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Language Trends 2024

Unprecedented package of support for German from the Goethe-Institut as report finds that German entries continue to drop at GCSE and A-level

15 July 2024

According to new research released on Monday, language learning – and German in particular – is facing challenges in English schools. The British Council’s Language Trends England 2024 survey finds that German entries continue to drop at GCSE and A-level.

The Goethe-Institut UK is working hard to reverse this trend and to boost numbers of German learners in schools across England. It is part of the National Consortium for Languages Education (NCLE), which was established in 2023 to re-energise language learning in schools in England. NCLE initiatives include an unprecedented package of support for German delivered by the Goethe-Institut.

In a relatively short time span, the organisation has already observed growing momentum in its direct engagement with schools and learners.

Andrea Pfeil, Director Language Department at the Goethe-Institut, says:
“The Goethe-Institut has witnessed the transformative power of language learning over the past year. Since NCLE began its work, we have seen tremendous momentum growing. We continuously collaborate with ambitious and dedicated teachers who go the extra mile to equip their students with a global skill set, linguistic competencies, and diverse cultural experiences. These educators, along with their students, actively participate in our career roadshows, German Days, and numerous other youth programmes. Our popular employability events provide students with the opportunity to see how German can significantly broaden their career prospects, offering access to diverse opportunities across a range of industries and sectors. Our goal is to provide all students and teachers with the opportunity to gain insights into German culture and to reverse the decline of German language education in UK schools.”
 
Over the past year, the Goethe-Institut UK has directly reached over 8,800 pupils from primary and secondary schools across the country with its diverse and wide-ranging youth-tailored programmes.
  • 1,440 participants took part in German Days, immersive visits for school groups to the Goethe-Institut London
  • 600 pupils have registered for the Gimagine Award, a new self-learning programme for 14–18-year-olds which can be completed as part of the Duke of Edinburgh’s Award
  • 1,000 pupils benefited from Goethe-Institut-led art, music and culture workshops at their schools. These included workshops and competitions with German authors and celebrities, e.g. a cooking workshop with Maya from Fitgreenmind, a popular German vegan influencer with over 3M followers on social media.
  • Visits to Germany also gave young people a first taste of German(y), whether it was through creative exchanges in Berlin or football camps in Hamburg.  
  • More than 4,000 visitors from over 150 schools and universities have attended the Goethe-Institut’s popular Career Roadshows, a careers advice fair that has so far travelled to 8 towns and cities in the UK and showcases the many career and study opportunities that open up with German.
The Goethe-Institut has supported schools and school leaders through its new Vorsprung Deutsch programme which has been designed to address short-term recruitment challenges faced by German departments. In addition to this, the Goethe-Institut has facilitated immersive study tours to Berlin for over 60 key decision-makers within the UK education system. In close cooperation with the German Embassy, these targeted engagements have effectively underscored the crucial importance of German and language provisions in schools nationwide, thereby amplifying awareness and advocacy for linguistic diversity in educational settings. 

The Goethe-Institut’s German Expert Mentors (GEMs) have been supporting teachers in 45 schools across England with free coaching sessions since last October. The GEMs offer wide-ranging specialisms which are matched with the requirements of each deployment. The most popular request has been for 'Refresh and Update your Resources' as schools think about updating their KS3 and KS4 curriculum to meet the demands of the new GCSE.

The Goethe-Institut will continue to support teachers through upcoming, fully funded upskilling opportunities such as: The Goethe-Institut is committed to playing an active part in broadening access to language learning and international exchange alongside its partner organisations.

Further information about the Goethe-Institut’s offers for students, teachers and schools can be found on its website www.goethe.de/gimagine

Notes to Editors

The National Consortium of Languages Education (NCLE) was appointed by the DfE in 2023 to boost languages education in England. It is a Consortium led by UCL Institute of Education together with the British Council and the Goethe-Institut, Germany’s national cultural body.
Fifteen Language Hubs have been set up across England, each lead school working with up to seven partner secondary schools and affiliate schools, and up to five feeder primary schools. This supports over 100 schools directly, with reach extending to 200 or more schools who are benefitting from the programme.
The hubs are strengthening system leadership to transform languages education through a dual focus on supporting teachers’ pedagogy through CPD, and addressing structural challenges such as increasing uptake in Key Stage 4 and Key Stage 5 especially among  disadvantaged students and boys, improving primary-secondary continuity of learning, boosting the number of students studying German and better recognizing and supporting the rich diversity of languages in addition to English spoken by one in every five of our pupils.
NCLE - National Consortium for Languages Education (ucl.ac.uk)

The Goethe-Institut is the cultural institute of the Federal Republic of Germany with a global reach. With 151 institutes in 98 countries, it promotes knowledge of German abroad, encourages international cultural exchange and conveys an image of contemporary Germany. The Goethe-Institut’s ties with partner institutions in many other places give it about 1,100 points of contact around the world.
Engaging audiences interested in culture, language and education, the Goethe-Institut London has been operating since 1962. It is located on Exhibition Road in South Kensington, offering a broad variety of scope and spaces with nearby access to world-class institutions.
www.goethe.de/uk 

The GIMAGINE initiative by the Goethe-Institut UK promotes and supports the learning of German as a foreign language in the UK. The project centres around students, teachers and schools. Apart from offering initiatives for professional advancement to German teachers, the project can fund learning German through scholarships and provides schools with classroom materials, teaching resources and hands-on support with setting up German clubs.
www.goethe.de/gimagine

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Contact

For any questions or if you require further information, please don't hesitate to get in touch. 

Christiane Eck 
Press and Public Relations

christiane.eck@goethe.de

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