Modern Language A-levels are so dull!!!

I love languages. I did 3 for GCSE and got A*s with hardly any work. I was convinced i wanted to do 3 modern langauge A-levels- but now iv started them i find it so boring.

I hate the syllabus- its so boring- its like doing PHSE in french/german/ect. I dont feel like iv improved in my languages at all (I started french and german).

I think it might be partly my teachers- we work out of the text book alll the time- and language text books are always so boring. Plus- its obvious the topics are just supposed to be a medium on which to learn the language, and the text books are meant to be a tool for familiarizing us with the syllabus.

Im moving schools now because i dnt enjoy the french and german at the school im currently going to- and in the other school im going to its apparently really good.

Sorry for the rambling, incoherent nature of this- I was just wondering if other people are having the same experience

Reply 1

slk999

15

i did AS spanish and it was alright. though i definitely thought it was a chore to do, whereas in english and history, i enjoyed the lessons etc. in classics, well, this was tragically awful, but spanish was alright i guess.

Reply 2

sol89

10

I agree, just look at my result from GCSE to AS level French :wink:

Reply 3

butterfly_girl_5

OP

8

ninjapanda

in classics, well, this was tragically awful,

what did you mean by that? im thinking of changing to latin because i thought it would be much better than doing a third language A-level! was it the syllabus or the teacher which made it awful?

Reply 4

username68316

3

Well my only A*s at gcse came in languages. I absolutely loved the subjects at gcse, and was good at them. Although i think it was for all the wrong reasons i.e. showing off above everybody else.

Reply 5

kellywood_5

17

How very dare you?!! :p:

I loved French at GCSE and A-level and I love it at degree level :biggrin:

I do know what you mean though. If you're not interested in social issues, you won't enjoy languages much at A-level, or degree level for that mater, because it's no longer just about learning the language; it's about the societies and cultures of the countries where the language is spoken. I had 3 teachers for A-level and 2 of them pretty much just stuck to the textbook, so their lessons could get a bit dull and uninspiring. The third was great though and her lessons were actually fun. Hopefully your new teachers will be like that.

Reply 6

slk999

15

butterfly_girl_5

what did you mean by that? im thinking of changing to latin because i thought it would be much better than doing a third language A-level! was it the syllabus or the teacher which made it awful?

the teacher and the class. the teacher was boring and the class was massive. not good. i'm sure the plays aren't bad.

Reply 7

hannah_dru

2

I know what you mean- sometimes I feel like I don't get that far at A2 but most of the time its not that bad.
I wouldn't like to use text books all the time though. I prefer speaking orally.

Reply 8

dans

12

I loved French at GCSE and starting AS was rather boring but now I'm at A2 and I think it's fabulous!! I want to combine it with business at degree level!!

Reply 9

Excalibur

15

I'm loving German so far :smile:

the teachers are a bit on the lousy side ( :p:

) but I love the language, I really want to learn about the culture and I just like it in general. I guess it is a bit dull sometimes (lol at the part "PSHE in the language"!) but I personally find it more interesting than the endless amount of "I have brown eyes and I wake up at 7 every morning" stuff we had to do for GCSE!

Reply 10

hannah_dru

2

Excalibur

I'm loving German so far :smile:

the teachers are a bit on the lousy side ( :p:

) but I love the language, I really want to learn about the culture and I just like it in general. I guess it is a bit dull sometimes (lol at the part "PSHE in the language"!) but I personally find it more interesting than the endless amount of "I have brown eyes and I wake up at 7 every morning" stuff we had to do for GCSE!

Yay

German= fabulous.

Reply 11

gunners r us

2

dosent anyone do italian here????????

Reply 12

leannemarie

11

I do Italian GCSE, I agree that the A Levels are quite dull, but I enjoyed my A2 coursework, oral exams and discursive essays. AS was extremely boring though!

Reply 13

arpeggio

12

I didn't like it at first, but now I've got into it I really like AS French :smile:

I think it helps that we don't just stick to doing the same thing each lesson like at GCSE - we do a lot of listening and oral work and spend time working on presentations either in groups or on our own. I think more interactive learning really helps. Don't worry about it - it's probably more the teaching style than anything else, and changing schools should make a major difference. Maybe taking several languages is also a factor? I can see why it might get boring if you were doing the same thing in each of the languages. Good luck with things though - let us know if it improves at your new college!

Reply 14

Karvel

butterfly_girl_5

I hate the syllabus- its so boring- its like doing PHSE in french/german/ect. I dont feel like iv improved in my languages at all (I started french and german).

HAHA so true !! In the past 2 weeks we've done AIDS, Sex, Anorexia & Boulemia, Assisted-Suicide and Drug Addiction.

Lovely!

Reply 15

Toasted marshmellows

2

arh that is bleeful, i'm really liking french as level - loads more than gcse even! hopefully your new teachers will be better, we have a really small class (6 of us) and we often play games etc. have a laugh and it is really friendly. Saying that there are quite a few people who are really struggling with it and not liking it.

Reply 16

marshmallow_mayhem

I hardly did any work for GCSE languages, either and came out with A*s..I don't think they're much of an indicator, really. I'm doing A level German with Biology, Chemistry and Maths. I like it-it's a nice contrast. But maybe three is a bit too much and it seems to get repetitive..

Reply 17

Epitomessence

12

I'm currently doing AS Spanish and think it's great! But it's so hard. I'm getting like 26/40 for all my essays. :frown:

I'm also trying to teach myself AS Chinese, but it's SUCH a leap from GCSE. Don't know if I can do it.

Reply 18

hannah_dru

2

I know what you mean now actually. The past couple of days I realy started to hate German because it was so PHSE. And I'm a German enthusiast! But I got back into it yesterday. Just don't make me write another essay on "Frauen in der Bundeswehr." please. *snore*

Reply 19

paddy

14

Yep Spanish A Level was so dull. I absolutely loved it at GCSE, and I do love the subject itself (must do I'm applying to do it at uni) but for A2 especially I found it crap.
However the reason I didn't like Spanish at A Level was the teaching - our teachers were unforgiveably sh@te. Head of department was the only one remotely good at teaching, and she was evil (nicknamed Franco).
Still, I'm glad I got through it, it would have been terrible to lose interest in my favourite subject just because my teachers were morons and the syllabus was shockingly dull.

Modern Language A-levels are so dull!!!

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