With 2022 GSCE results imminent on 25th August, MFL GCSE results are awaited with particular interest. Why? Because there is genuine concern in the education system and bodies that represent it, about the pandemic’s adverse impact on language learning for this age group.
Inews’s Will Hazell noted the British Council’s mounting unease ahead of last year’s results, when it said that “… the Covid-19 pandemic had set back language learning in England, hitting international activities such as foreign trips, language exchanges and the hosting of language assistants in UK schools”.
But the 2020-21 academic year saw a welcome increase in the number of high school students taking MFL GSCEs. The actual split between the most common subjects broke down in to –
- French – 131,887 entries, slightly down from 132,036 in 2020
- German – 38,272 entries, significantly down from 42,384 in 2020
- Spanish – 114,795 entries, significantly up from 105,594 in 2020
Overall, the number of MFL GCSE entries was levelled up by the growing appetite for Spanish, which the British Council’s Vicky Gough acknowledged as a continuing step in the right direction.
“It’s encouraging that, for a second year running, record numbers of pupils chose to study Spanish”, she commented. “Hopefully we’ll see more pupils go on to choose languages at A-level and university, because the UK needs more foreign language speakers.”
When school’s back in again for a new academic year from September 2022, demand for supplementary MFL GSCE tuition is also expected to rise. It can provide transformational support for students who need extra – including 1:1 – help with their language studies. Demand is usually highest amongst Year 11 students who are approaching their mock exams, plus the real thing, in 2023.
At award-winning La Academia, we’re looking forward to school being back in, too. We have a longstanding track record of excellence for supplementary MFL GSCE support. We also offer equally well thought of GSCE tuition in all other core subjects. Get in touch for advice about your child’s needs.