GCSE German
GCSE German is almost entirely a literacy qualification: learners listen to and read German, answer in English or Welsh, translate into English or Welsh, write in German about a studied work and to a stimulus, and speak for 7 to 10 minutes, with 20.5% of marks for grammar, vocabulary and sound-spelling accuracy and no dictionary in any unit. Numeracy is light and incidental: numbers 1 to 100, simple fractions, the 12 and 24 hour clock, dates, and graphs among the reading texts. The biggest thing Key Stage 3 should build is secure, dictionary-free recall of core vocabulary and grammar, used every week in short translations and independent writing and speaking.
- Awarding body
- WJEC
- Level
- Level 1 and Level 2
- First taught
- September 2025
- Amount of literacy work
- High
- Amount of numeracy work
- Low
- Specification
- Open the specification
How this qualification is assessed
- Unit 1: Oracy: Non-examination assessment, speaking test 7 to 10 minutes plus 10 minutes preparation, 60 marks, 30%
- Unit 2: Reading and Writing: Non-examination assessment 1 hour, 45 marks, 15%
- Unit 3: Listening: Written examination 45 minutes including 5 minutes reading time, 45 marks, 20%
- Unit 4: Reading and Writing: Written examination 1 hour 30 minutes, 70 marks, 35%
Skills that use Understanding, response and analysis
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Reading a range of text types for meaning
In Unit 4 learners read notices, signs, e-mails, web pages, articles, adverts and extracts from stories in German and show understanding by answering questions in Cymraeg or English, without a dictionary.
Literacy: Reading strategies, Understanding, response and analysis
Getting pupils ready
- Year 7
- Pupils skim a short German web page about a town for gist, then scan it for five named facts, circling cognates as they go.
- Year 8
- Pupils read a German e-mail from a penfriend and answer English questions, using word families and verb endings to work out words they have not been taught.
- Year 9
- Pupils read a German magazine article about social media and write English answers that pick out each person's opinion and the reason given, without a dictionary.
Show the specification wording and the LNF statements
Where it is in the specification: Unit 4 Reading and Writing, Areas of content, page 19
“demonstrate understanding of the texts by responding to a range of questions in Cymraeg/English”
Progression step 3
I can use a range of strategies to make meaning from words and sentences, including:
- knowledge of phonics
- word roots
- word families
- syntax
- text organisation
- prior knowledge of context.
I can use a range of strategies for finding information, e.g. skimming for gist, scanning for detail.
I can infer ideas which are not explicitly stated, e.g. writer’s viewpoints or attitudes.
Progression step 4
I can use my knowledge of:
- word roots and families
- grammar, sentence and whole-text structure
- content and context
to make sense of words, sentences and whole texts.
I can use a range of strategies, e.g. speed reading, close reading, annotation, prediction, to skim texts for gist, key ideas and themes, and scan for detailed information.
Progression step 5
I can read and analyse a range of unseen, printed and digital texts with concentration and independence.
I can use a range of strategies, e.g. speed reading, close reading, annotation, prediction, to skim texts for gist, key ideas and themes, and scan for detailed information, extracting and commenting maturely on key ideas and themes.
I can use my knowledge of different reading strategies to make sense of unfamiliar words in new contexts and sentences in complex texts, and apply these in my own communication.
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Reading and writing about a German literary work
For the Unit 2 NEA learners study a graphic novel, short story, film script or novel in German, then answer a task set in Cymraeg or English by writing in German. They are not expected to understand every word but must give their understanding, ideas and opinions, with no dictionary or reference materials.
Literacy: Reading strategies, Understanding, response and analysis, Planning and organising for different purposes, audiences and context
Getting pupils ready
- Year 7
- Pupils read a short German comic strip together and write three German sentences about their favourite character using 'er ist' or 'sie ist' and 'ich mag'.
- Year 8
- Pupils read a short graded German story over several lessons and write a German paragraph saying what happens and what they think of the ending, with a reason.
- Year 9
- Pupils study an extract from a German graphic novel or film script and answer an English-language question in German in 30 minutes, using only the vocabulary they know.
Show the specification wording and the LNF statements
Where it is in the specification: Unit 2 Reading and Writing, Areas of content, page 15
“for learners to engage with a German work and write about it in German.”
Progression step 3
I can read complex texts independently for sustained periods.
I can read to build my vocabulary and develop sentence structures, and use these in my own communication.
I can write about my thoughts, feelings and opinions, showing empathy and respect.
Progression step 4
I can read, with concentration, printed and digital texts that are new to me and update, broaden and deepen my understanding of information, ideas and issues.
I can read to build my vocabulary and develop sentence structures, and use these effectively in my own communication.
I can organise and construct my writing effectively, connecting and developing my ideas for a range of different contexts.
Progression step 5
I can read closely, analysing the content, language and impact of texts to deepen my understanding.
I can write with maturity about my thoughts, feelings and opinions in increasingly challenging and contentious contexts.
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Grammar, vocabulary and sound-spelling accuracy
AO3, knowledge of grammar, vocabulary and sound-spelling correspondence, carries 20.5% of the qualification across Units 1, 2 and 4. Learners must learn the Appendix A grammar and sound-spelling list and the Appendix B vocabulary lists, and read aloud accurately enough to be understood.
Literacy: Vocabulary, spelling, grammar, Understanding, response and analysis, Connectives and syntax
Getting pupils ready
- Year 7
- Pupils play a weekly German sound bingo, focusing on 'ch', 'ei' or 'ie', where they hear a word, write it from its sounds, and check umlauts against the sound-spelling list.
- Year 8
- Pupils read an unseen five-line German text aloud to a partner, who ticks each 'ei', 'ie', 'ch' and umlaut said correctly, then swap and repeat.
- Year 9
- Pupils proofread a German paragraph seeded with ten errors in word order, case endings and capital letters on nouns, correct them, and explain two of the rules in English.
Show the specification wording and the LNF statements
Where it is in the specification: Section 3.1 Assessment objectives and weightings, page 21
“Demonstrate knowledge of grammar, vocabulary and sound-spelling correspondence.”
Progression step 3
I can use language appropriate to writing, including standard forms, e.g. nouns, pronouns, adjectives, adverbs, prepositions, connectives and verb tenses.
I can use my knowledge of letter sounds and patterns accurately in my spelling, including:
- roots, e.g. light, geo, appear
- suffixes, e.g. -able, -cious/tious, -ful
- plural forms correctly in context, e.g. -s, -es, -ies.
I can read a wide range of texts aloud with expression, varying intonation, voice and pace.
Progression step 4
I can use a variety of strategies and resources to spell familiar and unfamiliar vocabulary and area of learning and experience/discipline-specific words correctly.
I can select and use a variety of different sentence structures (simple, compound and complex sentences) with grammatical accuracy in my writing.
I can read a range of challenging and authentic texts aloud with expression, varying intonation, voice and pace to convey meaning.
Progression step 5
I can use strategies to spell discipline-specific and general academic words in appropriate contexts.
I can vary sentence structures to engage and sustain the reader’s interest and write with grammatical accuracy.
I can read a range of challenging and authentic texts aloud with expression, varying intonation, voice and pace to convey meaning.
Good to know
- Dictionaries are banned in every unit: "Learners are not permitted to use a dictionary in any part of the assessment." (Summary of assessment, page 5).
- Unit 1 oracy allows only the learner's own notes: "or any other reference materials excluding the learner's own notes." (Section 3.2, Unit 1, page 21). Presentation preparation is time-limited: "The preparation period for the presentation may begin two weeks prior to the first timetabled assessment." (page 22).
- Unit 2 reading and writing NEA allows no reference materials at all: "Learners are not permitted to use dictionaries in any part of the assessment, or any other reference materials." (Section 3.2, Unit 2, page 22).
- Accuracy of language is assessed directly through AO3, "Demonstrate knowledge of grammar, vocabulary and sound-spelling correspondence.", weighted 8% in Unit 1, 5% in Unit 2 and 7.5% in Unit 4, 20.5% overall (Section 3.1, page 21). There is no separate SPaG mark for English or Welsh answers.
- Productive vocabulary is tied to the Appendix B lists: "Equal but no additional credit will be given for learners who use vocabulary outside the specified list in productive tasks." (Section 2, page 10).
- Unit 3 and Unit 4 questions are answered in English or Welsh, so learners' English or Welsh must be clear enough to show understanding: "respond to a range of questions in Cymraeg/English." (Unit 3, page 17).
- Unit 3 includes reading time before listening: "Written examination: 45 minutes (including 5 minutes' reading time)" (Unit 3, page 16).
- Number knowledge is limited to a stated range: learners "are expected to know the numbers" 1 to 100 (Appendix B, Numbers, page 40). The spec sets no calculation, mentions no calculator, and states no word limits for the writing tasks or whether responses are handwritten or typed.
Links with other qualifications
WJEC's Appendix C ticks literacy listening for all four units, reading and writing for Units 2 and 4, and speaking for Units 1 and 4 (page 92), and ticks only the number system strand of numeracy, for all four units (page 93).
Source: WJEC GCSE German specification, Teaching from 2025, For award from 2027, Version 2, February 2025.