World class thinking. World class achieving.

St Mary’s College
GERMAN A LEVEL
Pre-course reading and guidance
 A level German is a challenging but rewarding course
to choose, and one that will provide intellectual
stimulus alongside opportunities to develop, both
personally and linguistically, during your continued
Why education at St Mary’s College. Choosing A level
allows you to move towards fluency in the language,
choose an at the same time as broadening your knowledge of
German speaking countries and culture. You will
A level in study a range of topics such as art, heritage, cinema,
politics, immigration making the course engaging and

German? diverse.
German is spoken widely across Europe and is a very
influential language in business and European politics;
so the opportunity for future travel and employment
are also something to consider.
You will find the course enriching and gain real
satisfaction from being able to truly express yourself in
German with increasing fluency as you move through
your studies.
 We use the exam board AQA and
the full specification for A level,
along with resources can be
EXAM found using the link below:
SPECIFICATION
LINKS
https://www.aqa.org.uk/subjects/l
anguages/as-and-a-
level/german-7662
 • This is a 2 year course which will be assessed via 3
exams at the end of Year 13, details of which can
by found later on in this presentation.

• In Year 12 you will cover 6 topic areas and the in-

depth study of a novel/play.

• In Year 13 you will do a further 6 topics, as well as

COURSE learning how to read and analyse a film in German.

STRUCTURE
• The exams will assess your knowledge and skills in all
12 of the topic areas studied during Year 12 and 13,
and you also write an essay on the film and book.

• For the speaking exam you are also required to

complete an independent research topic with a
German/Austrian or Swiss German theme and
present it in the exam.

• At the end of the course you will be awarded an A

level graded from A*-E.
 Paper 1:
PAPER 1 This is a combined listening,
reading and translation exam in
Duration: 2 hours which you will be tested on all 12
30 minutes of the A level topics from the 2
year course.
Marks: 100 Questions 1-4: listening section
Questions 5-8: reading section
Percentage of Question 9: translation from English
total A level: 50% to German
Question 10: translation from
German to English.
PAPER 2 Paper 2:

Duration: 2 hours
In this exam you have to write 2 essays;
one on the book you have studied and
Marks: 80 (40 for each of one on the film.
the 2 essays)

Percentage of total A
level: 20%
PAPER 3
Paper 3:
This is the speaking exam. There are 2 sections to
complete.
Duration: 5 Section 1: you are given 5 minutes to prepare a
minutes stimulus card on one of the Year 12 or 13 topics. You
preparation time, will then be required to discuss this topic for 5 minutes
with the examiner.
16-18 minutes
Section 2: in this part of the exam, you have to
exam approx. present a project that you will have spent time
researching and preparing beforehand. You choose
the title of this research project, the only stipulation
being that it must be linked to the culture or society of
Marks: 60 a German speaking country.
For more information about The Independent
Research Project, follow the link:
Percentage of https://filestore.aqa.org.uk/resources/languages/AQA
total A level: 30% -MFL-ALEVEL-TG-IRP.PDF
Breakdown of Year 12 topics
USEFUL PRE-COURSE READING AND LINKS
Topic 1: La Familie im Wandel. (Family in German speaking society)
• Vocabulary: https://www.thestudentroom.co.uk/g/revision-tests/beziehungen-
innerhalb-der-familie
• Statistics on family: https://www.destatis.de/DE/Themen/Gesellschaft-
Umwelt/Bevoelkerung/Haushalte-Familien/_inhalt.html
Topic 2: Die digitale Welt. (Technology in German speaking society)
• Vocabulary: https://quizlet.com/167079039/die-digitale-welt-21-wortschatz-
flash-cards/
• Statistics on internet use in German:
https://de.statista.com/infografik/13146/weltbevoelkerung-und-handy-internet-
und-social-media-nutzer-2018/
Topic 3: Jugendkultur: Mode, Musik und Fernsehen. (Youth Culture: fashion, music
and TV)
• Vocabulary: https://www.memrise.com/course/1234045/german-a-level-aqa-
vocabulary-and-grammar/10/
• Examples of statistics: https://de.statista.com/themen/163/jugendliche/
Breakdown of Year 12 topics
Topic 4: Feste und Traditionen. (Festivals and traditions in the German speaking
world)
• Vocabulary: https://www.memrise.com/course/1234045/german-a-level-aqa-
vocabulary-and-grammar/11/
• Information about German festivals: https://derweg.org/feste/kultur/
Topic 5: Kunst und Architektur. (Art and architecture in German speaking
countries
• Vocabulary: https://www.memrise.com/course/1234045/german-a-level-aqa-
vocabulary-and-grammar/12/
• Information about German architecture: https://www.dw.com/de/architektur-
made-in-germany/a-18602522
Topic 6: Das Berliner Kulturleben damals und heute (Berlin cultural life: then and
now)
• Vocabulary: https://www.memrise.com/course/1234045/german-a-level-aqa-
vocabulary-and-grammar/13/
• Video about Berlin: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7ZIem4SQdFU
Breakdown of Year 13 topics
USEFUL PRE-COURSE READING AND LINKS
Topic 1: Einwanderung. (Migration)
• Vocabulary: https://www.memrise.com/course/1234045/german-a-level-aqa-
vocabulary-and-grammar/14/
• Statistics: https://de.statista.com/themen/46/einwanderung/
Topic 2: Integration (Integration)
• Vocabulary: https://www.memrise.com/course/1234045/german-a-level-aqa-
vocabulary-and-grammar/15/
• Statistics: https://www.destatis.de/EN/Themes/Society-
Environment/Population/Migration-Integration/_node.html
Topic 3: Rassismus. (Racism)
• Vocabulary: https://www.memrise.com/course/1234045/german-a-level-aqa-
vocabulary-and-grammar/16/
• Statistics: https://de.statista.com/statistik/daten/studie/890184/umfrage/umfrage-
zur-problematik-von-rassismus-in-deutschland/
Breakdown of Year 13 topics
Topic 4: Deutschland und die Europäische Union. (Germany and the EU)
• Vocabulary: https://www.memrise.com/course/1234045/german-a-level-aqa-
vocabulary-and-grammar/17/
• Statistics: https://www.destatis.de/Europa/DE/Home/_inhalt.html
Topic 5: Die Politik und die Jugend (Youth politics)
• Vocabulary: https://www.memrise.com/course/1234045/german-a-level-aqa-
vocabulary-and-grammar/19/
• Statistics:
https://de.statista.com/statistik/kategorien/kategorie/900/themen/904/branche/
politik/
Topic 6: Die Wiedervereinigung und ihre Folgen (Reunification and the
consequences thereof)
• Vocabulary: https://www.memrise.com/course/1234045/german-a-level-aqa-
vocabulary-and-grammar/18/
• Statistics: https://www.destatis.de/DE/Themen/Laender-
Regionen/Regionales/Publikationen/Downloads/25-jahre-deutsche-einheit-
0007028159004.pdf?__blob=publicationFile
GRAMMAR
• Gender of nouns
• Definite and indefinite articles

CHECKLIST • Adjectival agreements

• The case system
• Pronouns: subject, object, demonstrative,
The more aspects of this possessive and relative pronouns
grammar list you can • Present tense
feel secure in applying
the rules before A level, • Perfect tense
the better! • Imperfect tense
• Future and conditional tense
• Pluperfect/future perfect and conditional perfect
tenses
• The subjunctive
• Indirect speech
• The passive voice
• Word order
• Prepositions
 Based on a true story, Sophie
THE FILM Scholl is a student in Munich in
1943 who, with her brother Hans, is
a member of the anti-war
‘Sophie Scholl – die
movement White Rose. Arrested
letzten Tage’
for distributing anti-Nazi leaflets,
Director: Marc she is tried by the then-draconian
Rothemund judicial laws of the regime and
sentenced to death by guillotine,
as are her brother and Christoph
Probst.
› https://www.youtube.com/watc
h?v=XM5A4ETW_Io
 Andri is a young man who has been raised by the Teacher (der
Lehrer) and the Mother (die Mutter) as their Jewish adopted son

THE alongside their daughter Barblin; the Teacher claims to have

rescued Andri from the anti-Semitic Blacks (die Schwarzen) in the
neighbouring country. Apart from Andri and Barblin, the other

BOOK
characters are referred to by their occupations or roles (though
most do have names). After some of twelve scenes (which are
called Bilder, meaning "pictures"), characters come forth to a
witness box and talk about Andri's death in the past tense (each
additional scene is denoted Vordergrund, which means
‘Andorra’ Max "foreground"). In this way, information about Andri's parentage
and fate is gradually revealed.
Frisch The play was written fifteen years after the end of World War II
and is more of a study of cultural prejudice than a specific
reflection on the war. However, it concerns more than just
prejudice: many of the characters have something to gain from
Andri's being a Jew: the Teacher has been able to present
himself as a Good Samaritan, the Soldier can get Barblin, the
Carpenter can make money; even the Priest can demonstrate
his Christian sympathy for the outsider. The motif of whitewashing,
with which the play starts and ends, points to hypocrisy as a
central theme.

› https://www.getabstract.com/en/summary/andorra/4857
How A level (Language) develops your cultural
knowledge and awareness
Whilst the main skill that you acquire is obviously to gain fluency in German, you will study many topics
within your A level course which will broaden your cultural awareness and intellect, keeping the course
interesting and varied. Below are some examples of the wider knowledge you will gain and how you
can find out more:
• Art:
https://www.dw.com/de/made-in-germany-ii-was-ist-deutsche-kunst/a-15964792
• Gastronomy:
https://www.daskochrezept.de/internationale-kueche/deutsche-kueche
• Architecture:
https://www.dw.com/de/architektur-made-in-germany/a-18602522
• Music:
https://easy-deutsch.de/german-music/
• Films:
https://www.kino.de/filme/laender/deutschland/
• Politics:
https://www.welt.de/politik/deutschland/
• Geography:
https://www.tatsachen-ueber-deutschland.de/de/deutschland-auf-einen-blick/geografie-und-klima
Wider skills
Through A level German you will also learn how to…

• analyse literature
• study a film
• debate controversial issues
• discuss current affairs and politics
• discuss philosophy and ethics
• research and present a project
• present a coherent and clear argument
• write essays
• improve your English
Extra curricular: books, poetry, films to
watch
German NEWSPAPERS:
German NOVELS:
• Die Welt
• Heinrich Böll Die verlorene Ehre der
Katharina Blum • Die Zeit
• Bertolt Brecht Mutter Courage und ihre FILMS
Kinder
• Good bye, Lenin! Wolfgang Becker
• Friedrich Dürrenmatt Der Besuch der alten (2003)
Dame
• Das Leben der Anderen Florian
• Max Frisch Andorra Henckel von Donnersmarck (2006)
• Heinrich Heine Gedichte – Buch der • Die fetten Jahre sind vorbei Hans
Lieder Weingartner (2005)
• Jana Hensel Zonenkinder • Almanya – Willkommen in
Deutschland Yasemin Samdereli
• Franz Kafka Die Verwandlung
(2011)
• Wladimir Kaminer Russendisko
• Sophie Scholl – Die letzten Tage
• Siegfried Lenz Fundbüro Marc Rothemund (2005)

• Bernhard Schlink Der Vorleser • Lola rennt Tom Tykwer (1998)

Contact details for teachers

Mr Lowe: [email protected]

Mrs Marshall: [email protected]