Ban schools from requiring students to take a modern foreign language GCSE
- 15 Signatures
(Estimated Final Signatures: 39 - 1 added in the past 24hrs)
Schools should not be able to force students to take modern foreign languages as a GCSE, it must be a option in all schools.
Found: The Government should make modern foreign languages (MFL) optional for GCSE.
Asked by: Duncan-Glancy, Pam (Scottish Labour - Glasgow)
Question
To ask the Scottish Government, in light of modern languages being classified as a priority for Initial Teacher Education (ITE) intakes, what analysis it has undertaken of its publication, Teacher Workforce Planning Advisory Group: initial teacher education intake figures 2022, showing that the actual intake of modern languages teachers in 2022 was 59, compared to the target of 138.
Answered by Gilruth, Jenny - Cabinet Secretary for Education and Skills
The Teacher Workforce Planning Advisory Group figures are indicative and are provided by universities at the start of the academic session. The Higher Education Statistics Agency will publish official data for 2022-23 in April 2024. These will provide the most accurate figures on enrolments into modern language Initial Teacher Education programmes.
This data will help to inform the work of the Strategic Board for Teacher Education on improving recruitment to hard to fill subjects, such as modern languages.
The Scottish Government and Scottish Funding Council have also offered to work with universities to develop alternative routes into subjects which are classified as a priority subjects, including modern languages.
Asked by: Anneliese Dodds (Labour (Co-op) - Oxford East)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many and what proportion of schools in (a) Oxford, (b) Oxfordshire, (c) the South East and (d) England are expected to offer A-Levels in modern foreign languages in the next five years.
Answered by Damian Hinds - Minister of State (Education)
The department does not produce future trends of the number of students taking specific qualifications, or future trends in the number of schools or colleges offering specific qualifications.
The department recognises the importance of the study of languages in Britain and is taking steps to increase the number of pupils studying languages at GCSE level and beyond. This is particularly important given that languages were made non-mandatory in 2004. The department’s Language Hubs programme is comprised of 15 lead hub schools across England, all of which will work with other schools in their area to improve standards of language teaching, in line with recommendations of the Teaching Schools Council’s 2016 modern foreign languages pedagogy review.
Managed by the National Consortium for Languages Education, the programme provides high-quality teacher Continuing Professional Development and includes improving transition from key stage 2 to key stage 3, increasing opportunities among disadvantaged pupils to study languages, and increasing the access to home, heritage, and community languages.
Asked by: Anneliese Dodds (Labour (Co-op) - Oxford East)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if she will make an assessment of future trends in the level of student uptake in A-Levels in modern foreign languages in (a) Oxford, (b) Oxfordshire, (c) the South East and (d) England.
Answered by Damian Hinds - Minister of State (Education)
The department does not produce future trends of the number of students taking specific qualifications, or future trends in the number of schools or colleges offering specific qualifications.
The department recognises the importance of the study of languages in Britain and is taking steps to increase the number of pupils studying languages at GCSE level and beyond. This is particularly important given that languages were made non-mandatory in 2004. The department’s Language Hubs programme is comprised of 15 lead hub schools across England, all of which will work with other schools in their area to improve standards of language teaching, in line with recommendations of the Teaching Schools Council’s 2016 modern foreign languages pedagogy review.
Managed by the National Consortium for Languages Education, the programme provides high-quality teacher Continuing Professional Development and includes improving transition from key stage 2 to key stage 3, increasing opportunities among disadvantaged pupils to study languages, and increasing the access to home, heritage, and community languages.
Asked by: Anneliese Dodds (Labour (Co-op) - Oxford East)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if she will make an assessment of future trends in the level of student uptake for GCSE level modern foreign languages in (a) Oxford, (b) Oxfordshire, (c) the South East and (d) England.
Answered by Damian Hinds - Minister of State (Education)
The department does not produce future trends of the number of students taking specific qualifications, or future trends in the number of schools or colleges offering specific qualifications.
The department recognises the importance of the study of languages in Britain and is taking steps to increase the number of pupils studying languages at GCSE level and beyond. This is particularly important given that languages were made non-mandatory in 2004. The department’s Language Hubs programme is comprised of 15 lead hub schools across England, all of which will work with other schools in their area to improve standards of language teaching, in line with recommendations of the Teaching Schools Council’s 2016 modern foreign languages pedagogy review.
Managed by the National Consortium for Languages Education, the programme provides high-quality teacher Continuing Professional Development and includes improving transition from key stage 2 to key stage 3, increasing opportunities among disadvantaged pupils to study languages, and increasing the access to home, heritage, and community languages.
Asked by: Conor McGinn (Independent - St Helens North)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many and what proportion of schools in (a) St Helens North constituency and (b) the North West she expects to offer A-Levels in modern foreign languages in the next five years.
Answered by Damian Hinds - Minister of State (Education)
The department does not produce projections of future trends of the number of students taking specific qualifications or future trends in the number of schools or colleges offering specific qualifications.
The department recognises the importance of the study of languages in Britain and is taking steps to increase the number of pupils studying languages at GCSE level and beyond. This is particularly important given that languages became non-mandatory at GCSE in 2004. The recently launched Language Hubs programme is comprised of 15 lead hub schools from across England, including a hub based in the North West. The lead hub schools will work with other schools in their areas to improve standards of language teaching, in line with recommendations of the Teaching Schools Council’s 2016 ‘Modern Foreign Languages Pedagogy Review’.
Managed by the National Consortium for Languages Education, the programme provides high-quality teacher Continuing Professional Development and includes improving transition from key stage 2 to key stage 3, increasing opportunities among disadvantaged pupils to study languages, and increasing the access to home, heritage, and community languages.
Asked by: Anneliese Dodds (Labour (Co-op) - Oxford East)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if she will make an estimate of the number and proportion of schools that will offer GCSE qualifications in modern foreign languages in each of the next five years in (a) Oxford, (b) Oxfordshire, (c) the South East and (d) England.
Answered by Damian Hinds - Minister of State (Education)
The department does not produce future trends of the number of students taking specific qualifications, or future trends in the number of schools or colleges offering specific qualifications.
The department recognises the importance of the study of languages in Britain and is taking steps to increase the number of pupils studying languages at GCSE level and beyond. This is particularly important given that languages were made non-mandatory in 2004. The department’s Language Hubs programme is comprised of 15 lead hub schools across England, all of which will work with other schools in their area to improve standards of language teaching, in line with recommendations of the Teaching Schools Council’s 2016 modern foreign languages pedagogy review.
Managed by the National Consortium for Languages Education, the programme provides high-quality teacher Continuing Professional Development and includes improving transition from key stage 2 to key stage 3, increasing opportunities among disadvantaged pupils to study languages, and increasing the access to home, heritage, and community languages.
Mentions:
1: Stewart, Kevin (SNP - Aberdeen Central) Since the announcement by the university about the downgrading of modern languages, I have thought about - Speech Link
2: Dunbar, Jackie (SNP - Aberdeen Donside) The university’s modern languages courses have been particularly helpful in building bridges and making - Speech Link
3: Chapman, Maggie (Green - North East Scotland) languages at the University of Aberdeen—for modern languages themselves, for the university as a whole - Speech Link
4: Dey, Graeme (SNP - Angus South) The number of students on modern languages courses at the institution has fallen from 62 to 46 to 27 - Speech Link
Asked by: Stewart, Kevin (Scottish National Party - Aberdeen Central)
Question
To ask the Scottish Government, in light of the reported contribution of international students to modern languages at Scottish universities, what specific assessment it has conducted to understand any potential impact of new UK visa restrictions, in relation to family members accompanying students, on students studying modern languages at Scottish universities.
Answered by Dey, Graeme - Minister for Higher and Further Education; and Minister for Veterans
The Scottish Government has not undertaken any specific assessment regarding the impact of recent changes to visa restrictions introduced by the UK Government on students studying modern languages at Scottish universities.
The Scottish Government recognises the important and valuable contribution that international students make to the Scottish economy, our educational environment and Scottish society. It is essential that immigration policy allows Scotland to attract and retain talent without excessive barriers.
Asked by: Rennie, Willie (Scottish Liberal Democrats - North East Fife)
Question
To ask the Scottish Government what its response is to the reported reduction in the number of secondary school pupils studying modern languages.
Answered by Gilruth, Jenny - Cabinet Secretary for Education and Skills
The Scottish Government recognises the importance of modern languages. Since 2013, we have taken a range of steps to promote and support language learning providing more than £50 million in funding to local authorities and partners to support the teaching of additional languages in schools.
We acknowledge that since 2016, the date at which modern language national qualifications are directly comparable with today, entries have been decreasing. This is a broadly a trend we see across the rest of the UK. However, comparing August 2023 data with 2022, entries to National 4 and National 5 languages have increased, and Higher entries are only marginally down (by 15 entries), demonstrating an ongoing recovery post pandemic.
Secondary schools offer a wider range of modern language qualifications than just National 5, Higher and Advanced Highers. Across SCQF Levels 3-7, entries to Languages qualifications increased by 3.4% between 2022 and August 2023 and attainment of the Modern Languages for Life and Work Award at SCQF levels 3 and 4 combined have more than quadrupled since 2013.