Recently, Ofqual published provisional entries for this summer’s GCSEs - and the popularity of modern foreign language (MFL) subjects was troubling for linguists, with French, German and Spanish at the lower end of the entry tables.

This stagnation is especially stark in light of a recent study for the British Council that pointed to a “growing social divide” in language teaching - with students at private schools three times more likely to take a language at GCSE than their state-school peers.

Yet at Lyndon School, we have managed to turn a corner on this issue after instigating a proactive strategy to boost MFL take-up as part of a broad and enriching curriculum.

This project has seen the number of students taking at least one MFL at GCSE rise from 38 per cent in 2021, to 68 per cent this year - which is notably higher than the national average of 45 per cent, too. Here’s what we did:

Energetic and expert-led curriculum

At the start of our journey we, as a subject community, reviewed, renewed and rebooted our curriculum from the bottom up.

This included re-focusing learning towards that which supports students’ ability to communicate in the target language proficiently, alongside the pillars of phonics, vocabulary and grammar.

The first stage of this means engaging with students before they arrive at school to help us account for the variance of language study in primary schools and letting them choose their study language of choice - French or Spanish - so they feel motivated to learn.

Then, before we move into the main curriculum, we ensure all learners have a secure knowledge of the basics in their chosen language, before introducing more demanding content as they progress.

We are mindful of cognitive load and have adapted the curriculum so that, particularly in its early stages, learners first become secure in the knowledge of the building blocks of communicative structures and tenses.

Time to talk

Core to this, is allowing learners to engage in deliberate practice when using the language - for example, with translations, dictations and speaking games.

Furthermore, although one of the commonly raised challenges is students’ dislike of oral work, we find supporting them to develop a secure grasp of language in this way means by the time they reach Year 11, the speaking component is one of learners’ strongest skills.

We do this by making regular practice the norm, cementing a strong basis in phonics so learners are confident when speaking in the target language, and fostering a culture in classrooms that encourages learners to participate without fear of mistakes.

Finally, recalling recent criticism of exam boards for inherent middle-class bias in questions about skiing and the theatre, we also wanted to ensure our curriculum is ambitious and knowledge-rich, while remaining relevant to the learners in our community.

All these changes were phased where possible and as appropriate for those already on their course of study, so the benefits of the new approach could be realised as quickly as possible.

Teacher training

Alongside this, we have focused on boosting teacher skills by intensifying our professional development.

We’ve created opportunities for the MFL community to collaborate with peers across our trust and calendared subject-specific sessions to allow colleagues to continue to develop their own subject pedagogy and curriculum offer.

This is particularly relevant ahead of the changes being made to the MFL GCSEs, with teaching set to start in September 2024.

Holistic learning and enrichment

Finally, as stated in the National Curriculum, we view the opportunity to study a language as “a liberation from insularity” that “provides an opening to other cultures”.

And while we want to avoid solely short-term attractions to MFLs, we are also very mindful that for some families, the cost of a holiday abroad is now prohibitive. Therefore trips are a key part of MFL enrichment.

For example, our Year 9 visit to Boulogne has provided a fantastic opportunity to put three years of study and speaking skills to the test during typical French shopping and crepe-making activities, before moving on to GCSE study.

Increasing language take-up against local decline, and bucking a national trend, has been something really positive for the Lyndon School community.

Thanks to what we feel is an energetic and knowledge-rich curriculum, learners are attracted to language subjects and, what’s more, they are doing well - achieving, on average, grade 5 - all while benefitting from a cultural capital that will enrich their school experience, and life beyond.

Dafydd Francis is assistant principal and senior leader for MFL at Lyndon School in the Summit Learning Trust

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