Advice from ex-teachers out there....

I'm an ex-German teacher and agree with everything Alea has written. German is dying in UK schools (especially at A level), because it's considered difficult and option groups aren't considered viable. About 15 years ago, I was told that I couldn't run a GCSE group unless I had 20 pupils. A level was out of the question! Ths situation is likely to get even worse with primary languages, because the majority of pupils are studying French or Spanish. German is spoken as a first language in the EU by more people than any other - its decline in UK schools is a disgrace!

I now mark exam papers and the only schools which still seem to be able to run German A level are big sixth form colleges and independent schools, which presumably subsidise small groups.

I also earn my money from private tutoring. Ironically, I have to turn work away. Many of my students are in the same boat (school can't run groups) and it's not right that only students, whose parents can afford to pay tuition fees, should be able to do German at exam level. I also have some young adults who realise that a knowledge of German is going to be an advantage in their career.

I think that people regard Spanish as being an easier option. I loved German - it is a very poetic language and very much the language of song.

daphnedill- there are solutions out there though. When we had 3 schools with unviable numbers for German A'Level, the schools worked together to make up a joint group- and timetabling done in a way that would facilitate that. 1 out of 4 weekly lessons had to be taught after official school hours, with time given back in lieu to the teacher and travel expenses paid- and it worked really well. One student who wanted to study Italian, and there was no possibility of getting a viable group together with local schools, was funded to do A'Level at night school, with private tuition for 1 lesson per week on top. All it needs is a bit of goodwill and imagination- and that especially for a school that gets extra funding for teaching languages!

Daughter is HOD of NFL. Teaches French/Spanish. Her school just about offers A level German but it won't last. Suggests Goethe institute. Independent school, the parents could afford it when it becomes necessary. State school pupils could try other ways. If keen enough it should be possible. I'm not a teacher so I don't have any concrete opinions.

I regret not taking German at school. It was a choice between German and Greek and I chose the latter. I've made attempts to learn German in Ad Ed classes but people tended to drop out and the classes closed. I can confirm that I have found Spanish easier. There's little difference in word order from English and plurals are formed with -s. I am able to get by as a tourist and read a menu with reasonable accuracy.

granjura, I worked in a rural school. The travelling distances involved made sharing unviable. We looked into all sorts of possibilities. In the end, pupils who really wanted to study German (or any subject in a similar position) tended to leave the school and go to the nearest sixth form college. If I'm honest, they had a much better deal than if we'd tried to cobble something together.

Ah yes, we were close to a large town, with several 6th Form Colleges close by- so it was much easier, and worked really well.

As a tutor, I sometimes offer Skype lessons. I'm wondering if this might be the way forward for small groups at A level. On the home tutoring thread, somebody mentioned Interhigh (which doesn't offer German), but I believe schools will occasionally fund online lessons for school-refusers. Maybe this model would work with subjects such as German at A level. It seems unfair that it's such a postcode lottery.

So many have asked be to do Skype lessons- but i truly do not want to do so. I use Skype all the time with grand-children and daughters and friends though. Just started to do residential French courses with B&B and own bathroom and kitchen for guests- I just love the personal human contact and show around our beautiful area, both sides of the border. Skype teaching is just not for me. Glad it works for you and your students.

So school is about to re-start- what is happening with your friend's son?

No German! He is quite a sensitive lad and does not feel he can handle leaving all his friends and going to another school or sixth form college. They are still looking at distance learning options.

what a shame- perhaps will do so later. Viel Glück dabei.

He could always spend some time in Germany perfecting his language skills as he has the basics. He will have the last laugh if he does, you know!

I work at a Sixth Form College and can confirm that funding cuts have indeed occured, despite the numbers of applicants continuing to rise. Our budget cut was £500,000 and the first obvious impact was that instead of an average of 16 students in my classes this year, it was 22. This had a huge impact on everything from resources, to classroom management to the huge increase in marking time.

With regard to languages, I have seen a steady decline in this subject area over the past ten years. My daughter wanted to take Spanish A Level and there was a total of 3 students in the class in what was quite a large school 6th form. When I walk past language classes at my place of work, there are always less then 10 students per class. Until there is an increase in uptake at GCSE level, provision at A Level will continue to be a problem.

Luckygirl - I have just seen that this thread has been revived (you started it in July 2015 saying that a friend's son was unable to study A-level German at his school) Someone said that the online school Interhigh didn't offer German, but I have just looked at their syllabus and they do now - www.interhigh.co.uk/key-stage-5-curriculum/

If he is still looking for a place, this may be of interest, though the problem has probably been resolved by now.

My grandson was homeschooled to prepare for exams using this website. It was very good.