The East Midlands Consortium recently delivered one of a series of four interventions under its recently created Bespoke Language Programme for students of G.C.S.E languages.
The programme aims to support Year 10 school pupils who have opted to study languages at G.C.S.E. There is a focus on attainment, particulary during the final intervention, which concentrates on revising all four skill areas in the form of a pre-exam Master Class in 2010.
The pupils will attend Nottingham Trent University on three occasions during 2009, and engage activities which are designed to demonstrate how languages work outside of the classroom. The suite of activies contained within the programme will not only give participants the opportunity to learn as traditional learners but also as autonomous ones.
The pupils will take part in interactive careers' sessions, where they will discover the links between languages and employment for themselves. They will be asked to research into an aspect of cultural interest related to the target language and then deliver power point presentations in small groups.
Other activities include: 'How to stay safe in difficult situations' sessions delivered in the foreign language by Mark Wingfield, (pictured above) 'Why Languages Work' talks, mini-lectures, Q/A panels with existing university students and presentations on 'What it is like to study at university' .
Three Aimhigher Derbyshire Schools have come on board, one for French and two for German. The consortium is currently liasing with a fourth Derbyshire school, which has requested a Spanish programme
During the project, the consortium will invite all the pupils and their families to attend an Internationally Themed Family Languages Supper, where a similar programme of support will be offered to pupils choosing to take languages at AS and beyond. As well as support during the academic AS year, the pupils will be guaranteed a place on the consosrtiums' two day summer residential course - Eurostars, in July 2011.
The Consortium is grateful to Aimhigher Derbyshire for funding transport for the pupils and for informing targetting. It also acknowledges the support given by the Regional Lanugages Network - East Midlands, by allowing access to its Business Language Champion Scheme and its 'Why Languages Work' talks.
