Collège Middle School

CURRICULUM
All students study the national curriculum in French in addition to the Anglophone Section subjects. The Anglophone schedule in Collège consists of six hours of lessons per week in the two Section subjects: English and History-Geography. At the end of Troisième our students sit the Diplôme national du brevet, option internationale.

Mr Graeme Arthur, Head of English

The English Department

The English Department at The Anglophone Section is dedicated to the intellectual curiosity, analytical dexterity, and creative thinking of our students; we foster reading, writing, and oral skills through a broad selection of relevant, challenging and engaging texts. Our teachers are all native speakers of the English language, qualified in Anglophone countries and replete with a wealth of experience that enables us to encourage our pupils to reach beyond themselves to attain the very utmost possible to each.

Our belief is that by using a range of inspiring texts to stimulate our classes, we can not only develop sophisticated reading skills, but also build the English writing skills of grammar, punctuation, spelling and composition through them. Our approach to learning is discussion based, encouraging our pupils to articulate their views in each and every lesson. We actively encourage independent learning, provide analytical frameworks for essay writing and model how to be precise, succinct and articulate in oral exams.

At the Anglophone Section we know that learning English is the main reason that your children are with us. We want to make that learning experience enjoyable and rewarding for the pupils, engaging them with the language through texts as varied as some of the great works of English literature to contemporary news stories in a range of media forms. Our belief is that we can use a range of inspiring texts to stimulate our classes, we can not only develop sophisticated reading skills, but also use our expertise to build the English writing skills of grammar, punctuation, spelling and composition through them.

The English Department at The Anglophone Section is dedicated to the intellectual curiosity, analytical dexterity, and creative thinking of our students; we foster reading, writing, and oral skills through a broad selection of relevant, challenging and engaging texts. We are all native speakers of the English language, qualified in Anglophone countries and replete with a wealth of experience that enables us to encourage our pupils to reach beyond themselves to attain the very utmost possible to each. We believe in the importance of literature and use it in the way it is meant to be used – to inspire.

From Shakespeare to Salinger and Marlowe to McCarthy, you’ll find your child arriving at table with new and interesting friends to talk about. Our experience with, and love of, great books helps us to know how to guide our students in their appreciation of some of the classic poetry, plays and prose works written in the English language. Our approach to learning is discussion based, encouraging our pupils to articulate their views in each and every lesson. This approach allows them to enjoy their involvement whilst being encouraged to develop their own thinking, which in turn positively influences their writing in both creative and analytical forms.

Throughout the Collège and Lycée years our curriculum are integrated to create progress towards the final outcomes that will ensure our students can adapt to university life. We actively encourage independent learning, provide analytical frameworks for essay writing and model how to be precise, succinct and articulate in oral exams. As all of our teachers have experience of examining, we are well placed to give pupils the best advice for how to achieve in these highly pressurised situations.

And yet exams are only a part of what we aim for. Important, of course, but not everything. More than anything we want the young people we teach to finish their time with us having enjoyed themselves, having learned something that they will take with them wherever they go, having become somehow finer than they would have become without meeting us. Above all, through the guidance we provide, we want them to realise that they belong in the world.

“That is part of the beauty of all literature. You discover that your longings are universal longings, that you’re not lonely and isolated from anyone. You belong.”

― F. Scott Fitzgerald

More than anything we want the young people we teach to finish their time with us having enjoyed themselves.

The main focus of the early college years is to build upon the English skills the pupils already possess, whether they have been with the Anglophone Section in the primary years, or join us subsequently. Our objective is to enable these youngsters to enjoy themselves through the literary, non-fiction and media texts we look at; it is our firm belief that by providing engaging, interesting and challenging materials, we ensure that the kids learn more successfully. Each year is framed around five central units of study – a prose work, poetry, a drama text, a non-fiction genre and a media topic – and whilst each unit has a variety of tasks associated with it, each leads to both a creative and analytical final outcome which are assessed to enable our teachers to track each child’s progress. In addition to this, we carry out diagnostic assessments at the start of 6e and at the end of each of these years to track progress and inform our planning to assure that areas of weakness are addressed. If you wish to see an outline of these years in tabular form, click here
During the last year of college and the first year of lycee, the pupils follow the Cambridge International IGCSEs in both First Language English and Literature. These challenging qualifications develop both their analytical reading skills and their ability to write effectively. We take the coursework option with both qualifications which enables their teachers to intervene directly in the drafting process and thereby challenge the students to stretch themselves further to push the full limits of their potential. The coursework also means that half the marks for First Language English and a quarter of the marks for Literature are up for grabs – consequently our pupils sit the exams at the end of seconde with a considerable amount of the work upon which the IGCSE is assessed, already completed. There are three pieces of coursework for the First Language English IGCSE, two of which are creative and one more analytical. The two pieces required for the Literature IGCSE are both analytical essays, one in response to a Shakespeare play and the other a response to a prose text; in both cases the class teacher selects a text which s/he feels will be motivating, engaging and stimulating for the youngsters in the class. We also prepare the students for the Diplôme National du Brevet – Option Internationale which is a 20 minute oral exam taken in June of the Troisième year. The oral is based on the work they have done throughout the year with the main emphasis being on the Shakespeare text studied. As the Brevet for English is a test of oral fluency, and the standard of English in the section is high, it is not unusual for pupils to achieve full marks for it.

Mr Will Rennie, Head of History-Geography

The History-Geography Department

The History department at the Anglophone Section are passionate about their subject, highly motivated, and keen to engage students and support them to reach their full potential.

The study of History involves so much more than just looking at events from the past; it lets us understand why changes took place and why these changes matter to us today. History is the story of how people have lived and thought at various times throughout the past. It involves the study of both ordinary and extraordinary people who lived in exciting times.

In studying History, students learn how to collect and analyse evidence. They learn how to think critically, identifying bias and evaluating arguments. History also teaches Anglophone students how to communicate clearly in English, formulating their own arguments, presenting them persuasively in both written and oral assignments, and supporting them with evidence. We also aim to complement the French programme of histoire-géo in Collège and Lycée and lay the basis for future study at iGCSE, BFI and beyond.

We believe that History is interesting in its own right but is also useful as it teaches students valuable skills.

History-Geography Curriculum

Archaeology and ‘what is history?’, Ancient Mesopotamia, Ancient Greece, Ancient Rome, India in the 4th and 5th centuries.
The Early English Church, c.300-900 and the Medieval Catholic Church, the emergence and spread of Islam, the Crusades, the Renaissance and the Reformation, European voyages of discovery.
The power of the English monarchy, 1500 to 1800, The growth of democracy in Britain, 1800-1930, The Impact of the Agricultural and Industrial Revolution in Britain
Students begin their study of the Edexcel International GCSE History course. This course looks at four exciting and interesting periods of modern history. The two units studied in Troisième are ‘The origins and the course of WW1 1905-1918’ and ‘Germany, 1918-1945.’ Students also prepare for the Diplôme National du Brevet – Option Internationale – which is a 20 minute oral exam in June. There is no written paper and geography is not examined.

Curriculum Presentation

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