Introduction

The modern foreign languages team considers the diverse requirements of all learners at all stages of its work. The team strives to make the overall spread of its work inclusive.

We aim to promote fairness for learners:

• across the full range of attainment at all ages/stages, including those with learning difficulties and those who are gifted and talented
• who have difficulties in aspects of communication, language and literacy or for whom English may be an additional language
• with disabilities or sensory impairments
• from different cultures and religions
• of both genders and from different social groups
• recognising that learners may have more than one requirement, for example, gifted and talented learners with severe visual impairment.

When developing and carrying out our work, we ask questions such as:

• What is the range of learners affected by this work?
• Have we a reason for focusing on a specific group of learners?
• Have we given reasons for excluding any group of learners?
• Have we consulted appropriate groups of learners or their champions about the work?
• Do we know and understand how different people learn?
• Are the planned arrangements working? For example, can the signer work with our modified tests?
• Can learners from all cultural groups access our materials meaningfully? Are the materials equally motivating for girls and boys?

We keep our work under review and monitor and evaluate projects and initiatives in terms of diversity and inclusion. This informs future work and identifies where it is necessary to focus on the needs of specific groups of learners.

New arrivals

QCA has recently launched an extensive website specifically to help schools with new arrivals. This website includes a specific MFL section, explaining how language classes are able to raise the self-esteem of new arrivals with very limited English.

MFL lessons provide an opportunity for new arrivals to contribute linguistic and cultural knowledge and to become involved in classes. The MFL primary and secondary guidance is supported by numerous links and useful downloads, including the DfES publication Access and engagement in modern foreign languages - EAL.

Respect for all

These web pages provides guidance on the potential of national curriculum subjects, including MFL, for valuing diversity and challenging racism. It offers examples of good practice, providing effective learning opportunities for pupils. These focus on helping pupils understand and appreciate aspects of cultural difference, context and change, while challenging and extending their perceptions of themselves and other people.

Pupils with learning difficulties

This material has been published as a booklet that has been sent to all special schools and to local education authorities for distribution to mainstream schools with such pupils.

The booklet includes sections on:

• responding to pupils' needs when teaching MFL
• opportunities and activities at key stages 3 and 4
• performance descriptions below national curriculum level 1.

Gifted and talented pupils

This website includes sections on identifying gifted and talented pupils, inclusion issues, teaching gifted pupils, examples of units of work, activities beyond the classroom, resources, and monitoring and evaluation.

National curriculum in action

This website uses pupils' work and case study material to show what the national curriculum in modern languages looks like in practice. The examples include work by pupils working at all levels and in different contexts, including schools for pupils with special educational needs.