One of the most interesting developments in modern foreign language teaching recently has been the announcement by UCL  (University College London) that from 2012 all applicants to any of their undergraduate degree courses will have to have a GCSE in a modern foreign language. UCL as part of the University of London is one of the most respected universities in the country and perhaps this move will be followed in the coming months by other big ranking universities – Warwick, Bristol, York, Manchester and so on.  It is not difficult to see why this is the case – whether it is because foreign languages are seen to be more difficult academically than some other subjects or whether it shows a better awareness of, and preparation for, the new global workplace, and it is certainly something UIC fully supports.

You might know that in England it is no longer compulsory to study a foreign language after the end of year 9 (14 years old). CILT (the Centre for information on language teaching) published in its annual report the news that a large number of schools have abandoned the governments target of 50% of 14-16 year old students studying a modern foreign language.  CILT has always stressed that a failure to address this weakness in our national education will do little to help us in a globally competitive market place and whilst CILT is not suggesting a return to compulsory GSCEs (that fight perhaps having been lost) this move by UCL can best be seen as part of a wider move towards a situation where it becomes a preferred choice for English students to take a foreign language.

UIC has always taught foreign languages – we recognise that the environment which has made our English language course so successful (qualified and energetic teachers, practical and communicative syllabuses, small classes, flexible start dates and so on) are easily transferable into teaching other languages. It doesn’t have to be anything like the typical school experience – one which unfortunately put so many people off studying languages in the past.  We offer a very wide range of evening classes – so it’s never too late to brush up what you learned (or didn’t learn) in school or to start learning a new language. Never too late to change your life!

This entry was posted on Thursday, January 28th, 2010 at 10:13 am and is filed under Business, Foreign Languages, UIC London. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.