French

Why choose French for S3 and beyond?

Be Bilingual

• French is the official language of 29 countries in the world. French and English are the only languages spoken as a native language on 5 continents
• Learning a foreign language develops a variety of skills – communication, presentation, problem solving, organisation and independence
• Contrary to common belief – not everyone speaks English! 75% of the world’s population speaks no English at all
• Learning French can improve your English as it heightens your awareness of structure and grammar

Get good results

• The French Department at Waid gets consistently good results – we have the statistics to prove it!

Go Further

• Being able to speak another language is useful when you travel abroad
• A language qualification can give you a competitive edge over an opponent when applying for college or university
• Most language courses at college and university include a term or year in the country of the language you are studying
• Even students on non-language courses can sometimes choose to go abroad on student exchanges, or do an element of study in a foreign country

Get a good job

A language qualification is attractive to employers because:

• The UK trades with over 200 countries worldwide (Source: Trade Partners UK, 2002)
• 60% of business in the UK is done with non English-speaking countries
• It is reckoned that 20% of UK businesses are losing business because they don’t have employees who speak foreign languages? “If I want to sell you something, then I’ll speak your language, if you want to sell me something, il faut le faire en français!”
• It is estimated that people who speak a foreign language can earn on average
  • o 20% more than those who don’t