The language of learning

School's experimental lesson plan

FOR many of us, foreign language lessons at school might conjure up memories of tying yourself in knots attempting to conjugating verbs and causing much hilarity among your classmates with your mangled pronunciation.

At least, these are the thoughts which spring to mind for reporter RHYS GRIFFITHS, who a decade after his last taste of GCSE French can muster little more than a garbled “Je ne comprends pas” in the Gallic tongue.

So, with this in mind, we sent him along to Dover Grammar School for Boys to take a look at the latest experiment with language teaching at the school.

SITTING down at the back of the classroom, suddenly it seems like only yesterday I walked out of school for the last time.

There’s something about the smell of the room, the walls covered in posters and colourful displays, and the piles of textbooks which transport you back to a world you thought you had said goodbye to for good.

As the teacher strides in, I’m struck by a sudden panic - just for a second I realise with a sense of dread that I’ve not done my homework.

But then, just as quickly as the terrifying thought came, it’s gone again - I told you the atmosphere here can play tricks on you.

The lesson, year eight history and the story of the Reformation of Britain’s monasteries, gets under way with talk of Henry VIII.

So far, so comfortable for the 30 or so eager pupils in front of teacher Kieron Hoyle.

But what's this? Who is this Henri Huit they’re talking about now? Isn’t this supposed to be a history lesson?

Well it is, of sorts. But it is also part of the newest experiment in language teaching at the Dover Grammar School for Boys, which since September has seen some of the brightest pupils in Year 8 start to take bilingual lessons in history and geography.

The aim is to take the teaching of foreign languages out of the rigid setting of a French lesson, and push the youngsters to think about the language in a real life context.

It is very much the brainchild of geography teacher Thierry Torres, who is half French, half Spanish and 100 per cent passionate about getting the boys to experience the language in new ways.

“It’s all about giving meaning to language learning and at the same time trying to make sure we use every aspect of the students’ capabilities,” said Mr Torres, who was involved in a similar project at a previous school.

“It helps them to get confidence without realising they are learning the language.

“I tell them it’s the best way to learn the language when they have to use it with a purpose.

“They respond very well to the challenge and the boys all have different levels of ability, some like to speak and some like to write, so we try to use all these abilities through group work.

“It’s exciting to see how they click sometimes and move a step forward. They understand something in the subject itself and then the words in French, so it’s two pieces of progress in one.”

Back in the classroom, and the kids are being handed lists of vocabulary, in both English and French, relating to the day’s lesson.

One pupil is asked to stand in front of the class and read out the French sentences.

His pronunciation is spot on, but then it should be, Martin Corbau is from France.

“I find these lessons interesting and useful because I can help other people,” said the 13-year-old.

“It’s useful for me because I can still keep my French up and I don’t mind having to get up in from of the class.”

As the lesson nears its conclusion, the boys are given their homework.

They have to write a report of a few sentences, in French of course, on the state of the monasteries in Britain, so they have covered reading, speaking and writing in one session alone.

Mr Torres explains that at the end of the course all the tests will be in English and simply cover the subject material the class would have covered in normal lessons, but if test results remain as high as in previous years the scheme could be extended.

He said: “The sheer effort and work they have put in to the lessons has been very impressive, ideally it would be good to do more but we are not sure at the moment.”

Whether or not the experiment is extended, there is no doubt the boys taking part are enjoying the experience, and after watching a lesson in action, it is certainly easy to comprendre pourquoi.