A total of 150 public and private school students in Antigua and Barbuda have completed examinations through an International and Foreign Language Education pilot programme in French language studies, a Ministry of Education release said.
The programme, which aims to develop the teaching and learning of French in secondary schools as well as to facilitate students’ access to French higher education, is spearheaded by the Modern Languages Department of the Ministry of Education, Sports and Creative Industries in collaboration with the General Coordination of Alliances Françaises in the Anglophone Caribbean and the French Embassy to the OECS member states in St Lucia.
In preparation for student learning, 13 teachers were trained and received official certification over a four-year period that allows them to administer and correct the DELF examinations.
Diplôme d’études en langue française (Diploma in French Language Studies) is awarded by the French Ministry of Education, Higher Education and Research, to certify that foreign candidates have achieved a certain level of French in six levels (A1, A2, B1, B2, C1, and C2), which correspond respectively to the six levels of the Council of Europe’s Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFRL). Students in Antigua and Barbuda during this pilot programme were examined at the A1, A2, and B1 levels last week.
Education Officer, Modern Languages, Rene Young Romero expressed satisfaction with the progress made.
“We are delighted to be part of this project, as it is an excellent opportunity to offer students an additional tool that could help them achieve their educational goals. Once students in the OECS region attain the DELF B2 level certification, they can have access to full scholarships to study a career of their choice in French territories.
“We are also hoping upon completion of this pilot programme, to extend the offer to all schools and also to the general public,” Young Romero said.
Antigua Girls’ High School, Pares Secondary School, Christ the King High School, St Joseph’s Academy, and St Anthony’s Secondary School were included in the French language studies.