COURSES

Italian
Overview
Are you looking to improve and perfect your Italian
language skills after GCSE or are you a top linguist
excited by the challenge of learning a new language
from scratch to A level in two years
Famous for its food and wine, beautiful historical
cities, design and fashion Italy truly is the style
capital of Europe. Every year millions of tourists
flock to its cities, go to ski in the Alps or enjoy the
beaches. Italy is a country steeped in culture and
history and many of the world’s artistic treasures
are to be found there. Italy has had a vast cultural
impact on the world and names such as Dante,
Leonardo da Vinci, Galileo, Vivaldi, Machiavelli and
Pirandello indicate how knowledge of the Italian
language opens up the possibility of exploring one
of the world’s richest cultural traditions. Employers
are increasingly seeking people who speak both
Italian and English.
Knowledge of Italian will make you stand out from
other candidates seeking a job who haven’t had the
opportunity to study the language to such a high
level. Italian is also an important language for people
considering careers in the arts, gastronomy, music,
linguistics and international relations.
Approach
The standard required at AS and A2 is a great deal
more rigorous than at GCSE; it requires a sound
understanding of grammar and the vocabulary areas
become more complex. Good listening and speaking
skills are necessary, as is a logical mind which copes
well with learning grammar and vocabulary. At A2,
the ability to write well-structured essays and an
enjoyment of literature is an advantage.
You will be expected to take a lot more responsibility
for your progress, particularly through regular
listening and reading in Italian outside lessons. The
learning of languages is best done little and often,
hence the need for independent work to build your
vocabulary and listening and reading skills.
Assessment is by terminal exam with two units at AS
and two at A2 level. At AS the exams test the same
skills as above and they have equal weighting. At A2
there is another speaking exam, worth 17.5% of the
overall A level mark, and there is a combined paper
worth 32.5% of the overall mark, with a translation
from English to Italian, a language essay and a
research-based essay written under exam conditions.
In the classroom we make every effort to use
authentic and up to date materials so that our pupils
understand what is going on in modern day Italy.
Pupils also have individual lessons with the Italian
assistant to help them develop their oral proficiency.
We have also run successful language trips to
Venice and recently to Imperia with pupils from
Eton College.
The majority of pupils who have studied Italian for
A level have continued the subject at university.
The opportunity for top linguists with a high GCSE
grade or equivalent in French, Spanish or Latin to
start Italian as a beginner is popular and normally
leads to excellent grades.
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Millfield Sixth Form Courses 2014-2015