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Top teacher questions early French in Swiss schools

Head teacher puts early French up for discussion
Dagmar Rösler puts early French up for discussion Keystone-SDA

Following the results on pupils' language skills, the president of the umbrella organisation of Swiss teachers says the teaching of French to young children needs to be discussed. French should be taught differently to English in future, she says.

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“The results are worrying and an indication that adjustments need to be made,” said Dagmar Rösler, president of the Swiss Federation of Teachers, in an interview with the SonntagsBlick. It is still too early to say what needs to change, she said.

At the end of compulsory schooling, many young people do not achieve the targets set in the foreign languages German and French, she said. This was revealed by a survey published on Thursday by the Conference of Cantonal Ministers of Education (EDK).

+ Language skills vary considerably among Swiss pupils

Politicians and the Swiss Federation of Teachers must “seriously discuss what the future attitude towards foreign language teaching should be”, Rösler said. She expects an intensive process, as the situation varies greatly from canton to canton.

+ English as a common language in Switzerland: a positive or a problem?

Translated from German by DeepL/ts

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