Modern Foreign Languages
Learning a foreign language is a liberation from insularity and provides an opening to other cultures. A high-quality languages education should foster pupils’ curiosity and deepen their understanding of the world. The teaching should enable pupils to express their ideas and thoughts in another language and to understand and respond to its speakers, both in speech and in writing. It should also provide opportunities for them to communicate for practical purposes, learn new ways of thinking and read great literature in the original language. Language teaching should provide the foundation for learning further languages, equipping pupils to study and work in other countries.” (DfE, MFL, September 2013)
Key Stage 3
At Coleridge Community College all students are taught Spanish. The intention of our MFL curriculum at Key Stage 3 is to expose students to a wide range of current and appropriate topics covered in depth. Our curriculum is divided into four skills: speaking, writing, listening and reading. Students will learn to speak and write across a variety of situations, gaining an increased understanding of cultural differences and appreciation. Our aim is not simply to create a curriculum to allow students to understand and communicate in the target language, but to foster a love for the culture and history.
Key Stage 4 – Year 10
Our Year 10 students will be sitting the brand new 2026 Edexcel Spanish GCSE. The new specification will allow students to further develop their linguistics skills, through speaking, listening, reading and writing. Many of the Key Stage 3 topics are revisited in further depth, with the aim of growing students’ confidence and proficiency in the language.
Students will sit four examinations at the end of Year 11. In Spanish there are two tiers of entry: Foundation (which enables a student to achieve Grades 1-5) and Higher (which enables students to achieve Grade 5-9).
Key Stage 4 – Year 11
In the curriculum students continue to further develop their linguistic skills, through speaking, listening, reading and writing. Many of the Key Stage 3 topics are revisited in further depth, with the aim of growing students’ confidence and proficiency in the language. The Year 11 students this year will sit the AQA GCSE language course, which they began in Year 10 with the final examination this year. The course will cover three main topics:
- Theme 1: Identity and Culture
- Theme 2: Local, National, International and Global Areas of Interest
- Theme 3: Current and Future Study and Employment
Students will sit four equally weighted examinations at the end of Year 11: listening, reading, writing and speaking. In languages there are two tiers of entry: Foundation (which enables a student to achieve Grades 1-5) and Higher (which enables students to achieve Grades 5-9).
Home Languages
In addition, students will also have an opportunity to select a Home Language from the list below. We strongly recommend that students take further advantage of sitting their Home Language, not least because these grades count towards college, apprenticeships and sixth form place.
AQA – German, Italian, Spanish, Polish, Bengali, Urdu, Modern Hebrew, Mandarin, Chinese, Panjabi, French
Edexcel – Russian, Greek, Cantonese Chinese, Gujurati, Japanese, Arabic, Portuguese, Turkish.
GCSE Spanish Specification for first teaching in 2024