Curriculum research review series: languages

A language curriculum needs to be planned carefully for pupils’ progress by considering the building blocks of the subject (in languages, the sounds, words and rules about how these connect to create sentences and meanings) and the sequence of these blocks.

This is not a reductive approach. The goals of having pupils broaden their horizons, converse fluently with others, fully explore cultures and strengthen their economic prospects can only be reached if we build firm foundations of language learning. Only by mastering the basics can pupils engage fully in the process of language learning, which they can then use to communicate about an increasingly wide range of themes. With increasing linguistic ability, cultural awareness can become ever more refined. To improve learners’ understanding and production of language, a steady development in understanding of phonics, vocabulary, grammar and their interplay is needed.

Typically, language assessment systems incorporate these 3 ‘pillars’:

• the system of the sounds of a language and how these are represented in written words (or scripts other than Roman)

• vocabulary

• grammar, including inflectional and/or derivational features (the systems for changing the form of a word and for creating new words, respectively) and syntax

We refer to these 3 pillars as phonics, vocabulary and grammar throughout this review.

Even a cursory view of GCSE (foundation then higher) and A-level specifications shows that pupils are expected to understand and produce increasingly complex language up these pillars. The Common European Framework of Reference (CEFR) also embeds these expectations.

Language is more than the simple sum of its parts. Models of language ability mention other competencies that enable communication with different kinds of people, in different contexts, for different purposes.

• sociolinguistic competence (the understanding of how social context affects language use; this clearly includes cultural awareness)

• pragmatic competence (the ability to understand the relationship between what is said and what is intended)

• discourse competence (the ability to express oneself coherently across longer stretches of language)

These are in addition to a core of linguistic knowledge of vocabulary, grammar and phonics.

However, when learning languages, the main tasks for beginners are:

• learning the sounds, vocabulary and grammar of the language

• understanding and producing these when they are combined

Learners understand language when reading and listening. They produce language when speaking and writing. Speaking, listening, reading and writing are the 4 ‘modalities’ of language.

Through learning and practice, the range, complexity and accuracy of the grammatical features and the breadth and depth of learners’ vocabulary knowledge will increase over time. The length of speech or text/discourse being understood or produced will do the same. For example, to be better at reading comprehension, learners need to become faster and more accurate at:

• decoding sound–symbol correspondences (how different combinations of letters map to different sounds)

• recognising words

• understanding how the words are ‘glued’ together with grammar

This enables learners to become successful readers because it frees up their mental capacity to understand implied meanings and to process information across larger chunks of text.

We will discuss more fully the differences between novice and expert learners in languages later in this review. This novice–expert axis is at the heart of curriculum planning, given expectations at GCSE, A level, and higher levels in the CEFR. Lower-level processes, like recognising sounds or words, take up more of beginning learners’ processing capacity. Over time and with practice, knowledge becomes more accessible. This means that recalling it becomes faster and more automatic, demands less attention and effort and results in fewer errors. Eventually, learners will have spare cognitive resources to focus on other things, such as more complex words and structures. They will also become more adept at higher-level cognitive processes and competencies.

There are similarities between learning to read and to write in our first language and learning to do so in another language. Some of the concepts that lie behind early reading and early writing (and in particular, systematic synthetic phonics) are also relevant in the languages curriculum. The step-by-step, explicit approach to phonics and spelling can transfer to the languages classroom.

Phonics

Clear and reliable pronunciation and the links between sounds and spelling are integral parts of second language learning.

A strong awareness of phonology (the sounds that convey meaning, like the difference between ‘back’ and ‘pack’) is important. When listening to the language, learners’ ability to understand and visualise the language is supported by having a strong phonological awareness. The ability to decode words (turn the written word into sounds) also helps learners when reading texts, enhances autonomy and can improve vocabulary learning.

We know that knowledge of sound–spelling relations is critical. However, there is little strong evidence to support one prescribed order of learning sound–spelling relations at a fine level of detail. As with grammar, teaching needs to explicitly draw attention to phonics (sounds and script) to ensure that language learning is as efficient as possible for as many learners as possible. This includes those who may be less sensitive to new sounds and new sound–spelling relations. There is evidence that knowledge of the first-language sound–spelling systems can be a very strong influence on learning a second system in a foreign language.

Clearly, the number of unfamiliar sound–spelling correspondences varies between languages when compared with English. There are, for example, significantly more unfamiliar sound–spelling correspondences in French than in Spanish or German.

Based on the above, high-quality languages education may have the following features

• Curriculum plans show clear logic behind progression in phonics, including around when to teach differences between English sound–spelling correspondences and those of the target language.

• Planned practice and review of phonemes and how these link to graphemes is in place.

• Curriculum plans show how small differences in sound can unlock meaning for pupils.

Vocabulary

Vocabulary is crucial for learners to become proficient in languages. Studies show that having a wider vocabulary correlates with many other aspects of a learner’s language ability, such as reading ability and grammatical awareness. It therefore needs to be built explicitly into the curriculum. The choice of vocabulary in the curriculum should be carefully considered, especially in view of the learners’ age and how often words occur in the language (that is, word frequency).

Several studies have estimated that the 2,000 most common words in a language represent more than 80% of the words in most written and spoken texts. This highlights the importance of considering words’ frequency when planning a languages curriculum. Clearly, an ability to understand and use these words has an immediate practical use. However, research also suggests that high-frequency words serve as ‘anchor points’ to help learners navigate texts, both spoken and written.

Less frequent words can also be useful to suit the individual learner and the kinds of situations they are likely to need language for. Many schemes of work and textbooks are based around topic areas like hobbies and holidays. Themes and topics can be practical ways of organising vocabulary. However, learners need to be able to understand and use words across a wide variety of contexts, not just when talking about one particular topic. There are several reasons for this, including that:

• word meaning and use can vary with linguistic or socio-linguistic context

• it is easier for learners to remember words if they appear across topics (as they encounter them more often)

• exam boards expect learners to be able to transfer topic-specific vocabulary to other themes

As learners expand their vocabulary knowledge, semantic networks (clusters of related words) will emerge. These will be useful across and beyond topics. Learners will be able to use lexical sets in different grammatical constructions, rather than using one set of vocabulary working with one type of grammatical construction.

Exam specifications often separate vocabulary into lists of high-frequency words and themes. Other ways of organising vocabulary lists are also possible, such as by part of speech (noun, verb and so on) or alphabetical order.

When considering word knowledge, curriculum leaders need to look at dimensions other than simply the number of vocabulary items. Milton usefully divides word knowledge into 3 components:

• the breadth or size of the vocabulary (number of words)

• the depth of knowledge (for example, whether pupils both understand the word and are able to use it appropriately; whether pupils know different word forms across genders and singular/plural forms; and what synonyms and antonym relations are attached to a word)

• fluency (or automaticity and speed of recall)

Curriculum plans should also ensure that, when vocabulary is introduced, learners have the opportunity to use words in both comprehension and production. This should be in both the oral and written modalities. This includes sentences and texts/discourse that pupils produce themselves in writing or in speech. Vocabulary practice across different modalities is likely to better embed vocabulary in memory, increase learners’ fluency (the speed with which they access words from memory) and allow learners to encounter and/or use words in different contexts.

Based on the above, high-quality languages education may have the following features

• Curriculum plans recognise that vocabulary is an important component of language knowledge.

• Curriculum plans recognise the importance of building a strong verb lexicon, especially in the early stages of language learning.

• Curriculum planning of vocabulary, grammar and phonic knowledge and progression should go hand in hand, as they are all related and connected.

• Curriculum leaders consider both the breadth and depth of vocabulary knowledge they will teach. They:

• Teachers aim to increase learners’ automatic and fluent recall through:

• Curriculum leaders also think strategically about:

Grammar

Another element in making progress in languages is developing grammatical understanding. Grammatical progression needs to be carefully planned across time. Pupils need to embed grammar in their memory so that they do not get confused or demotivated as structures and concepts gradually become more complex. Current examination specifications at both GCSE and A level contain a substantial amount of grammar that pupils are expected to master. The CEFR also outlines grammatical progression across ability levels.

It is important that there is a logic behind grammatical progression in curriculum plans, from simpler to more complex concepts and structures. For example, leaders need to decide when to introduce:

• different tenses

• agreements on verbs for person and number

• agreement on nouns and adjectives

• negation

• interrogatives

• different parts of a paradigm; at an early point in language learning, the whole paradigm may overwhelm the working memory as learners can only process a limited number of new features at any one time

Sometimes, rather than ensuring that learners understand different structures, especially at the early stages of learning, teachers and textbooks provide them with ‘ready-made sentences or short texts that satisfied exam requirements’. If leaders teach fixed phrases initially, they must ensure that they also teach pupils to manipulate the words and grammar they contain, as soon as sensible. Generally, only a very few highly frequent and useful phrases should be taught without helping learners to manipulate their component parts. An example of this is ‘s’il vous plaît’ in French.

Certain factors influence the difficulty of grammar for the learner. These factors can help curriculum leaders to consider the sequencing of grammar, for example:

• how easy the grammar is for the learner to spot and identify (‘salience’)

• the ease of understanding its function

• its frequency (and therefore its usefulness, different forms of verbs ‘be’ and ‘have’, for example)

• whether the grammar is cross-linguistically complex (works differently from other languages that they already know)

• how generalisable and regular the grammar is

There are different theoretical views about:

• whether an order in which grammatical concepts are learned exists for second-language learners

• why such an order might exist

• whether instruction can influence such an order

We have looked at research on learning in naturalistic contexts (such as living in a foreign country), where learning is incidental and implicit. In this context, research finds that second-language learners’ grammatical development is aligned to a similar order as that when learning a mother tongue. However, this may differ in instructed contexts like lessons. Here, exposure to the target language is limited and learning is largely intentional and explicit. There is now a strong consensus that ‘routes’ of learning can vary between learners. For example, routes may be affected by the learners’ first language or individual differences between them.

More importantly, there is also evidence that drawing learners’ attention to aspects of grammar and practising them can benefit learning, improve efficiency and speed up learners’ progression. Indeed, explicit grammar instruction can have a positive impact on how efficiently pupils learn grammatical concepts,, while revisiting grammar systematically ensures that the taught concepts and structures are embedded in pupils’ memory.

In addition to grammar sequencing considerations for the explicit teaching of grammar, and systematic practice, curriculum planning for grammar progression should also take into account learners’ vocabulary size. Vocabulary knowledge is linked to grammatical knowledge. For example, a good verb lexicon is positively associated with the development of knowledge about verbs (for tense, person, number and so on).

Over time and with practice, pupils need to start understanding and using grammar creatively in a range of contexts and across modalities (speaking, writing, reading and listening). This will help them establish reliable and fast mastery of grammar knowledge incrementally through a structured approach and scaffolded practice. This ought to be reflected in curriculum plans and lesson resources.

Based on the above, high-quality languages education may have the following features

• When planning the curriculum for grammatical progress, leaders consider the nature and rate of grammatical progression, the complexity of grammatical concepts and structures, and which aspects of a grammatical structure are introduced and when (such as which parts of a verb paradigm).

• Leaders make sure that all pupils can understand grammatical concepts and structures rather than being required to work it out for themselves, through:

• Teachers consider productive use of grammar in free writing and speech in a range of contexts. Using a language spontaneously is central to pupils’ language ability and based on their ability to manipulate language.

• The curriculum includes ample opportunity to revisit the same grammar in different contexts, for different tasks, with a range of vocabulary.