GCSE (for first teaching in 2009) French - J730

Units

We've summarised the course details and the assessment objectives for GCSE French.

Unit title and description

Assessment
incl. duration

Weighting
Unit A701: Listening

Candidates will:

  • Listen for, identify and note main points and extract some details from spoken French of increasing length, speed and complexity
  • Demonstrate their understanding of French with a variety of non-verbal responses and some short answers in English.

Written examination

Foundation tier – 35 minutes

Higher tier – 45 minutes

20% full course

40% spoken short course
Unit A702: Speaking

Using French, candidates will:

  • Communicate in French in at least two topic areas either from a specified list or of their own choice
  • Interact with other French speakers, expressing and justifying opinions where appropriate.

Controlled assessment

30% full course

60% spoken short course
Unit A703: Reading

Candidates will:

  • Read, identify and note main points and extract some details from written texts in French of increasing length, speed and complexity
  • Demonstrate their understanding of French with a variety of non-verbal responses and some short answers in English.

Written examination

50 minutes

20% full course

40% written short course
Unit A704: Writing

Using French, candidates will:

  • Communicate in French in at least two topic areas either from a specified list or of their own choice
  • Express and justify points of view in French where appropriate.

Controlled assessment

30% full course

60% written short course

Short Courses

We also offer two Short Courses in GCSE French, one in the spoken language and one in the written language; both are equivalent to half a GCSE. This offers several advantages:

  • There are only two units to complete
  • Learners who are interested in a particular subject, but don't have time to study a full course, have more learning options
  • Learners can study a wider range of subjects
  • Timetabling for shorter courses can be easier for your centre
  • More able students can complement their studies by taking additional short courses
  • Short courses can be spread over one or two years.

Assessment objectives

The assessment objectives are designed to reflect the non-statutory guidelines for French.

Candidates are expected to demonstrate the following in the context of the content described:

AO1

Understand spoken language.

AO2

Communicate in speech.

AO3

Understand written language.

AO4

Communicate in writing.