Why Study this Course?

Studying French at A Level will enable you to deepen your knowledge of the language and get a greater insight into the culture of France and the French-speaking world. Having French is a fantastic asset in today’s competitive job market and shows self-discipline, motivation, and a desire to learn, qualities sought after by Universities and employers alike.

There are more than 300 million speakers of French throughout the world, of which about 80 million are native speakers.

French is an official language in 27 countries, as well as one of the most geographically widespread languages in the world, with about 50 countries and territories having it as an official, administrative or cultural language.  Throughout the course, you will extend your knowledge of the language and the culture of French speaking countries and gain the confidence to communicate in French.

WHAT WILL I STUDY?

This qualification will cover five key skills to be a proficient linguist: Listening, Reading, Speaking, Writing and Translation.

YEAR 1:

Aspects of French-speaking Society – Current trends:

• The changing nature of family
• The ‘cyber-society’
• The place of voluntary work

Artistic culture in the French-speaking World:

• A culture proud of its heritage
• Contemporary francophone music
• Cinema: the 7th art form

Film study (Entre Les Murs or La Haine)

YEAR 2:

Aspects of French-speaking Society – Current issues

• Positive features of a diverse society
• Life for the marginalised
• How criminals are treated

Aspects of Political life in the French-speaking world:

• Teenagers, the right to vote and political commitment
• Demonstrations, strikes – who holds the power?
• Politics and immigration

Literature study (No et moi by Delphine de Vigan)

HOW WILL I BE ASSESSED?

You will sit three final papers in the second year, but you will have plenty of practice tests and mocks:

Paper 1: Listening, reading and writing 

• Aspects of French-speaking society: current trends
• Aspects of French-speaking society: current issues
• Artistic culture in the French-speaking world
• Aspects of political life in the French-speaking world
• Grammar

How it’s assessed: Written exam: 2 hours 30 minutes, 100 marks, 50% of A-level

Questions:

• Listening and responding to spoken passages from a range of contexts and sources covering different registers and adapted as necessary. 
• All questions are in French, to be answered with non-verbal responses or in French (30 marks)
• Reading and responding to a variety of texts written for different purposes, drawn from a range of authentic sources and adapted as necessary. 
• All questions are in French, to be answered with non-verbal responses or in French (50 marks)
• Translation into English: a passage of minimum 100 words (10 marks)
• Translation into French; a passage of minimum 100 words (10 marks).

Paper 2: Written response to works

One text (No et moi) and one film (Entre Les Murs) from the list set in the specification

Grammar

How it’s assessed: Written exam: 2 hours, 80 marks in total, 20% of A-level

Questions:

All questions will require a critical appreciation of the concepts and issues covered in the work and a critical and analytical response to features such as the form and the technique of presentation, as appropriate to the work studied (e.g. the effect of narrative voice in a prose text or camera work in a film).

Paper 3: Speaking 

Individual research project

One of four themes (Aspects of French-speaking society: current trends, Aspects of French-speaking society: current issues, Artistic culture in the French-speaking world, Aspects of political life in the French-speaking world)

How it’s assessed: Oral exam: 21–23 minutes (including 5 minutes preparation time), 60 marks in total, 30% of A-level

Questions:

• Discussion of a sub-theme with the discussion based on a stimulus card (5–6 minutes). The student studies the card for 5 minutes at the start of the test (25 marks).
• Presentation (2 minutes) and discussion (9–10 minutes) of individual research project (35 marks).

The exam is conducted by one of your A Level teachers and externally marked.

WHERE CAN IT LEAD?

An A Level in French opens doors to language-based degrees, joint honours programmes with subjects such as law, business, or linguistics, and international or communication-focused courses — making it one of the most versatile A Levels for university study.

There are many career possibilities for able, qualified linguists.  Here are some careers directly linked to languages: translation, interpreting, teaching, tourism and international relations.

There are also a number of fields where having a language will give an international dimension to your work: journalism, business, law, politics, management, marketing, engineering, architecture, computing and finance to name a few. 

ASSOCIATED COURSES/SKILLS

Studying A Level French develops a wide range of transferable skills that go far beyond language ability. These skills are valuable in higher education, the workplace, and everyday life:

• Communication skills
• Cognitive and Analytical skills
• Cultural awareness and interpersonal skills
• Professional and academic competencies

Even if you decide not to pursue languages after A level, this will be an undeniable asset to your CV, and broaden your university choice and career prospects.