Languages
To communicate effectively and meaningfully with someone requires a profound understanding of their world view which is rooted in the language they speak.
The acquisition of language skills at Stoke Park School is therefore central to a student’s personal, cultural and social development, as well as providing an important intellectual challenge.
French is the official language of 29 countries and with around 300 million French speakers it is the sixth most spoken language in the world. French is the second most studied language in the world, not surprising when it is spoken so widely and one of the official languages of the European Union and United Nations.
The aim of the Stoke Park MFL curriculum is for students to develop a life-long love of languages. Our curriculum is designed to ignite in students an interest and enthusiasm that will lead them to be confident communicators who understand the importance and practical value of speaking a foreign language.
In lessons our students are exposed to the target language and are encouraged to use it themselves as much as possible. We focus on developing an understanding of the culture in the countries where the language is spoken, as well as the skills to be proficient language learners. We want to develop our students’ confidence to take risks and express themselves creatively and spontaneously, as well as their independence and resilience when faced with challenges.
Our shared goal is for students to experience and feel the sense of achievement and joy that comes from being able to communicate in another language - whether one that they are learning now or in the future – and that language learning equips us with a practical skill that truly enriches your life.
Students have the opportunity to take courses in three languages during their school career; French and Latin are part of the curriculum and we offer an after school Chinese Club run by the Confucius Institute and Coventry University.
During this time students learn to be confident, accurate and articulate linguists, engaged with the cultures of the countries whose languages they study. Our philosophy aims to foster curiosity and independence as well as valuing accuracy and precision.
In all our work, equal emphasis is given to the four language skill areas of reading, writing, listening and speaking, and much of the focus of our teaching is on the practical application.
We go well beyond the syllabus in content and all courses involve a cultural element which thoroughly prepares students for GCSEs, A Levels and beyond. This is firmly supported by our extra-curricular programme which is hugely exciting. We strongly support student-led initiatives, this year alone seeing the creation of our first ever Language Ambassadors and the creation of the Chinese club. We have also been named the link school with the University of Warwick which enable us to participate in a number of visits and cultural experiences held at the university. We are very much looking forward to further expanding our extra-curricular provision.
For more information please contact Jacqueline Parsons-Moore jparsons-moore@stokepark.coventry.sch.uk