Modern Foreign Languages

Programming in Schools: Lessons from Language Learning

Posted by José Picardo on April 19, 2012

When we learn to write, we don’t start by studying the process through which the ink travels from the cartridge to the nib of our pen and on to the paper. When we learn to speak another language, we don’t first study buccopharyngeal anatomy in the hope it will facilitate the production of difficult foreign sounds. When we learn to drive a car, we worry more about making the machine work and less about how the machine works.

In each of these cases, achieving a successful outcome – becoming an accomplished writer, a gifted polyglot or a talented racing driver – is not dependent on the intimate knowledge of the processes involved and it can demonstrably be achieved with only a basic understanding thereof.

Indeed, it does not necessarily follow that a car mechanic should be a good driver or that a maxillofacial surgeon would boast an uncanny ability to pick up new languages.

Computer programming behaves in a similar way. In order to master the use of a computer, some basic understanding of programming will undoubtedly be helpful, but it will not guarantee a successful outcome.

This begs the question: what outcome do we wish to achieve when we suggest programming should be taught in schools? Many have suggested that schools ought to view programming as the new latin so that the UK can become a competitor against the likes of Silicon Valley.

I’m not convinced that a focus on learning to code will result in a generation of students raring up to start up the next Google right here on our shores.

Is it time to change History?

The place of Britain in the World according to British historians

Posted by José Picardo on September 2, 2010

The issue of Modern Foreign Languages take up has hit the news almost daily since the GCSE results were published last Tuesday.

The fact is that numbers are in decline with no sign of abatement. Regardless of whether you have strong feelings or not about the place of languages in secondary education, hardly anyone would argue that this decline is good news for the education of our children.

There has been a significant amount of soul searching in the national papers in the past seven days about just why the United Kingdom appears to be so uninterested in learning other languages, an attitude which was formalised by the government when they made languages optional at Key Stage 4.

The government actually replaced compulsion with a statuary entitlement to study foreign languages, which means that secondary schools must still offer a language to all pupils who wish to take one, although this is blatantly ignored by an increasing number of head teachers in the state sector. But never mind that.

The languages class divide

Posted by José Picardo on August 25, 2010

GCSE results were published yesterday. For the 23rd year running, the trend was an improving one, with more pupils getting better grades.

It’s not all good news though. The statistics also confirm a continuing decline in take-up in foreign languages: the number of students taking a language has dropped by a third since the government made them optional at GCSE six years ago.

Having said that, there are places bucking the trend where languages are still flourishing. Amongst the proverbial ivy and oak panels, the house ties and the straw hats, the study of foreign languages is still thriving in British private independent schools.

Since languages were made optional in the state sector, take up has nose dived to an all time low, with languages disappearing altogether from some schools at the hands of head teachers who saw an opportunity to save cash for a more popular performing arts and media centre.

Some head teachers, however, had no option but to abandon languages altogether at Key Stage 4 and beyond due to appallingly low take-up. Some students in the state sector really could not wait to get rid of a subject they perceived as hard, pointless and boring as hell.

However, private schools in the UK have tended to retain languages as compulsory to GCSE (age 16), with some doing the International Baccalaureate studying a compulsory language all the way to university entrance age, thus creating a de-facto class divide: those who can afford a private education are learning other languages, whereas those who cannot are not.

The Language Ambassador Scheme

Posted by José Picardo on July 14, 2010

Language Ambassadors Scheme on Prezi

Two years ago I attended a presentation by the inspiring Rachel Hawkes that focused on the multiple unique selling points of languages. In her presentation she mentioned how she had set up a Student Leadership Award at her school and how it had been a magnificent success. As she put it, the results were so good that, in hindsight, running the award appeared to be a “no brainer”.

Her experiences inspired me to adapt her Student Leadership Award in languages and led to the launch of our very own Language Ambassador Scheme on the European Day of Languages in September 2009. The Language Ambassador Scheme is designed to last one academic year and aims to develop the potential of our best linguists in the senior school by involving them in the planning and delivery of language lessons to younger pupils in our infant and junior schools.

Modern Foreign Languages – Show and Tell

Posted by José Picardo on July 14, 2010

Last Saturday 10th July, a bunch of motivated and committed language teachers met at Nottingham High School to share practice on the use of new technologies in the classroom.

The Nottingham MFL Show and Tell was organised by my colleague Kerry Turner and me and comprised a morning session packed full of presentations by teaching practitioners who gave away their time and effort to share their experiences with those attending as well as an afternoon session with educational discussions which covered topics such as using VLEs and Language Labs.

My presentation, below, was titled Innovative Creative Technologies – Looking back at a year’s use of ICT and focused on the top ten web applications that have successfully been employed in my classroom to enhance, engage and motivate language learners. A full list of presenters, presentations and resources can be found in Box of Tricks and in the event’s wiki.