Pink97 Posted February 23, 2014 Report Share Posted February 23, 2014 I've been doing french for the past 5 years and am currently doing the IGCSE course. I am currently working at A/A* grade with little effort (as in i do my homework and ONLY do past papers the night before for exam revision). If i change my study habits for french and put the effort in do you think i'd be possible to do well in sl french (preferably a 6)? Or would it be too difficult? You should also take into consideration that the IB coordinator said that student's from our school who do the IGCSE course struggle in french (the IB school i'm moving to also does IGCSE). Or Would it be easier to get a 6 in Spanish Ab initio? Reply Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
emmapatregnani Posted February 23, 2014 Report Share Posted February 23, 2014 I assume you are talking about the french as a second language IGCSE and french B not french A IB. The IGCSE is a joke compared to IB but french B SL is not hard at all especially because there isn't much actual content in the course for the time you have to cover it. I suggest you take french, it will give you the chance to actually learn the language. You should take into consideration your french teacher, s/he good? if not take Spanish Ab initio although you won't really end up with an actual language knowledge. 1 Reply Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
munsteroar Posted February 23, 2014 Report Share Posted February 23, 2014 French B is not difficult if you have a decent teacher and are willing to complete the homework/do some studying on Quizlet and such. French in general is not a difficult language for English speakers and especially since you do have a decent base in the language, I would advise you to give it a go. 1 Reply Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
ak18 Posted February 24, 2014 Report Share Posted February 24, 2014 IGCSE and IB are on two different levels, but since you've been learning French for the past 5 years, French B shouldn't be too much of a challenge for you. You'll definitely have to put in more work than you did for IGCSE, but content wise, it's not bad at all. 2 Reply Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pink97 Posted February 24, 2014 Author Report Share Posted February 24, 2014 (edited) IGCSE and IB are on two different levels, but since you've been learning French for the past 5 years, French B shouldn't be too much of a challenge for you. You'll definitely have to put in more work than you did for IGCSE, but content wise, it's not bad at all. If you don't mind me asking, do you find the ab initio course your taking difficult,considering your starting from scratch? . Do you think the ab initio course requires less or more work than a sl language B? Edited February 24, 2014 by pink97 Reply Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
ak18 Posted February 25, 2014 Report Share Posted February 25, 2014 Haha actually my school discontinued French B and kept ab initio, even though most of the people in my class had taken French for multiple years previously. So no, it wasn't difficult at all. But even beginning from scratch, it isn't that challenging. I would say it requires marginally less work, but it all depends on how well you want to master the language or how much time you want to devote to the language. But I would say go with B if your school offers it. Reply Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
YellowSpider Posted February 26, 2014 Report Share Posted February 26, 2014 IGCSE and IB are on two different levels, but since you've been learning French for the past 5 years, French B shouldn't be too much of a challenge for you. You'll definitely have to put in more work than you did for IGCSE, but content wise, it's not bad at all. If you don't mind me asking, do you find the ab initio course your taking difficult,considering your starting from scratch? . Do you think the ab initio course requires less or more work than a sl language B?i think interest plays an important role here. out of spanish and french, which one have you had a greater interest in? if you enjoy a subject you will surely put in great efforts to achieve good grades in it, regardless of the level. same thing with languages. 1 Reply Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pink97 Posted February 26, 2014 Author Report Share Posted February 26, 2014 (edited) IGCSE and IB are on two different levels, but since you've been learning French for the past 5 years, French B shouldn't be too much of a challenge for you. You'll definitely have to put in more work than you did for IGCSE, but content wise, it's not bad at all. If you don't mind me asking, do you find the ab initio course your taking difficult,considering your starting from scratch? . Do you think the ab initio course requires less or more work than a sl language B?i think interest plays an important role here. out of spanish and french, which one have you had a greater interest in? if you enjoy a subject you will surely put in great efforts to achieve good grades in it, regardless of the level. same thing with languages. Well in all honestly, i don't think i'm interested in french that much (mostly because of my current teacher) . But i can't comment on Spanish since my school has never offered the language.I also have the option of taking SL Arabic B (don't take IGCSE Arabic though) since i've been learning the language since year 4 but i wasn't too sure on whether my current knowledge was sufficient for the course. However, my current Arabic teacher confirmed that i am capable of doing well in the course so i think i'm going to take it. But since Arabic is a very difficult language i'll have to think that choice through properly.Either way i'll be willing to put the effort in regardless of my choice, but i'd prefer to improve on my arabic/french than starting a new language from scratch (although Spanish might be useful since i plan to live in America) Edited February 26, 2014 by pink97 Reply Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
YellowSpider Posted February 26, 2014 Report Share Posted February 26, 2014 I also have the option of taking SL Arabic B (don't take IGCSE Arabic though) since i've been learning the language since year 4 but i wasn't too sure on whether my current knowledge was sufficient for the course. However, my current Arabic teacher confirmed that i am capable of doing well in the course so i think i'm going to take it. But since Arabic is a very difficult language i'll have to think that choice through properly.Either way i'll be willing to put the effort in regardless of my choice, but i'd prefer to improve on my arabic/french than starting a new language from scratch (although Spanish might be useful since i plan to live in America) okay so i think french goes off the list. i don't know anything about arabic but i did spanish for 2 years until 8th grade and i loved it! it's eaaasy! i'm pretty sure ab initio will be the basics as well so i doubt you'll find it difficult. and i don't understand why you're worried about starting a new language from scratch. you've got 2 years and it's ab initio. i guess you should go with spanish. Reply Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pink97 Posted February 26, 2014 Author Report Share Posted February 26, 2014 I also have the option of taking SL Arabic B (don't take IGCSE Arabic though) since i've been learning the language since year 4 but i wasn't too sure on whether my current knowledge was sufficient for the course. However, my current Arabic teacher confirmed that i am capable of doing well in the course so i think i'm going to take it. But since Arabic is a very difficult language i'll have to think that choice through properly.Either way i'll be willing to put the effort in regardless of my choice, but i'd prefer to improve on my arabic/french than starting a new language from scratch (although Spanish might be useful since i plan to live in America) d okay so i think french goes off the list. i don't know anything about arabic but i did spanish for 2 years until 8th grade and i loved it! it's eaaasy! i'm pretty sure ab initio will be the basics as well so i doubt you'll find it difficult. and i don't understand why you're worried about starting a new language from scratch. you've got 2 years and it's ab initio. i guess you should go with spanish. It's so hard to choose, i think i should just try out both at the beginning of the year and then i should take which i enjoy more. Is it hard to pronounce things in Spanish like it is in French? Reply Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
YellowSpider Posted February 26, 2014 Report Share Posted February 26, 2014 I also have the option of taking SL Arabic B (don't take IGCSE Arabic though) since i've been learning the language since year 4 but i wasn't too sure on whether my current knowledge was sufficient for the course. However, my current Arabic teacher confirmed that i am capable of doing well in the course so i think i'm going to take it. But since Arabic is a very difficult language i'll have to think that choice through properly.Either way i'll be willing to put the effort in regardless of my choice, but i'd prefer to improve on my arabic/french than starting a new language from scratch (although Spanish might be useful since i plan to live in America) d okay so i think french goes off the list. i don't know anything about arabic but i did spanish for 2 years until 8th grade and i loved it! it's eaaasy! i'm pretty sure ab initio will be the basics as well so i doubt you'll find it difficult. and i don't understand why you're worried about starting a new language from scratch. you've got 2 years and it's ab initio. i guess you should go with spanish. It's so hard to choose, i think i should just try out both at the beginning of the year and then i should take which i enjoy more. Is it hard to pronounce things in Spanish like it is in French? haha,,it isn't hard to pronounce things in french. not really. spanish will be a new language for you so you might feel that way initially, but since you're gonna do ab initio you don't necessarily have to be all that great in pronouncing things. same for french sl. you can't sound as good as a french native, and examiners understand that. Reply Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pink97 Posted February 26, 2014 Author Report Share Posted February 26, 2014 I also have the option of taking SL Arabic B (don't take IGCSE Arabic though) since i've been learning the language since year 4 but i wasn't too sure on whether my current knowledge was sufficient for the course. However, my current Arabic teacher confirmed that i am capable of doing well in the course so i think i'm going to take it. But since Arabic is a very difficult language i'll have to think that choice through properly.Either way i'll be willing to put the effort in regardless of my choice, but i'd prefer to improve on my arabic/french than starting a new language from scratch (although Spanish might be useful since i plan to live in America) d okay so i think french goes off the list. i don't know anything about arabic but i did spanish for 2 years until 8th grade and i loved it! it's eaaasy! i'm pretty sure ab initio will be the basics as well so i doubt you'll find it difficult. and i don't understand why you're worried about starting a new language from scratch. you've got 2 years and it's ab initio. i guess you should go with spanish. It's so hard to choose, i think i should just try out both at the beginning of the year and then i should take which i enjoy more. Is it hard to pronounce things in Spanish like it is in French? haha,,it isn't hard to pronounce things in french. not really. spanish will be a new language for you so you might feel that way initially, but since you're gonna do ab initio you don't necessarily have to be all that great in pronouncing things. same for french sl. you can't sound as good as a french native, and examiners understand that. Thanks for the help. I have another question if you don't mind, do you think it is worth giving up sl arabic b -If i read Arabic VERY well (as good as natives)-If i live in a Arab country - enables me to completely immerse myself in the culture and i'll also be able to practice my oral on a daily basis-I'll definitely be getting a tutor at home if i take it-My writing/grammar is good enough, oral i'm kind of weak in though (but can easily be improved on if i actually put in effort) Reply Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
YellowSpider Posted February 26, 2014 Report Share Posted February 26, 2014 I also have the option of taking SL Arabic B (don't take IGCSE Arabic though) since i've been learning the language since year 4 but i wasn't too sure on whether my current knowledge was sufficient for the course. However, my current Arabic teacher confirmed that i am capable of doing well in the course so i think i'm going to take it. But since Arabic is a very difficult language i'll have to think that choice through properly.Either way i'll be willing to put the effort in regardless of my choice, but i'd prefer to improve on my arabic/french than starting a new language from scratch (although Spanish might be useful since i plan to live in America) d okay so i think french goes off the list. i don't know anything about arabic but i did spanish for 2 years until 8th grade and i loved it! it's eaaasy! i'm pretty sure ab initio will be the basics as well so i doubt you'll find it difficult. and i don't understand why you're worried about starting a new language from scratch. you've got 2 years and it's ab initio. i guess you should go with spanish. It's so hard to choose, i think i should just try out both at the beginning of the year and then i should take which i enjoy more. Is it hard to pronounce things in Spanish like it is in French? haha,,it isn't hard to pronounce things in french. not really. spanish will be a new language for you so you might feel that way initially, but since you're gonna do ab initio you don't necessarily have to be all that great in pronouncing things. same for french sl. you can't sound as good as a french native, and examiners understand that. Thanks for the help. I have another question if you don't mind, do you think it is worth giving up sl arabic b -If i read Arabic VERY well (as good as natives)-If i live in a Arab country - enables me to completely immerse myself in the culture and i'll also be able to practice my oral on a daily basis-I'll definitely be getting a tutor at home if i take it-My writing/grammar is good enough, oral i'm kind of weak in though (but can easily be improved on if i actually put in effort)yeah, sure. well, this is the most important question. maybe take a look at the spanish syllabus and see how deep it is. any idea about the spanish teacher? this also matters Reply Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pink97 Posted February 27, 2014 Author Report Share Posted February 27, 2014 (edited) I also have the option of taking SL Arabic B (don't take IGCSE Arabic though) since i've been learning the language since year 4 but i wasn't too sure on whether my current knowledge was sufficient for the course. However, my current Arabic teacher confirmed that i am capable of doing well in the course so i think i'm going to take it. But since Arabic is a very difficult language i'll have to think that choice through properly.Either way i'll be willing to put the effort in regardless of my choice, but i'd prefer to improve on my arabic/french than starting a new language from scratch (although Spanish might be useful since i plan to live in America) d okay so i think french goes off the list. i don't know anything about arabic but i did spanish for 2 years until 8th grade and i loved it! it's eaaasy! i'm pretty sure ab initio will be the basics as well so i doubt you'll find it difficult. and i don't understand why you're worried about starting a new language from scratch. you've got 2 years and it's ab initio. i guess you should go with spanish. It's so hard to choose, i think i should just try out both at the beginning of the year and then i should take which i enjoy more. Is it hard to pronounce things in Spanish like it is in French? haha,,it isn't hard to pronounce things in french. not really. spanish will be a new language for you so you might feel that way initially, but since you're gonna do ab initio you don't necessarily have to be all that great in pronouncing things. same for french sl. you can't sound as good as a french native, and examiners understand that. Thanks for the help. I have another question if you don't mind, do you think it is worth giving up sl arabic b -If i read Arabic VERY well (as good as natives)-If i live in a Arab country - enables me to completely immerse myself in the culture and i'll also be able to practice my oral on a daily basis-I'll definitely be getting a tutor at home if i take it-My writing/grammar is good enough, oral i'm kind of weak in though (but can easily be improved on if i actually put in effort)yeah, sure. well, this is the most important question. maybe take a look at the spanish syllabus and see how deep it is. any idea about the spanish teacher? this also mattersNope, i haven't got a clue about the teacher since its a different school. But one of my friend's friend did it (at the school i'm moving to) and she said it was easy and she got a 6 - so i'm guessing the teacher is good. Is there a syllabus specific to spanish? Cz all i've found is a general syllabus for all ab initio courses. I've gone through that syllabus and the topics seem managable. Edited February 27, 2014 by pink97 Reply Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
YellowSpider Posted February 27, 2014 Report Share Posted February 27, 2014 Nope, i haven't got a clue about the teacher since its a different school. But one of my friend's friend did it (at the school i'm moving to) and she said it was easy and she got a 6 - so i'm guessing the teacher is good. Is there a syllabus specific to spanish? Cz all i've found is a general syllabus for all ab initio courses. I've gone through that syllabus and the topics seem managable. no i guess it's common for the ab initio languages. then yeah, if you don't think it'll be too difficult you can go with spanish. Reply Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pink97 Posted March 1, 2014 Author Report Share Posted March 1, 2014 Nope, i haven't got a clue about the teacher since its a different school. But one of my friend's friend did it (at the school i'm moving to) and she said it was easy and she got a 6 - so i'm guessing the teacher is good. Is there a syllabus specific to spanish? Cz all i've found is a general syllabus for all ab initio courses. I've gone through that syllabus and the topics seem managable. no i guess it's common for the ab initio languages. then yeah, if you don't think it'll be too difficult you can go with spanish.I decided i'll start off with Arabic B and if i can't handle it i'll switch to Spanish ab initio. Thanks for the help! Reply Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
YellowSpider Posted March 1, 2014 Report Share Posted March 1, 2014 I decided i'll start off with Arabic B and if i can't handle it i'll switch to Spanish ab initio. Thanks for the help!alright, hope things work out for you. good luck. no problem Reply Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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