German

We offer a beginner’s course, with two lessons a week, the ideal foundation for GCSE German. Pupils have three lessons and two preps (homework) a fortnight. The emphasis is on acquiring useful vocabulary and structures quickly and effectively and enjoying the challenge of learning the language, using both an excellent published course – echt 1 – which is highly interactive and includes full digital support, as well as our own extensive range of departmental resources. At the end of the Michaelmas term the pupils take part in a “Christmas Parcel Exchange” – swapping typically British Christmas gifts, recipes and information on traditions with German ones from a German partner school. The year’s course culminates with a five-day trip to the Rhineland, with numerous opportunities for the pupils to put their newly developed language skills to the test – with visits to Cologne Cathedral, the Lindt Chocolate Museum, Sports Museum (with a game of football literally on the roof), the Haus der Geschichte (post-1945 interactive historical museum) in Bonn, the Haribo factory shop and Phantasialand, a fabulous theme park in Brühl. Due to Covid Restrictions all school trips abroad are currently suspended.

Board: AQA GCSE GERMAN Higher Tier and Foundation Tier

The pedagogical aim of the AQA GCSE in German is to encourage pupils to develop their ability and ambition to communicate with native speakers in speech and writing. The study of German should also broaden their horizons and encourage them to step beyond familiar cultural boundaries and develop new ways of seeing the world.

The German Department has a large number of German pupils with whom this practice and improvement of both the spoken and written form of German, can not only be facilitated, but also enjoyed and developed in an informal, fun way. Out of these linguistic exchanges come friendships and an intercultural understanding that doesn’t just augment academic achievement, but acts as a fortifier of European relationships within the school itself.

The AQA GCSE German course builds on the structures learned in the introductory Year 9 course. The emphasis is on developing the practical skills required to communicate in the language; although a certain amount of grammar is covered, this is by no means onerous.

The course is based on the broad themes specified by the exam board: Identity and culture, local, national, international and global areas of interest and current and future study and employment.

Full use is made of the native-speaker language assistant.

Pupils need not worry that they may well have studied German for a shorter time compared with other languages – the material is easily covered over the two years of the course.

Germany is the biggest economy within the European Union and the fourth largest worldwide. It is home to numerous international corporations and on the front line of new technologies. Germany is home to a large number of economic global players. Siemens, Volkswagen, Adidas and Lufthansa are globally recognised brands and corporations. The country also hosts some of the biggest international trade fairs including CeBIT, the world’s largest exhibition for information technology, as well as the IFA trade fair for consumer electronics.

English, French and German are the three official working languages of the European Union. In absolute numbers, German is the second most-spoken language on the continent of Europe. However, when it comes to native speakers, German is number one.

It is the language of the famous written works of Goethe, Kafka, Brecht and Mann. It was the native language of composers Mozart, Bach, Schubert, Beethoven and Wagner. Revolutionary philosophy poured onto the pages in German when pens were first lifted by Kant, Hegel, Nietzsche, and Heidegger.

Exam = 25% Listening, 25% Reading, 25% Writing Skills – all three skills tested by means of a final exam; 25%Speaking – tested by means of a single oral exam.

Entry requirements: Level 6 in GCSE German or equivalent

It is impossible to list all the jobs that studying a language facilitates. The ability to communicate fluently is a vital skill in almost all areas of professional life. Language specific jobs such as teaching, translation, diplomacy, foreign affairs, journalism, publishing, advertising, the civil service, and tourism spring immediately to mind and a language is obviously highly desirable in the business, economic and commercial world with the internationalisation/globalisation of many companies. Obviously, speaking German would enable you to work abroad, providing more possibilities and options in the currently very competitive job market.

The course covers 4 themes:

Entry requirements: No previous knowledge of the language is required but you must have studied another language at GCSE.

This course meets the needs of pupils who are interested in learning a new language as
part of their IB Diploma. It would suit pupils who have previously completed a short
course in German, for example Year 9 here at Gresham’s.

The course covers a breadth of 5 topics: Identities, Experiences, Human Ingenuity, Social Organisation and Saving the Planet. It is examined at the end of the 2 year linear course and consists of 75% External Assessment and 25% Internal Assessment.

Entry requirements: German as a first language, and Pre-IB German course from Gresham’s or equivalent.

Insight into the power of language in many different contexts is a pre-requisite for a critical analysis of the world that surrounds us. The ability to express a thought in detail and clarity is essential for obtaining a good university degree. Courses like Politics, Philosophy, History, the Arts or Law will place great importance on how well a candidate has shown their ability to appreciate thought and literary tradition in their first language culture and within a world context.

In this course we study how a text establishes communication between readers and writers and in which way different genres influence the portrayal of global issues. We look at a variety of literary texts from both male and female authors, from different time-periods and different regions – some of them in the German translation.

The course encourages pupils to explore the power of language through fiction and literary non-fiction. The reading list covers both famous ‘classics’ and more current works. Pupils will read at least nine works for Standard Level and 13 for Higher Level.

Pupils’ knowledge and understanding will be tested in two exam papers at the end of the course – Paper 1 deals with an unseen text, and Paper 2 requires the comparison of two works from the reading list.

There is also an oral component, sat in Term 4; in addition, Higher Level pupils write a literary essay over the summer holidays.

EXTERNAL ASSESSMENT: Higher Level
Paper 1 (35%): The paper consists of two literary passages, from two different literary forms, each
accompanied by a question. Pupils write an analysis of each of the passages.
Paper 2 (25%): The paper consists of four general questions. In response to one question, pupils write a
comparative essay based on two works studied in the course.
Higher Level Essay (20%): An essay of 1,200 to 1,500 words on one work studied during the course.

EXTERNAL ASSESSMENT: Standard Level
Paper 1 (35%): The paper consists of two passages from two different literary forms, each accompanied by a question. Pupils choose one passage and write an analysis of it.
Paper 2 (35%): The paper consists of four general questions. In response to one question, pupils write a
comparative essay based on two works studied in the course.

INTERNAL ASSESSMENT: Higher and Standard Level
Individual Oral: Supported by an extract from one work written originally in the language studied and one
from a work studied in translation, pupils will offer a prepared response of 10 minutes, followed by 5 minutes of questions by the teacher, to a prompt which asks pupils to examine a text for the ways in which a global issue is presented within it.

Entry requirements: Level 6 in GCSE German or equivalent

It is impossible to list all the jobs that studying a language facilitates. The ability to communicate fluently is a vital skill in almost all areas of professional life. Language specific jobs such as teaching, translation, diplomacy, foreign affairs, journalism,publishing, advertising, the civil service, and tourism spring immediately to mind and a language is obviously highly desirable in the business, economic and commercial world with the internationalisation/globalisation of many companies. Obviously, speaking
German would enable you to work abroad, providing more possibilities and options in the currently very competitive job market.

The course covers a breadth of 5 topics: Identities, Experiences, Human Ingenuity Social Organisations and Saving the Planet. It is examined at the end of the two year linear course and consists of 75% External Assessment and 25% Internal Assessment.