with a B grade at GCSE. Previously at KEGS that was
unheard of; languages wasnt seen as a subject all students
would need in the future and was generally the preserve of
those teenagers with an (unnatural?) fascination with all
things subjunctive. Now the benefits of language learning
rigorous application of academic skills, better communicative
skills, greater cultural insight and hence heightened
interpersonal awareness, code-breaking competency as well
as reflective insight into mother tongue languageare open
to far more students. We have recognised that language
learning is important for a range of students, not just those
aspiring to gain A or B grades at A2. In addition, our number
of double linguists has also increased, to just under a 3rd
of
the year group and our language provision options have also
expanded to include Russian and Mandarin. There is an
energy and dynamism about language learning that we didnt
have before.
How has this been achieved?We have done this by introducing an intensive,
immersion course in Yrs 7-9 (Figure 2). There used to be 4
hours of language learning on the curriculum (2 hours French
+ 2 hours German), but now half the year group learns
French for 4 hours a week and half the year group learns
German for 4 hours a week. This pattern continues in Yr 8,
when students also pick up 1 hour of Latin a week. In Yr 9
students have 3 hours a week of Language 1 and 1.5 hours a
week of Language 2.
We believed that the only way to increase numbers at A
level was to limit the breadth of language learning
opportunities initially reduce the numbers of languages
students learned - and go instead for depth and rapid
progress and then offer a wider choice of languages (Figure
3). At KEGS this model was easy to achieve as we had
previously had French and German on the curriculum from Yr
7. Schools that have prioritised their curriculum differently
need to rethink. Solutions can be found. Whats needed is
the will to change.
What was the rationale behind this model?One source of inspiration was the European model. The
other came from years sitting through my sons violin lessons
and noting the regular practice and real graft needed tobecome proficient. A bonus of this effort, however, was his
ability to pick up other instruments and play very well with
minimum effort. This made me think: if we want students to
become accomplished musicians its probably not a good
Figure 2: KEGS language learning structure at KS3
Yr 7 L1L1
Yr 8
Yr 9
Latin
Latin
L2
L1 L1
L1L1L1L1
L1L1L1
+
+
Figure 3: diversity and depth of language provision
L1
L2
KS4 Pathways
French or German
French German Mandarin
AS in L1 GCSE in L2 GCSE in Russian
70% students study languages at
AS level
33% of students are double or
triple linguists at KS4
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idea to start them off on 2 or 3 different instruments at once.
Is it not far better to invest the time mastering one instrument
before moving to others with a far greater degree of
independence and autonomy? Really good musicians are
always multi-instrumentalists. The same is true of languages.
If we want more students to speak more languages then we
need to introduce timetabling structures that enable them to
become rapidly proficient in one language and transfer theirskills at a later stage.
OutcomesSo what happened and what have been the outcomes of
this new curriculum structure? Anecdotally, responses from Yr
7 parents at the induction evening in September and
information morning in November are overwhelmingly
positive: I wish I had been taught like that at school; I can
see why my son likes French/German so much; its a great
opportunity for him to learn. Its not rocket science. Four
hours a week gives students the time and space to actuallypractise speaking, gives them a feel-good factor about
languages, allows them to prove to themselves and everyone
else that they can speak and communicate, and transforms
languages into something they perceive themselves to be
good at. They feel like this, not because they are able boys,
but because the curriculum structure allows them to become
decent linguists. The pupils from our exchange schools arent
startlingly good at English really. The difference is they are not
scared to use it and have a go. This cannot be solely explained
by the attraction of American culture. Rather, I believe, its
because the curriculum system has given them enough time to
practise speaking in lessons. We had a break through on ourexchange programme last year. German teachers and parents
alike were amazed at how confident KEGS students were at
speaking German. One German teacher tried to speak to our
students in English and was told Englisch ist verboten!.
These students werent any brighter than students we had
taken before, but they didnt suffer from the insecurities in
language learning that had plagued students in previous years,
students who didnt have enough time in school to practise
and improve speaking.
The immersion approach is so effective because to be a
successful linguist you need short but regular exposure tolanguage learning the kind of exposure generated by 4
single, one-hour lessons.
ResultsOver the past 2 years we have been able to compare the
performance of students learning through the immersion
model 3 or 4 hours a week over three years with Yr 11
students who studied languages for 2 hours a week over 5
years. Even given their lack of maturity, the Yr 9 students still
managed to out-perform Yr 11 students.
In the first year (Figure 4) the difference, as expected,
was not huge. Not only were we grappling with a completely
new exam, we were feeling our way through a whole new
experience of teaching intensively. In year 2 (Figure 5) of the
new framework, however, we were able to learn from
previous experience and improve outcomes for students even
further, with a significant difference in attainment. We can
see that the same kind of students learning under a different
structure resulted in an 18% - 20% increase in A/A* grades.
Thats significant.
We do an audit of language skills at the beginning of Yr 7
and ask students what do you hope to gain from your
language learning experience. By far the largest response is
to become fluent in French or German. This is not possible for
most students on only 2 hours a week. Two hours a week of
language learning is like having PE lessons that are never long
enough to allow you to actually DO the sport. Lionel Messi can
have all the innate talent in the world - but its no good unless
he has time to practise. KEGS has pioneered a curriculum
which has been shown to impact positively on learning
outcomes. KEGS students are fortunate because they are
learning differently. But we must ask: why as a nation do we
insist on making it so much more difficult for our young
Figure 5: Year 2 Comparison
Figure 4: Year 1 Comparison
Results Yr 2 2012
2012 Yr 9
German
Yr 11
German
Yr 9
French
Yr 11
French
A*/A 72% 54% 88% 68%
B 21% 29% 10% 21%
C 7% 12% 2% 10%
D 3% 1%
E 2%
At GCSE the same kind of students
learning under a different structure
resulted in an 18% - 20% increasein A/A* grades.
2011 Yr 9
German
Yr 11
German
Yr 9
French
Yr 11
French
A*/A 57% 38% 59% 52%
B 34% 35.5% 25% 36%C 9% 20% 16% 8%
D 4.5% 4%
E 2%
Results Yr 1 2011
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people? Students in other EU countries dont become
proficient in one or even 2 languages with only 1.5 or 2 hours
a week. Top performing countries dont have students with a
better aptitude for learning languages they have a different
learning structure and they dedicate far more time to
language learning than the UK. If we want to improve
national performance then curriculum structures have to
change.
I am going to finish with optimistic words from the
Education Minister, Elizabeth Truss (figure 6).
Every four years we hear how England is going to make it to
the World Cup final this time. But, lets be brutally honest.
England is never going to achieve this unless someone
recognises that the structure and organisation of grassroots
as well as league football, talent spotting systems and youth
development change considerably. If, as the Education
Minister claims, we are serious about giving our young people
the skills they need in a competitive global jobs market thenthe structure and content of language learning has to change
considerably too, because national statistics are a disgrace.
2014?What will be the state of play in 2014? At KEGS we are
still very much on a learning trajectory. The first cohort of AS
students under the new learning structure does their exams
in 2013. For them, as for any successful language learner, the
graft doesn't get easier since language learning at any leveldemands regular and sustained effort and intense personal
discipline to keep going and to organise time successfully.
Following on from the success of the immersion model at KS3
maintaining momentum with only 2 hours a week in Yr 10 is
also a challenge. The AS course demands stamina and
resilience on a massive scale, not least of all because students
are balancing the needs of 12 or 13 subjects and not just
another 3 AS subjects. But what we have to remember at all
times is that the KEGS Language College plan was about
democratising the study of languages and accessing a far
wider range of ability learners (who will have a wider range of
learning outcomes) to skills that will put them on an equalfooting with EU counterparts when competing in a global
market. Innovation in education is discovering change that
impacts positively on learning. In our new language learning
structure at KEGS we have boldly gone where others have yet
to tread. As with any exploration of frontiers unknown there
will be further challenges along the way we will have to face
and overcome. Yet whatever we encounter, we know that our
journey calls into question the wisdom of persisting with a
model, just because it is tradition. For other schools with a
different learner profile to KEGS early entry GCSE in Yr 9 will
not be appropriate but the KS3 immersion model, such as that
successfully implemented at KEGS, would help give studentsthe confidence and competence in language learning to
achieve more highly at KS4 and beyondand surely thats a
national aspiration?
However, a word of caution. Success is not purely about
contact time. Crucially its what you do with that time and
thats where Zest for Learning Languages comes in; the fusion
between structure, content and methodology. But more
about Zest for Languages in the next on-line Learning Lessons
(Volume 3, Issue 8).
And will England make the final in 2014? I think thats
best left to the football pundits to debate.
Adapted excerpt from a keynote speech given
by Jane Breen at the SSAT National Languages
Conference 2012 (Aston University).
ReferencesEuropean Commission (2008) Multilingualism: an asset for
Europe and a shared commitment (COM(2008) 566 final).
http://epp.eurostat.ec.europa.eu/statistics_explained/
index.php/Foreign_language_learning_statistics
Figure 6: Education Minister, Elizabeth Truss
We must give young people the
opportunities they need to compete in a
global jobs marketfluency in a foreign
language will now be another asset ourschool leavers and graduates will be able
to boast.
Two hours a week of language
learning is like having PE lessons
that are never long enough to allow
you to actually DO the sport.
Even Messi needs to practise.
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