MFL SCITT App
GCSE
Page 1 : what I’m aiming for
Page 2 : self-evaluation and self-diagnosis
Page 3: coaching questions
Page 4 : further resources
Page 1 What I’m aiming for
Over time, (e.g. the first 2 or 3 years of your teaching) you will need to develop a good
understanding of the rquirements of GCSE. There are many useful materials on exam board websites
(e.g. materials for standardisation of marking, Chief Examiner reports). In your SCITT year, you
should seek to understand key features of spoken and written performance at grades C,B,A, and A*.
In this way, you will be well placed to offer guidance on how students might boost their performance
from D to C , from B to A etc. Ultimately, students will need to have an understanding of what
examiners are looking for, in order to develop as ‘self-improving learners’. Thus you will need to be
able (a) to identify key features of different grades in ‘pupil speak’ and (b) develop students’ skills in
self-evaluation and target setting.
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Core (OFSTED 2, 2/3)
You have a good grasp of what is required to
achieve grade C (2 tenses mostly accurate;
occasional longer sentences with some
variety of connectives; opinions and some
reasons; communication (in sp, wr) is clear
and readily understandable even if not 100%
error free) .
You have a good grasp of what is required to
achieve grade A (3+ tenses mostly accurate;
frequent longer sentences with a good
variety of connectives; complex grammar
used accurately and confidently [e.g. object
pronouns, who/which, indirect speech, verb
+ infinitive etc.] frequent justification /
explanation; high, though not perfect
accuracy) .
You mark KS4 work with reasonable accuracy
(even if not as confident as you would wish
to be); you can identify to students
techniques and features which will further
boost their performance
You track students’ performance against KS4
target grades and intervene both promptly
and effectively to address potential underachievement.
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Extension (OFSTED 1)
You have a sound grasp of grades D to A*
enabling you to set more precise and more
apposite improvement targets to help
students raise their work to the next grade.
e.g. D  C : greater accuracy with verbs;
fewer cognates and simple language; longer
sentences with connectives other than ‘and’
or ‘but’; opinions expressed in a variety of
language
e.g. C  B : few short simple sentences,; 3
tenses used accurately and confidently;
connectives and phrases used to boost
‘coherence’ (flow of language); opinions
always justified / explained; good overall
accuracy
e.g. A  A* : wider variety of and more
frequent complex grammar (e.g. object
pronouns, ‘if’ clauses, conditional perfect,
modals / 2nd verb infinitive, after having …. /
before ….ing); frequent use of idiomatic
vocabulary and phrases; 3 – 4 tenses used
confidently, effectively and accurately; very
high degree of spoken and written accuracy.
You effectively convey to students in
accessible language the targets they need to
work on to achieve the next grade up from
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their current performance.
You develop students as ‘self-improving
learners’ able to (a) self-assess effectively
(b) to set useful and appropriate targets
Your assessment of students’ work is
becoming more ‘forensic’ such that you
intervene effectively both to support
weaker pupils and to challenge and extend
abler pupils.
Page 2 Self-evaluation
1. How well do you understand GCSE performance criteria for speaking and writing ? How can you
strengthen this understanding ?
2. How confident are you to mark GCSE work with reasonable accuracy ? What will help you be
more accurate in awarding GCSE grades to work which you mark (esp. sp, wr) ?
3. How clearly do you know key features of performance in speaking at grades C,B,A,A* ?
4. How clearly do you know key features of performance in writing at grades C,B,A,A* ?
5. How well can you translate these key features into ‘pupil speak’ and thus communicate
effectively to pupils how they can improve their work ?
6. What are you doing in lessons to develop KS4 pupils as ‘self-improving learners’ ?
7. How well are you tracking individual pupils’ current performance against anticipated target
grades ? Are you intervening effectively to turn around under-achieving pupils ? How well are
you challenging and extending abler pupils within your group(s) ?
Page 3 Self coaching (but could also usefully be done with the support of your mentor)
1. Have you read Chief Examiner’s reports from the exam board website to know what are
common weaknesses in speaking and writing ?
2. How well are you using colleagues / your mentor / on-line resources in order to make your
marking of KS4 spoken / written work more accurate and more confident ?
3. What can you do to identify potential under-achievers in your class(es) ? What are the best
ways to help them turn their performance around, including involving the individual pupils
themselves in devising improvement strategies ?
4. What can you do to boost my confidence in setting improvement targets for the varied
individuals in my KS4 class(es) ? How do you know that the improvement targets you set are (a)
the most appropriate (b) effective ?
5. How can you, over time, boost pupils’ skills as self-improving learners who are able (a) to selfassess accurately and (b) to set the best possible and most effective improvement targets
6. How can you develop a ‘team ethos’ in your class such that (a) pupils help one another
cooperatively to improve (b) pupils feel that they and the teacher are ‘in it together’ seeking to
maximise pupils’ exam grades.
Page 4 Possible further resources
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Learning to Teach Foreign Languages in the Secondary School: A companion to school
experience Norbert Pachler, Michael Evans, Ana Redondo
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http://www.tes.co.uk/teaching-resource/MFL-collection-GCSE-revision-6066904/
http://www.tes.co.uk/teaching-resource/Tips-and-advice-for-GCSE-students-on-how-to-improvetheir-writing-and-speaking-6033080
http://www.tes.co.uk/teaching-resource/A-and-A-structures-6062102
http://www.tes.co.uk/teaching-resource/IMPROVE-YOUR-WRITING-GCSE-GERMAN-6022634
http://www.tes.co.uk/teaching-resource/German-high5-writing-speaking-reference-6051361
http://www.tes.co.uk/teaching-resource/listening-reading-memorisation-strategies-6069814
http://www.tes.co.uk/ResourceDetail.aspx?storyCode=6207808&
http://www.tes.co.uk/teaching-resource/GCSE-MFL-Coursework-Comment-Sheet-Revision-Aid3013723/
http://www.tes.co.uk/teaching-resource/GCSE-Writing-Target-Stickers-6035481/
http://www.tes.co.uk/teaching-resource/Tips-and-advice-for-GCSE-students-on-how-to-improvetheir-writing-and-speaking-6033080/
http://www.tes.co.uk/teaching-resource/French-Extended-Writing-Mats-Booklets-6344615/
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http://www.google.co.uk/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=8&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=0C
E8QFjAH&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.alllondon.org.uk%2FResources%2FGCSE_review%2Fhem%2520nov%252008%2520gcse_spec_c
omparison%2520version%252013.doc&ei=DuYFVLzHA9LpaJbxgZgB&usg=AFQjCNECHFt1A2J
alcH2cRT3lkKrXj6TJw
AQA website http://www.aqa.org.uk/
OCR website http://www.ocr.org.uk/
Edexcel website http://www.edexcel.com/Pages/Home.aspx
WJC website http://www.wjec.co.uk/