Professor D. R. Midgley
Professor of German Literature and Intellectual History
Head of Department
Department of German and Dutch
January 2014
Dear language teacher,
I am writing to you in the hope that we can work together at stimulating interest in the German
language, and especially in German studies at university level, in the UK. There are three parts
to my letter. The first is concerned with the current situation, the second with the opportunities in
German studies that are offered by the Department of German and Dutch at Cambridge, and
the third with the ways in which we might be able to continue helping each other.
1. It has long been clear to all of us involved in language teaching in the UK that a concerted
effort is needed to reverse the decline in the uptake of languages in our schools that has
occurred in recent decades. On top of other factors that have contributed to this decline, it now
seems clear that unduly severe grading in language A levels is reinforcing it. In the Cambridge
Modern Languages Faculty I have been personally involved in the analysis of data relating to
this issue, and I have written to Ofqual in my capacity as Head of the Department of German
and Dutch in support of a thorough inquiry into the matter. The issue is a particularly important
one for us in Cambridge because the University expects all successful applicants to achieve an
A* grade in at least one of their A levels (or the equivalent in any other qualification) – although
that condition is not normally tied to a particular subject in the case of arts and humanities
subjects: see www.admin.cam.ac.uk/offices/admissions/behindtheheadlines/alevel.html
2. In Cambridge we take pride in the flexibility of our approach to language learning and the
study of the cultures associated with the languages we teach. In the case of German, that
flexibility extends to the possibility of choosing to study key thinkers and historical events of the
German-speaking world, and the linguistics of German, as well as literary texts and films, at any
stage of our undergraduate course. In addition, modern linguists at Cambridge can include
exam options from Linguistics, History, Philosophy, English Literature and other subjects in their
final year: see www.mml.cam.ac.uk/undergrad/MMLtripos/part2_papers.html#DSched.
Moreover, when changes in approaches to language teaching have occurred at secondary
level, Cambridge has generally been very quick to adapt.
In particular, Cambridge offers a beginners’ course in German, which has been running for
about 25 years, and which brings students up to A level standard in one year, thus enabling
them to move seamlessly into our mainstream courses in their second year. I enclose a flyer
advertising German for Beginners at Cambridge. As you will also see from the Faculty’s
Undergraduate Prospectus at www.mml.cam.ac.uk/prospectus/undergrad/MML_Ling_2012.pdf
(p. 10), the basic requirement to study Modern Languages at Cambridge is an A grade in just
one language at A level.
Faculty of Modern and Medieval Languages
Sidgwick Avenue
Cambridge CB3 9DA
Tel: +44(0)1223 338779
Fax: +44(0)1223 335062
Email: drm7@cam.ac.uk
3. The Department of German and Dutch at Cambridge is actively participating in the
nationwide initiative Think German, co-ordinated by the German Embassy in London. The
particular contribution we wish to make to that initiative is an online platform that provides
materials designed to enhance the learning of German at secondary level:
Cambridge Online German for Schools. (COGS)
This development builds on our experience in providing other online learning materials such as
Just-in-time Grammar. We are now looking to work together with you in developing materials
that will contribute significantly to stimulating interest in German in UK schools in the years
ahead. The enclosed leaflet explains in more detail how this scheme is intended to operate,
and I am inviting you to contact our Senior Language Teaching Officers, Annemarie KünzlSnodgrass and Silke Mentchen (whose contact details are shown in the leaflet), if you have
material that you would like to offer for this purpose or if you would like to discuss with them
any aspect of how the scheme will operate. Indeed, Annemarie and Silke are very willing to
answer any questions you may have about the course or about learning German.
As a final word, let me draw your attention to the Modern Languages Faculty’s Open Day on
Friday 14 March 2014. We very much hope to see you and your students at this event on the
Faculty Site at Sidgwick Avenue, Cambridge, details of which are posted on the Faculty website
at www.mml.cam.ac.uk/opendayugrad/ If your school is not able to attend, however, please feel
free to contact the Department because we can also arrange individual school visits.
With best wishes,
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