Course Guide

INTRODUCTION

Welcome to your Wolsey Hall Guide to the Cambridge IGCSE German course. Please take the time to read carefully through this guide. It will explain how the course is structured, how to get the most out of the course and how your work will be assessed. At the end of this guide you will find the Programme of Study for the course which shows how the course links to the CAIE syllabus.

This course will lead you step-by-step through the syllabus by way of video links, quizzes, assignments and, of course, the Course Book so that by the end you are confident and keen to enter the exam to show off all you have learnt.

When you learn German, you are joining an international community.  Not only is it the official language of Germany, it is also spoken in Austria and Switzerland, as well as in certain African countries.  German is a key language of business and German businesses play a large role on the world stage.  German is the language of great literature and philosophy. At Wolsey Hall, we think German is not only important, but also fun!  We’ve hand-picked the best course book and carefully selected resources to make your learning experience interesting and informative.   As German tutors on this course, one of us will give you detailed feedback throughout. We have taught German for many years and have worked with students of all abilities - so don’t be shy about asking any questions! 

During your course, you will learn a lot about German that’s fascinating and useful.  By the end of the course, you should be able to:

  • Communicate effectively in German
  • Understand the cultures and societies of countries where German is spoken
  • Understand the processes of language and language learning.

SYLLABUS AND EXAMINATION

This Wolsey Hall course is designed to prepare you for the Cambridge IGCSE German – Foreign Language examination which you will sit at a Cambridge exam centre.

It is vitally important that you become familiar with the syllabus  which can be found here.

IMPORTANT - PLEASE NOTE:

The examination code for IGCSE German (Graded A* to G) is 0525.

The examination code for IGCSE German (Graded 9 to 1) is 7159*.

*Exam code 7159 applies only to Zone 3 exam centres.  Students taking their exam in Zone 3 may choose which grading system they prefer when they register at an exam centre by selecting either exam code 0525 or exam code 7159.  Students taking their exam in the other Administrative Zones will take exam code 0525.

In your exam, you will sit four papers:

  • Paper 1 - Listening (45 minutes) is worth 25% of your overall grade.
  • Paper 2 - Reading (1 hour) is worth 25% of your overall grade.
  • Paper 3 - Speaking (15 minutes) is worth 25% of your overall grade.
  • Paper 4 - Writing (1 hour) is worth 25% of your overall grade.

Please note that you are entitled to six half-hour video call lessons to prepare you for your Speaking exam. You need to book these with your tutor at least six months before your exams in order to ensure that you and your tutor both have time to prepare and schedule them. Please don’t leave it to the last minute!

YOUR COURSE BOOK AND RESOURCES

Wolsey Hall offers a unique model of offline and online resources to our homeschooling students – a model which we have developed based on our many years’ experience of providing home schooling courses to students.

Course Book

Each subject specialist team carefully selects the best course book from which you will study. The course book for your German course is:

  • Cambridge IGCSE German Student Book (Hodder, 2019), 2nd Edition; ISBN 9781510447561

This course book has been developed specifically for the Cambridge IGCSE German syllabus. This means that it is the best book available to help you prepare for your final examination. You’ll find it full of interesting content and up-to-date examples. It takes a grammar-led approach to learning German and includes extensive exam preparation activities. It also includes topics on German speaking cultures to ensure that you gain the cultural awareness that is at the heart of the Cambridge IGCSE German syllabus.

  • Cambridge IGCSE German Grammar Workbook (Hodder, 2019), 2nd Edition; ISBN: 9781510448056

This booklet has been created specifically to be used alongside our course book. It focuses on all the grammar points you will need to cover in order to be successful in your German IGCSE exams, and to become a competent user of German. There are grammar explanations and plenty of exercises that provide further practice.

Throughout the course, we recommend that you try all the questions in the course book – the Programme of Study (POS, see below) will highlight which pages you should read for each Module.

STRUCTURE OF THE COURSE

All the files required for your Course are uploaded onto our Learning Management System, Canvas. Once you have read through this guide and downloaded a pdf of the POS then you are ready to begin the course.

The Course is divided into thirteen Modules which cover one section of the syllabus at a time. These IGCSE German Modules will help you to get the most out of your Course Book. Each Module is subdivided into Topics so that you can study the course in manageable chunks. Each Topic is set out as follows:

  • Reading– this section will include both the page references and required activities from your course book.
  • Activities– there will be links to audio files so that you are given opportunities to develop your speaking and listening skills.
  • Links to resources that will enhance your understanding of key concepts and give you the opportunity to apply your knowledge.

At the end of each Module, you should complete the End of Module Quiz to test your understanding of material covered in the module. This is a multiple-choice activity that can be completed as many times as you wish to ensure that you have achieved all the learning goals for the Module.

Your course concludes with an examination preparation module which helps you to revise content and skills covered in the course.  There are opportunities to work through past papers and to take part in our optional mock examination service.

HOW YOUR WORK IS ASSESSED

Your progress will be assessed by completing an assignment at the end of each Module.  We recommend that you do NOT look at the assignments until you've studied all the topics in the Module. This will ensure that you focus on everything you need to know for the exam. If you focus only on what you need to know to do well in the assignment, you will miss important elements in each Module that you need to know and understand.

The assignments have been designed to help you prepare for your final examination – many of the questions are based on past exam papers. They will also help you develop the all-important exam technique which will help you to understand just what the examiner is looking for. We do not expect you to complete your assignments without referring to your notes or Course book. However, we encourage you to rely less on these as you progress through the course. By your final assignment you should be able to work without reference to any additional notes.

The assignments allow you to think critically about what you have learned and will enable your tutor to see how well you are progressing. Your tutor will mark your assignments and provide you with detailed feedback. Once you have had your marked assignment returned, you will be able to access the Mark Scheme and/or a Specimen Answer (an A-grade piece of work). You should reflect carefully on your tutor’s feedback and apply it in your future assignments.

We ask that you do not submit multiple assignments at the same time. It is very important that you reflect on your tutor’s feedback before beginning each new assignment, so that you can incorporate their tips for improvement into each new piece of work.

You should read the assignment questions carefully and answer them to the best of your ability, providing relevant examples where necessary. If you don’t do well in your first assignment - don’t worry - your tutor is there to provide advice.

All assignments are submitted via Canvas – you should consult the Canvas Guide for more information.

HAPPY TO HELP

When you study a Wolsey Hall course, you are never alone! There are lots of people who are willing to help you. Everyone is on your side! 

  • Tutors: At Wolsey Hall, all our tutors are friendly and knowledgeable. They are subject experts and you should not be shy about asking them questions about your course. You will meet your tutor via a video call and you should contact them if you have any questions.
  • Student Progress Managers: You have already been assigned a Student Progress Manager who can help with your assignment schedule.
  • Exams Officers: Wolsey Hall’s Exams Officers are here to help students with any queries regarding exam centres.
  • Canvas Help Desk: Canvas is a great virtual learning environment, but we understand that sometimes, even the best things can go wrong! If you have any problems with Canvas (e.g. uploading assignments or unable to access resources) you should submit a Canvas Help Ticket.

For information about how to create and submit a Help Ticket, please refer to the Canvas Guide.

We hope you’ll enjoy your course and studying at Wolsey Hall. We wish you the best of luck in your studies and success in your examination.

The Wolsey Hall Team

Download DOWNLOAD YOUR PROGRAMME OF STUDY