Are you interested in taking German at school but want to know more about what you’ll get to do? We’re here to help!

​

GCSE German

​

The German course consists of four externally examined papers based on the following skills: listening, speaking, reading and writing. Students must complete their speaking assessment in April/May and all other assessments in May/June in any single year.

​

The website of the Department for Education has information about the expectations at GCSE level for modern foreign languages:

​

“Through studying a GCSE in a modern foreign language, students should develop their ability and ambition to communicate with native speakers in speech and writing. The study of a modern foreign language at GCSE should also broaden students’ horizons and encourage them to step beyond familiar cultural boundaries and develop new ways of seeing the world.

 

GCSE specifications in a modern foreign language should enable students to:

​

• develop their ability to communicate confidently and coherently with native speakers in speech and writing, conveying what they want to say with increasing accuracy

• express and develop thoughts and ideas spontaneously and fluently listen to and understand clearly articulated, standard speech at near normal speed

• deepen their knowledge about how language works and enrich their vocabulary in order for them to increase their independent use and understanding of extended language in a wide range of contexts

• acquire new knowledge, skills and ways of thinking through the ability to understand and respond to a rich range of authentic spoken and written material, adapted and abridged, as appropriate, including literary texts

• develop awareness and understanding of the culture and identity of the countries and communities where the language is spoken

• be encouraged to make appropriate links to other areas of the curriculum to enable bilingual and deeper learning, where the language may become a medium for constructing and applying knowledge

• develop language learning skills both for immediate use and to prepare them for further language study and use in school, higher education or in employment

• develop language strategies, including repair strategies”

 

They also provide a list of the grammar points that should be covered in German on page 12.

 

A great way to practice the vocab you will be learning is through games, on this website for instance.

​

​

A Level German

​

At A-level, you will be encouraged to work on more authentic documents and to engage critically with material in German.

​

Here are the objectives:

​

“AS and A level specifications in a modern language must enable students to:

• enhance their linguistic skills and promote and develop their capacity for critical thinking on the basis of their knowledge and understanding of the language, culture and society of the country or countries where the language is spoken

• develop control of the language system to convey meaning, using spoken and written skills, including an extended range of vocabulary, for both practical and intellectual purposes as increasingly confident, accurate and independent users of the language

• develop their ability to interact effectively with users of the language in speech and in writing, including through online media

• develop language learning skills and strategies, including communication strategies to sustain communication and build fluency and confidence

• engage critically with intellectually stimulating texts, films and other materials in the original language, developing an appreciation of sophisticated and creative uses of the language and understanding them within their cultural and social context

• develop knowledge about matters central to the society and culture, past and present, of the country or countries where the language is spoken

• mediate between cultures and between speakers of the language and speakers of English

• foster their ability to learn other languages

• equip themselves with transferable skills such as autonomy, resourcefulness, creativity, critical thinking, and linguistic, cultural and cognitive flexibility that will enable them to proceed to further study or to employment

In addition, the A level specifications must also enable students to:

• develop their capacity for critical and analytical thinking through the language of study

• develop as independent researchers through the language of study”

 

According to AQA specification, “students must also study either one book and one film or two books from the lists in this specification. They must appreciate, analyse and be able to respond critically in writing in German to the work they have studied. Their understanding of the work must include a critical appreciation of the concepts and issues covered and a critical and analytical response to features such as the form and the technique of presentation as appropriate to the work studied (eg the effect of narrative voice in a prose text or camera-work in a film).”

​

Let’s see if you know any of the works they suggest:

​

Texts

• Heinrich Böll Die verlorene Ehre der Katharina Blum (The Lost Honour of Katharina Blum)

• Bertolt Brecht Mutter Courage und ihre Kinder (Mother Courage and Her Children)

• Friedrich Dürrenmatt Der Besuch der alten Dame (The Visit)

• Max Frisch Andorra (Andorra)

• Heinrich Heine Gedichte – Buch der Lieder (Book of Songs)

• Jana Hensel Zonenkinder (After The Wall)

• Franz Kafka Die Verwandlung (The Metamorphosis)

• Wladimir Kaminer Russendisko (Russendisko)

• Siegfried Lenz Fundbüro (Lost and Found)

• Bernhard Schlink Der Vorleser (The Reader)

 

Films

• Good bye, Lenin! Wolfgang Becker (2003) (Good Bye, Lenin!)

• Das Leben der Anderen Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck (2006) (The Lives of Others)

• Die fetten Jahre sind vorbei Hans Weingartner (2005) (The Edukators)

• Almanya – Willkommen in Deutschland Yasemin Samdereli (2011) (Almanya: Welcome to Germany)

• Sophie Scholl – Die letzten Tage Marc Rothemund (2005) (Sophie Scholl – The Final Days)

• Lola rennt Tom Tykwer (1998) (Run Lola Run)