Which language to do for GCSE??

Lizzieee2002

Hi, I am currently choosing my GCSE's and was wondering which foreign language (with English as my native language) is easiest/most helpful to do for GCSE?? Thanks :-)

Reply 1

TheOtherSide.

Original post by Lizzieee2002

Hi, I am currently choosing my GCSE's and was wondering which foreign language (with English as my native language) is easiest/most helpful to do for GCSE?? Thanks :-)

What languages does your school offer? Or are you planning to do a GCSE externally?

Reply 2

Legendary Quest

You don't actually learn any language at GCSE. You just learn how to pass the exams (by learning only the basics of the language) lol
I did French and it wasn't too bad really. All languages are useful so pick the one you think you'd like the most. Non of us can tell you which is the 'most helpful' because it depends on you yourself. It depends on which one you want to study and which one you may consider doing at A Level. We can't tell you which is the easiest because that depends on which languages you've studied in the past.

Reply 3

Ahahabdi

Original post by Lizzieee2002

Hi, I am currently choosing my GCSE's and was wondering which foreign language (with English as my native language) is easiest/most helpful to do for GCSE?? Thanks :-)

French, it's easier than other languages unless you can do Spanish then do Spanish and it's fairly straightforward and simple as in no long confusing words.

Reply 4

Lovinlife2

Pick a language which you feel you're genuinely really good at otherwise you will find yourself losing your sanity very quickly if you choose something like German or the likes. Romance languages are easier I find.

Reply 5

KomradeKorbyn

What languages are you offered? I think the norm is to offer French, German, and Spanish, out of which I believe Spanish is the easiest, as everything is spelt phonetically (as it sounds), unlike French where pronunciations are a bit weird, and Spanish also doesn't have a ton of long complex words like German.

That said, I am biased because I took Spanish, and know almost no French or German.

Also, I'd say the thing you should base your decision off most isn't difficulty, but instead how likely you are too be able to actually use the language in life. Your family goes to Spain every year? Learn Spanish. You want to move to Germany when you're older? German's a good choice. You love French culture and really want to visit? French is for you.

It's all about which language you'll actually use, because if you don't use a language you'll forget it quickly. Good luck! All three are very good skills and very enjoyable to learn if you approach the lessons willing to learn.

(edited 8 years ago)

Reply 6

amyjanee15

German is really easy id have to admit

Reply 7

username1738583

Russian or Polish lol...

Original post by Legendary Quest

This is sadly true...

Reply 8

Anmol_.

I just know about French and Spanish as they are the only ones taught in my school. I'm studying Spanish and I've heard it's easier than French.

Reply 9

Euanw

I would say the one you are going to use. I chose Spanish because I thought one day I might end up living in South America (I am now doing my GCSEs in Ecuador!)

Although biased, I would say Spanish is the most useful because more people speak Spanish than French or German. In fact, it is the 2nd most spoken language in the world. Plus it is easier to pronounce.

Choose one you enjoy and USE the language. Go on holiday there, watch films in the language, listen to music in the language. Dance the national dances or something. Just have fun really.

Reply 10

romansholiday

Original post by Lizzieee2002

Hi, I am currently choosing my GCSE's and was wondering which foreign language (with English as my native language) is easiest/most helpful to do for GCSE?? Thanks :-)

I chose French. I used to be getting Ds, then we changed teachers and I'm aiming for an A/A* now. I think it's pretty easy. French is always the language that we do at primary school so some simple vocab is already there, so it is easy to understand.

I dropped German as soon as I could, and apparently it's difficult because one word can have 50 meanings or something like that.

Reply 11

pixiefuller

I did French and German GCSE and I found them the same in terms of difficulty, and enjoyed them both the same.

To be honest I don't think either of them will be particularly useful in the future (unless you decide to do them for A level or further) because you will probably forget everything after a while. French is spoken by more people and is taught in more schools than German is, so you might be able to find more resources/people to help you with French. On the other hand, German is more similar to English (vocab, pronunciation a little bit) and may be the more useful language in the future.

It really depends on what you enjoy and are good at though!

Reply 12

Workangel_24

Original post by Lizzieee2002

Hi, I am currently choosing my GCSE's and was wondering which foreign language (with English as my native language) is easiest/most helpful to do for GCSE?? Thanks :-)

You should choose a language that you will find more easier to speak and write in as you will be having your orals and writing assessments in Yr 10 and Yr 11. I chose French because I found it easier to speak and write than Spanish. I also found it easier to pronounce the words whereas for Spanish, it was not so easy.

Just so you know, here's what you will be doing for GCSE Languages so that you are well informed...

~ Your orals are really important because you could get downgraded if you pronounce words incorrectly or say it too fast. You only get cue cards for your orals and you're only allowed to put bullet points (this could vary between schools though).
~ The writing assessment take ages to do but if you plan it well and use your time effectively you can get the top grades.
~ Finally, your exams in Yr 11 (usually in May) multiple choice questions and short answer questions (varies between exam boards).

~ If you're struggling to decide take a look at the specification for French/Spanish/German etc.
~ Speak to your MFL teacher and see the range of languages available
~ Refer to your options booklet, what exam board will you be doing? look at the topics you will be covering e.g. for AQA we did holidays in Yr 11, style of assessment (coursework/orals/exams), exam timings etc.

I hope this helps you! Good luck making your choices :smile:

(edited 8 years ago)

spanishhhhh

I do Spanish and French and I think Spanish is 100 times easier than French :smile:

Pronunciation and spelling is a lot easier in Spanish.

Reply 15

BhavyaB

French is a really good language to do at GCSEs, I'm doing mine as well! :smile:

Reply 16

kiahj11

I did German purely because I hated the pronunciation of French and Spanish and didn't think I could deal with speaking like that for another two years.

I'd say the factors you need to use to help you in your decision are:
-difficulty (in your opinion)
-usefulness (again, in your opinion)
-confidence in the subject (this is important for speaking exams especially as I was totally not confident and didn't get good grades in them. However, your confidence could easily grow with time)
-enjoyment!

Hope that helps- and don't fret too much about your options! 😄

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Reply 17

sulaimanali

At my school 4 languages are offered...French, Spanish, German and Mandarin (Chinese)!

I was offered a choice between 2 languages..Spanish and Mandarin.

For GCSE, I ended up opting to do Mandarin. It's easy..

Reply 18

TheLastDodo1662

I decided to do both German and French at GCSE level. I regret it, but only because my teachers are husband and wife, and my current German teacher is my ex-French teacher. It gets confusing, but I get As/A*s all the time in languages.