Modern Foreign Languages
The Aspire Project
The Aspire Project arranges Modern Foreign Language tuition by recruiting native speaking tutors from local universities to work with Year 7-11s who are studying their languages. The project meets the needs of individual schools.
Tutors lead small informal groups, designed to support their work in class. Young people find it easier to speak their language in front of a student only a few years older than themselves, than in front of the whole class with a teacher. In addition, the tutors are also able to share aspects of their culture with the young people, raising their enthusiasm for studying the language. The tuition has received strong support.
The Aspire Project (3:55)
Enrichment sessions
- Ms Clare Stenning, Director of the Hove Park Language College stated that the Aspire project has “significantly improved the motivation and confidence of the young people involved in the project. The speaking results at the Language College are consequently improving year on year”.
- Baroness Coussins, Chair of the All Party Group on Modern Languages stated in her review of the National Curriculum, that “schemes such as the one run by MCS Projects Ltd…should be encouraged“
Enrichment sessions are arranged in which native speaking tutors teach their language and share aspects of their culture with young people. For the last four years, young people at BSix Sixth Form College, Hackney have been invited to select a subject to study in addition to their ‘A’ Levels. This has proved extremely popular with the sixth formers regularly attending French, Spanish and Japanese sessions in their own time. At the recent Freshers’ Fair held at the College over 200 young people selected one of these languages.
The picture to the left shows a formal Japanese tea drinking ceremony which was arranged for young people at BSix Sixth Form College.
Similar after-hours enrichment sessions are being arranged for schools in Greater Manchester.