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Cardinal Newman RC School
Ann Lewis
1. Background
Cardinal Newman is a 11-18 Roman Catholic school situated in Pontypridd. The school was one of the first cohort pilot centres.
At the school, the Language Module is delivered over twenty timetabled hours by a teacher, predominantly in classroom environment.
Italian was the language chosen. Whilst Italian is currently taken by a small number of students at key stage 4, the WBQ students would not have studied the language at GCSE. As a result, it was deemed to be an appropriate choice, as everybody would be starting from the same baseline in terms of previous knowledge and experience of the language.
2. Approach to the language module
The language was delivered largely ‘traditionally’, in the classroom environment, in teacher-led lessons. Potential problems with the availability of resources in school, and the cost of transporting students elsewhere to use language laboratories, etc. were key factors in making this choice.
The topic of ‘Food’ and more specifically, ‘Eating Out' was chosen as the focus for the language learning. It was felt this area would have more appeal for students because of the opportunities to use the language learnt in real situations in Italian restaurants in the UK. In theory, this would avoid the ‘What’s the point – I’m never going to go to Italy anyway’ type of reaction occasionally encountered, and the possibilities of real-life use would also motivate students to learn.
The aim of the course was to be enable students to use and understand the language necessary for ordering a table, and meal and drinks at a bar or restaurant, and our goal was to arrange a meal at a local Italian restaurant at the end of the course, so that students could put into practice the knowledge gained during the twenty hour-sessions. If this was not possible, students could be recorded on video doing ‘restaurant role-plays’, or an Italian-style meal could be prepared at school.
The course focuses mainly on the skills of Listening, Speaking and Reading. The only written work involves the taking of notes, research and answering ‘quiz’ questions.
3. Timetable and Staffing
In the first year of the pilot, two groups of 15-20 students were taught on a Thursday morning for the first two hour-long periods (one hour per group.) The course was therefore timetabled to run for twenty weeks in order to meet the requirements of the Language Module.
In the second year, one group was taught once a week on a Thursday afternoon.
The WBQ has been timetabled on a Thursday for the last two years, and the Language Module has commenced in January. As a result, students were often ‘borrowed’ from language lessons to complete Duke of Edinburgh activities, key-skills portfolios or have been absent due to examinations, study leave or work experience, etc. which has meant that it has been very difficult to find the requisite 20 hours for the Language Module.
Links with the other members of the WBQ Delivery Team have been relatively weak, although there have been frequent informal discussions with the WBQ Co-ordinators. (The role of the original WBQ Co-0rdinator was taken over by another member of staff after the first year).
4. Resource issues
No language trips have been arranged as part of the Language Module, and as yet, the trip to the restaurant has not taken place. Consequently, funding has been kept to an absolute minimum.
Students are provided with vocabulary sheets, menus and worksheets which I have prepared, or which have been adapted from GCSE materials. Apart from a visit to the local Tesco store in order to research the influence of Italy, and Italian cuisine on the UK, the course has been delivered entirely at school.
5. Student reactions
On the whole, students’ reactions have been fairly positive, and everyone has felt that they have learned something by the end of the course. Within the classroom, students have not always been well-motivated, and virtually all have been reluctant to do any learning work at home or during their free time. Any learning is therefore achieved almost exclusively in the classroom
Students have reacted positively to the choice of topic, and to the fact that there is not much emphasis on writing.
6. Diary and Record keeping and student self-assessment
This is an area where a review is planned. In the 2004-5 academic year, students were provided with a list of objectives and activities to be covered during the course, and a simple self-assessment sheet, in order to facilitate the process of record-keeping. Although a register was taken scrupulously, students were not pressed to fill in their diaries every lesson. In fact, many of the students ‘forget’ to bring their notes to lessons, or leave them at home because they are participating in another activity or a trip during the day. This has been very frustrating, and has certainly impeded potential progress.
Students prepared a very simple self-assessment sheet for students using ‘I can…’ statements based on the objectives of the Language Module. Again, this is an area not formally in lesson plans. Closer attention needs to be given to monitoring the completion of this form by students.
8. Reflections on the delivery of the Language Module
- Many lessons have been learnt about ‘How not to do it’ from problems I have encountered.
- Next year, the Language Module will be timetabled earlier in the year and will not be timetabled on the same day as other WBQ sessions. This should facilitate the delivery of the twenty hours necessary for the completion of the Module, as students will not be ‘taken’ elsewhere for other WBQ activities, for study leave and for work experience.
- Closer links with the other members of the WBQ delivery team are planned. This will help to develop a better grasp of the bigger picture and how the Language Module fits into the WBQ as a whole.
- Although it ‘goes against the grain,’ serious thought is being given to getting students’ to complete notes in the classroom from week- to-week in order to avoid the frustration of having to photocopy notes each week for those who have forgotten to bring their language folders. However, as the Language Module has been timetabled on a different day next year, it may be more successful to get students to bring their folders each week, and to take them home for learning purposes! It is planned to adopt this approach on a trial basis and review the situation after a few weeks. Clearly, addressing these issues is key to ensuring effective and accurate record-keeping,
- The formalization of procedures for record-keeping aspects of the Language Module will be introduced by getting students to complete diaries and self-assessment sheets on a weekly basis. This could be incorporated into a plenary session at the end of every lesson, where students discuss and make a record of what they have learned. Record-keeping regularly and formally in class should allow students to focus on their learning and progress.
- It is hoped that by starting the delivery of the Module earlier in the year, it will be will be possible able to organize the meal in an Italian restaurant for the first time.
- For the 2005-6 academic year, delivery of the Language Module has been varied, by incorporating more games and kinaesthetic activities into lessons. This has proved to be particularly popular as the majority of the students are boys.
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