People who got an A*/A in a foreign language A-level, how?

The majority of them are probably native speakers

I'm predicted a 9 at GCSE German, and I'm really leaning towards choosing it for A-level, however I'm put off by how difficult I have heard it is (to get an A or an A*).
I am aware all A-levels are hard, but are language A-levels really that much harder than others? Is the jump from GCSE to A-level big? Please tell me your own experiences with a foreign language A-level, and how you revised to get your result.

The majority of them are probably native speakers

That's why I'm reluctant to choose it

I'm predicted a 9 at GCSE German, and I'm really leaning towards choosing it for A-level, however I'm put off by how difficult I have heard it is (to get an A or an A*).
I am aware all A-levels are hard, but are language A-levels really that much harder than others? Is the jump from GCSE to A-level big? Please tell me your own experiences with a foreign language A-level, and how you revised to get your result.

It doesnt mean you wont be able to get good grades, but ive heard from people that the grade boundaries can be quite high due to the native speaker (not sure how true that is tho).

I did French and Spanish. I don't think it's impossible at all to get grades equivalent to A or A*. In fact, for me it was easier than getting an A or A* in English Lit and History (which I also did).

They key to getting good marks: research and show off extremely advanced grammatical structures, use very sophisticated words and have equally sophisticated ideas. For example, don't say sexism is still bad in the world; instead, say it's morally repugnant yet ironically still ubiquitous within the context of a more evolved and globally connected society.

I'm not a native speaker and definitely not gifted at languages. I just tried my best and always went above and beyond. I even got higher marks than the native speakers. For A2 standard Spanish, I got full marks for oral and writing which even the native speakers couldn't get. Furthermore, I got full marks for every single speaking and writing assessment that I did for AS including exams and mocks. That's because both my ideas and language were extremely sophisticated.

To improve at listening and reading, you just have to continuously practice and build your vocabulary.


All of my peers at university got either A or A* in a language or two at A level. Not a single one of them were native speakers.

I believe that the number of native speakers who take A level languages account for a very small percentage.

Hi!

I got an A in both A-level Spanish and French and I'm not a native speaker (nor were the people in my class who got high grades too). As @Quick-use said, it's totally possible to get a high grade in a language A-level without being fluent in it.

I think the hardest thing about languages is the fact that it isn't a subject where you can cram everything a month or two before the exam. It really does require continuous work right from the beginning of year 12. However, that isn't to say you need to be doing hours of work for it every single day. Spending 10-15 minutes a day or every few days learning a couple of new words or going over a grammar point from the start will help you immensely by the time you get to the exam period.

I won't lie and say that languages are an easy A-level because they aren't (but then again, which A-levels are?). If you're really unsure, you can always try it out for a week or two and then drop it/swap it with another subject. I'm sure that a lot of sixth forms are flexible when it comes to subject changes in the first few weeks.

If you're predicted a 9 the you're definitely capable of doing well. It's all about putting the extra effort in.

Good luck with your decisions!

It is true that the grade boundaries are usually high compared to other subjects (89% for an A* in French last year, for example, as compared to 84% in English Lit), and that this is largely because of the number of native speakers who sit the exams. However, this doesn't mean that you can't do as well as them, as previous posters have said: if you love the language and go out of your way to immerse yourself in it, watching films in it, reading things in it, and acquiring a certain fluency of thought in it while polishing your grammar, you could definitely compete for the A*s. Go for it!