In Tarbert Academy, the French Department is all inclusive with every pupil encouraged to achieve their potential at an appropriate level.

Learning a new language enables learners to make connections with different people and their cultures and to play a fuller part as global citizens. The ability to use language lies at the centre of thinking and learning.

The course provides learners with the opportunity to develop skills in listening, talking, reading and writing which are essential for learning, work and life; to use different media effectively for learning and communication; to develop understanding of how language works and use language to communicate ideas and information.

 

Topics

Lifestyles, environment, school, college, lifelong learning, future plans, job skills, world of work, customs and celebrations, holidays, literature, film and television.

 

Assessment

National 3

There are 2 mandatory units which will be assessed internally, Understanding Language, and Using Language.  They will not be graded.

 

National 4

There are 3 mandatory units which will be assessed internally, Understanding Language, Using Language and an Added Value Unit.  The Added Value Unit takes the form of an assignment which is internally assessed.

 

National 5

By using a scaling system, all four elements assessed (reading, writing, listening and talking) count for 25% of the student’s total performance.

 

Reading and Writing are assessed externally in May. The assessment lasts one and a half hour and has two sections:

Section 1, titled ‘Reading’, has 30 marks.

Candidates read three texts of equal length in the modern language. Each text derives from a different context: society, learning, employability or culture, and is followed by questions in English. Candidates respond to the questions in English.

Candidates may use a bilingual dictionary.

Section 2, titled ‘Writing’, has 20 marks.

Candidates produce one written text of 120–200 words in the modern language in response to a job advert stimulus supported by six bullet points which the candidate must address. Candidates may use a bilingual dictionary.

 

Listening is assessed externally in May. The assessment lasts 30 minutes approximately.

This question paper has a total mark allocation of 20 marks.

Candidates first listen to one monologue in the modern language, and respond to questions worth 8 marks. They then listen to one conversation in the modern language and respond to questions worth 12 marks.

Candidates may not use a dictionary. Questions are in English and candidates respond in English.

 

Talking performance, in the modern language, is assessed internally during March and has 30 marks divided into two sections: the presentation worth 10 marks and the conversation worth 20 marks. During the preparation process candidates will choose the topics covered for both the presentation and the conversation.

 

The assignment–writing has 20 marks, it is submitted to SQA for external marking.

For this assignment candidates produce a piece of writing of 120–200 words in the modern language, using detailed language, based on one of the following contexts: society, learning or culture.