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How do I prepare for the subject-specific elements of my interview?

Please be prepared to deliver a five-minute presentation relating to any aspects of teaching and learning a foreign language that interest you. Your presentation should be in English.

This will be a verbal presentation. Please do not use any audio-visual equipment.

In addition to delivering your presentation, you will be asked to complete the following two additional tasks during your interview:

  • a short reading/writing task intended to assess your English fluency and comprehension
  • a written task in the main teaching language on a general topic. The topic for this task will be provided on the day of your interview.

Please let us know if any adjustments are needed for you to access these tasks.

If you have any questions about the presentation that you need to prepare, or about the reading/writing tasks, please contact the MFL tutor, Barbara King (b.king@reading.ac.uk), before the date of your interview.

Fees and funding information for Modern Foreign Languages

PGCE Secondary Modern Foreign Languages (MFL) programme information

The MFL cohort usually consists of 20-25 RPTs (Reading Partnership Teachers), with an age range from 20 to over 50. The vast majority of the cohort are postgraduates, but we also run the Qualified Teacher Status (QTS) module for a degree in Modern Languages with QTS for a small number of undergraduates who join us for university sessions.

We have RPTs from the UK, Europe, North Africa, and South America, who speak a range of languages in addition to our official French, German, and Spanish.

Most RPTs have two teaching languages (French, Spanish and German). Pre-course Subject Knowledge Enhancement (SKE) courses are available for applicants’ first and second teaching language if deemed appropriate. The completion of such a course needs to be a condition of an applicant’s PGCE offer in order for them to qualify for SKE funding, so please ask us at the interview if you feel you will need subject knowledge enhancement.

MFL sessions are taught in English to the whole cohort with examples in French, German, and Spanish, and opportunities to work on a particular language for practical work.

The sessions usually start with the presentation and discussion of principles for teaching and learning in a particular area, followed by hands-on, practical tasks, preparing RPTs for the classroom.

An overview of the taught sessions for the current year is provided below to give a sense of the programme.

Date  Session 
Monday 5 September 2022   09:30: Course introduction; language learning experiences and beliefs 
11:30: Course practicalities 
13:30: Teaching sequences 
Tuesday 6 September 2022   09:30: Principles of language teaching and curriculum rationales 
11:30: Building on prior learning 1 
13:30: Setting the context for MFL learning: GCSE 
16:00: Introduction to micro-teaching
Thursday 8 September 2022 – Independent Study  National curriculum 
Subject knowledge 
Communicative language teaching and oral interaction 
Monday 12 September 2022   09:30: Communicative language teaching; input, output and interaction  
14:00: Teaching through the target language 
Tuesday 13 September 2022   09:30: Observing teachers at work 
11:00: Individual tutorials 
16:00: Meet RPTs from last year 
Wednesday 14 September 2022 – Independent Teaching  Vocabulary and phonics 
Reading, listening and metacognition 
Developing oral skills 
Monday 19 September 2022   09:30: Teaching and learning vocabulary and phonics 
13:30: Question and answer 
15:00: Subject knowledge work
Tuesday 20 September 2022   13:30: Assignment 1 
Monday 26 September 2022   09:30: Introduction to lesson planning 
13:30: Teaching reading, listening and metacognition 1  
Tuesday 27 September 2022   09:30: Developing pupils’ oral skills 1 and 2 
15:40: Mentor meeting 
Monday 3 October 2022   09:30: Assignment 1 – Observation  
13:30: Teaching reading, listening and metacognition 2 – Focus on listening 
15:00: Micro-teaching – Introducing new language  
Monday 10 October 2022   09:30: Lesson planning part 2 – Adapting resources 
13:30: Micro-teaching – Information-gap tasks 
15:15: Student-led Mini Seminar (SLMS) – Motivation and inclusion 
Tuesday 11 October 2022   09:30: Creativity and games 
13:30: SLMS – Grammar 
15:00: Micro-teaching – Reading/pairwork 
Monday 17 October 2022   09:30: Grammar 1 
13:30: Teaching at KS4 
Tuesday 18 October 2022   09:30: Behaviour – Managing the MFL classroom 
13:30: Individual needs 
Monday 31 October 2022   09:30: Assignment 1 – Writing reflection  
13:30: Adaptive teaching  
Monday 14 November 2022 
09:30: A-level – Bridging the gap 
13:30: Building on prior learning 2 
Micro-teaching – Creative task: running a game; Grammar 
Monday 21 November 2022   Assignment tutorials 
Monday 28 November 2022   09:30: SLMS – Writing 
10:30: Developing writing skills 
13:30: Managing assessment, recording and reporting 
Monday 12 December 2022   09:30: Group progress tutorial, peer review of targets and taking stock; looking ahead to medium-term planning 
13:30: Revisiting behaviour for learning for the Independent Teaching Phase 
14:45: Meaningful practice 1 – Spontaneous speaking revisited, with a focus on adaptive teaching 
Tuesday 13 December 2022   09:30: Meaningful practice 2 – Using video, literature and authentic texts as part of adaptive teaching
13:30: Assignment 1 – Troubleshooting 
15:00: End-of-term celebration
Tuesday 3 January 2023   13:30: Assignment 2
Wednesday 4 January 2023   09:30: Grammar 2 
13:30: Assessment for learning
Monday 20 February 2023   09:30: Assignment 2 – Medium-term planning  
13:30: Content and language integrated learning/cross-curricular issues and diversity 
Tuesday 21 February 2023   09:30: Teaching post-16  
13:30: Tutorials 
Monday 27 February 2023   09:30: Assignment 2 – Preparing for Main Block 
11:00: Revisiting assessment: markbooks and data 
13:30: Medium-Term Plan (MTP) workshop 
Monday 20 March 2023   13:30: Assignment 2 – Revisiting key teaching principles and guidelines 
Monday 17 April 2023   09:30: Assignment 2 – Revisiting key principles and guidelines 
13:30: Tutorials 
Monday 19 June 2023   09:30: Sharing session 
13:30: Building on prior learning 3 
15:15: What’s new? Current developments in MFL 
Tuesday 20 June 2023   13:30: Preparing you for the Early Career Teacher (ECT) year as an MFL teacher  
15:00: End-of-course celebration