FRENCH (OCR)
Why should I take this course?
French, whether at AS or A Level, is a course worth studying in its own right. It is challenging but interesting. It builds on work that you will have met at GCSE and introduces new ideas and concepts. It serves as a very useful support for many other qualifications, as well as being a sought-after qualification for the workplace and courses in Higher Education.
What units will I have to take to get my qualification?
The AS Level, involving 2 units, can be taken as a stand-alone qualification or as the first half of the full A Level course, which requires 2 additional units in the second year.
The topics covered are drawn from a broad list of subject areas, including:
AS – Daily life: the family, health, transport; leisure and entertainment: sport, leisure activities, tourism and the environment; communication: technology, the media; education: school life, work and training.
A2 – Society: integration and exclusion, law and order, unemployment; the environment: pollution, the individual and the environment, energy management, conservation; science and technology: change and development; culture: literature and the arts, politics, heritage and history.
For further syllabus information Click here
How can I develop my skills by doing this course?
As well as covering an advanced level study of French, this course will enable you to develop some key skills, for example IT skills which will be essential to you whatever you go on to do in the future.
Candidates for examination are required to demonstrate their knowledge of contemporary society. Consequently, we believe it is necessary for all students to spend as much holiday time as possible abroad, preferably with a francophone family. A number of organisations specialise in linguistic stays and we can advise you on the various possibilities. These visits should take place during the summer before the beginning of the course and, for those taking an A Level, preferably again during the following summer. All students should appreciate this requirement before embarking on the course.
What facilities and equipment will I use?
Since 1998, Internet facilities have become available for research.
We are fortunate in that the Maison Française, our local French cultural centre, is literally just around the corner, with its excellent library, reading room, exhibition hall and lecture rooms.
Students will need to provide themselves with:
Collins-Robert Dictionary (bilingual)
Robert French Dictionary (monolingual)
Cassette-Player (with a record button)
MP3 player
What could I go on to do at the end of my course?
A French language qualification is acceptable for virtually all University subjects, not only the obvious Language, Literature and Applied Language courses. It will often be a requirement or an option in the following courses: management and business studies, administration courses, travel and tourism studies. In science-based subjects (especially medicine, pharmacology and other biological sciences, not to mention recent developments in computing), many relevant papers are published in French. Knowledge of a European language, such as French, will weigh heavily in your favour when applying for either an Erasmus or Comet Grant for a year of study abroad.
French can enhance your chances for a career in industry, commerce, management, fashion, diplomacy, and bilingual secretariats or PA posts. If you would like to work abroad, do not forget that French is spoken not only in the core area (France and neighbouring Belgium, Luxembourg and Switzerland) but also in parts of North America and the Caribbean, many African countries, and even in southeast Asia and the Indian and Pacific Ocean islands.
Mrs C Collcutt, DEUG
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