School Hallway

SECONDARY

In France, secondary education is split into two distinct phases: collège and lycée. The Anglophone Section of the CSI Lyon welcomes students all through secondary

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The secondary school day generally runs between 08h00 and 17h25, divided into ten 50-minute sequences. 

 

The Anglophone Section teaching programmes are organised around two subject areas: English Language & Literature and History/Geography. Students will spend between six and eight sequences each week with their Anglophone Section teachers, depending on their level in the school.

Anglophone Section's students Programmes

*OIB to be replaced by Baccalauréat Français International from September 2022

From September 2022 students entering première will be enrolled in the Baccalauréat Français International (BFI), which will replace the OIB. More information about the BFI will be made available on this website in March / April 2022. 

Curriculum and objectives in secondary

The Language & Literature curriculum from 6ème to 4ème is based on the learning objectives of English programmes in a range of anglophone countries and is designed to help students make progress in their reading, writing and speaking skills. Students are introduced to a variety of challenging and engaging texts, both fiction and nonfiction, as the main focus of the teaching. Not only are reading skills developed through these texts but they are also used to inspire different types of writing and to build the basic skills of grammar, punctuation and spelling. ​

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The History / Geography curriculum is a joint programme based on the content of the French national curriculum but with an approach characteristic of the learning and teaching styles in English-speaking countries. While the programme in History is roughly chronological, from the civilisations of the Ancient world up to the contemporary era, emphasis is placed on the comparison of historical themes in different periods. The Geography curriculum focuses on an exploration of the interactions between human activity and the physical environment. 

Click on the drop down links below to find out more about teaching programmes in the Anglophone Section

Cinquième - 5ème (year 8 / 7th grade)

LANGUAGE & LITERATURE Pupils spend four hours per week with their English Language & Literature teacher. The programme in 5ème is based on the learning objectives of national English programmes in a range of anglophone countries. The following strands are developed through the first three years in secondary (6ème to 4ème):

  • Reading literature from different genres, historical periods and cultures
  • Reading non-fiction and media texts
  • Writing for different audiences and purposes
  • Spelling, punctuation and grammar
  • Speaking and listening
  • ICT skills
HISTORY / GEOGRAPHY The Collège teaching programmes in History / Geography follow the requirements of the French national curriculum. Students at collège level are taught two hours of the programme by Anglophone Section History / Geography teachers and two hours by their French teachers. Aims & Objectives
  • To develop history / geography skills: understanding maps; selecting appropriate evidence from texts and using evidence to support a point of view; collecting, identifying and analysing data; adapting writing to suit different purposes and audiences; debating, presentation and public speaking skills.
  • To encourage students to become independent learners through active and cooperative participation in individual and group work such as creative writing, using drama / film and indpendent research projects.
  • To promote inquiry-based projects, ICT and research skills, and critical thinking.
  • To foster an understanding and appreciation of the diversity of human experience across time and place.
History Topics Life in Medieval Britain, Islamic Civilisations, Renaissance, Exploration and Global Expansion in the 15th and 16th Centuries, the English Civil War. Geography Topics Human Development, the Global North / South Divide, North & South America, Sustainable Development / Pollution / Exploitation of Natural Resources.



Quatrième - 4ème (year 9 / 8th grade)

LANGUAGE & LITERATURE Pupils spend four hours per week with their English Language & Literature teacher. The programme in 4ème is based on the learning objectives of national English programmes in a range of anglophone countries. The following strands are developed through the first three years in secondary (6ème to 4ème):

  • Reading literature from different genres, historical periods and cultures
  • Reading non-fiction and media texts
  • Writing for different audiences and purposes
  • Spelling, punctuation and grammar
  • Speaking and listening
  • ICT skills
HISTORY / GEOGRAPHY The Collège teaching programmes in History / Geography follow the requirements of the French national curriculum. Students at collège level are taught two hours of the programme by Anglophone Section History / Geography teachers and two hours by their French teachers. Aims & Objectives
  • To develop history / geography skills: understanding maps; selecting appropriate evidence from texts and using evidence to support a point of view; collecting, identifying and analysing data; adapting writing to suit different purposes and audiences; debating, presentation and public-speaking skills.
  • To encourage students to become independent learners through active and cooperative participation in individual and group work such as creative writing, using drama / film and indpendent research projects.
  • To promote inquiry-based projects, ICT and research skills, and critical thinking.
  • To foster an understanding and appreciation of the diversity of human experience across time and place.
History Topics
  • American Colonies, the American Revolution, Slavery & the Slave Trade; the Industrial Revolution
Geography Topics
  • Globalisation and the US as a Global Power, Development, Migration.



Troisième - 3ème (year 10 / 9th grade)

LANGUAGE & LITERATURE Pupils spend 4 hours per week with their English Language & Literature teacher. In 3ème, students sit the Diplome National du Brevet (DNB), International Option. The DNB written exam will be undertaken in French, but an additional Language & Literature oral exam (15 minutes in duration) will be in English for the international option. Starting in 3ème, students follow a combined two-year course in English Langauge and Literature. IGCSE English Language Coursework - Imaginative Writing and a Critical Response to Reading Examination - Reading Nonfiction and Transactional Writing. IGCSE English Literature Coursework - Modern Drama and Literary Heritage Examination - Poetry and Modern Prose Although oral skills are not formally assessed in the IGCSE examinations, students are given many opportunities to participate in a wide range of speaking and listening activities in our lessons. Wider reading is also encouraged and students are required to read at least three books during the year. HISTORY / GEOGRAPHY The collège teaching programmes in History / Geography follow the requirements of the French programme. Aims & Objectives

  • To develop history / geography skills: understanding maps; selecting appropriate evidence from texts and using evidence to support a point of view; collecting, identifying and analysing data; adapting writing to suit different purposes and audiences; debating, presentation and public-speaking skills.
  • To encourage students to become independent learners through active and cooperative participation in individual and group work such as creative writing, using drama / film and indpendent research projects.
  • To promote inquiry-based projects, ICT and research skills, and critical thinking.
  • To foster an understanding and appreciation of the diversity of human experience across time and place.
History Topics
  • USA 1920's and 1930's, Germany - The Interwar Years, Aspects of WWII, International Politics post-1945, Cold War 1945-1989, Decolonisation
Geography Topics
  • The European Union: Construction, Diversity, Migration, Energy.
In 3ème all of our students will take the French Diplôme National du Brevet (DNB), International Option. The DNB written exam will be in French. In addition to the written exam, Anglophone Section students will take a 15-minute oral exam in History: this will be in English.



Seconde - 2nde (year 11 / 10th grade)

LANGUAGE & LITERATURE Pupils spend four hours per week with their English Language & Literature teacher. In 2nde students complete the IGCSE English Language and English Literature course and take the written exams at the end of the year. Final grades are based partly on coursework (40%) and partly on examinations (60%). IGCSE English Language Coursework - Imaginative Writing and a Critical Response to Reading Examination - Reading Nonfiction and Transactional Writing. IGCSE English Literature Coursework - Modern Drama and Literary Heritage Examination - Poetry and Modern Prose Although oral skills are not formally assessed in the IGCSE examinations, students are given many opportunities to participate in a wide range of speaking and listening activities in our lessons. Wider reading is also encouraged and teachers provide recommendations and reading lists for the students. HISTORY / GEOGRAPHY Students in 2nde are taught two hours of the History / Geography programme by Anglophone Section teachers and two hours by their French colleagues. The programme taught by the Anglophone Section follows the division of the French national curriculum, as well as developing pedagogical aims (skills, methods) proposed by the English national curriculum. Students are assessed on a regular basis to determine their progress and identify areas for improvement. Aims & Objectives

  • To develop history / geography skills: understanding maps; selecting appropriate evidence from texts and using evidence to support a point of view; collecting, identifying and analysing data; adapting writing to suit different purposes and audiences; debating, presentation and public-speaking skills.
  • To encourage students to become independent learners through active and cooperative participation in group work and during indpendent research projects.
  • To promote inquiry-based projects, ICT and research skills, and critical thinking.
  • To foster an understanding and appreciation of the diversity of human experience across time and place.
History Topics
  • The Medieval Period: Religion, Humanism, Age of Discovery, Conquest and Colonisation
  • The Renaissance, Reformation and European Colonialism
  • Historical change and the impact on society
Geography Topics
  • The concept of place and region (uniqueness, specificity, similarlity
  • Human activities and the natural environment
  • Environmental problems and sustainable development
  • Geographical enquiry / problem-solving / decision-making
  • Geographical processes: cause and consequence



Première & Terminale - 1ère & Tle (years 12 & 13 / 11th & 12th grades)

LANGUAGE & LITERATURE Students follow a two-year programme in literature starting in 1ère. The Literature programme follows the guidelines for the Option Internationale du Baccalauréat (OIB):

  • 1ère students spend five hours per week with their literature teacher.
  • Terminale students spend four hours per week with their literature teacher and take the written and oral exams of the OIB.
Students can choose to follow either the American or British Option in their OIB:
  • American Option – Students read thirteen texts over two years, which include literature and nonfiction from both American and international writers and a range of literary genres. The approach is comparative and in both the final written examination and the oral, students are encouraged to make links between the texts that they have read.
  • British Option – Students read six works over the two years and study them in depth. The works reflect a range of literary genres from different historical periods and culture, and were all written originally in English. The final written exam focuses on the individual texts while the oral exam is based on the discussion of a thematic topic.
Students are strongly encouraged to read widely, especially during the summer, and teachers will make recommendations to help them. HISTORY / GEOGRAPHY Students follow a two-year programme in History / Geography starting in 1ère, following the guidelines for the Option Internationale du Baccalauréat (OIB), which is adapted from the framework of the French national History and Geography curriculum.
  • 1ère students spend three hours each week with their Anglophone Section History / Geography teachers (two hours of History, one hour of Geography).
  • Terminale students spend four hours each week with their Anglophone Section History / Geography teachers (two hours each in History and Geography).
As outlined above, students choose to follow either the British or the American Option in their OIB. Both options study the same themes (presented below) but incorporate British or American examples and case studies, respectively and where appropriate. Aims & Objectives
  • To develop history / geography skills: understanding maps; selecting appropriate evidence from texts and using evidence to support a point of view; collecting, identifying and analysing data; adapting writing to suit different purposes and audiences; debating, presentation and public-speaking skills.
  • To encourage students to become independent learners through active and cooperative participation in group work and during indpendent research projects.
  • To promote inquiry-based projects, ICT and research skills, and critical thinking.
  • To foster an understanding and appreciation of the diversity of human experience across time and place.
History Topics Première: Legacy of the French Revolution, Social and Industrial Transformations in the Industrial Age, The Third Republic: politics, society and the"new" imperialism, WWI and its aftermath. Terminale: Challenges to democracy, rise of totalitarianism, and World War II (1929 - 1945); the post-war bipolar world and challenges to bi-polarization; post-war economic, political, and social transformations: causes and consequences. Geography Topics Première: Geographical processes on a local, regional and global scale; the study of geographical themes such as demography, migration, urbanisation, industrial change, global flows and actors in the US, Europe and China; London as a Global City Terminale: Seas and oceans at the core of globalization; Territorial dynamics, cooperation & tensions in globalization; The European Union & globalization.



Seconde - 2nde - Drama option

'I regard the theatre as the greatest of all art forms, the most immediate way in which a human being can share with another the sense of what it is to be a human being.' Oscar Wilde The Anglophone Section Drama Option is a one-year course taken as an optional subject in 2nde, which encourages students to explore their creativity and build their confidence all while learning the craft of acting. Students develop a range of skills such as voice projection and modulation, effective body language and movement, improvisation, character development, staging technique, and text interpretation in preparation for live performance. In addition to producing work of their own creation, students also perform scenes from mainstay playwrights like Euripides, Shakespeare and Chekhov and study important movements in theater history as a means of increasing their general knowledge of theater culture. Other opportunities have included a week-long trip to London to watch acclaimed theatrical productions and preparation for an assessed performance certificate from LAMDA (London Academy of Music and Dramatic Arts). N.B. There is a supplement to Tuition Fees for those choosing this option to cover the extra 3hrs/week of specialised teaching.



Sixième - 6ème (year 7 / 6th grade)

LANGUAGE & LITERATURE Pupils spend four hours per week with their English Language & Literature teacher. The programme in 6ème is based on the learning objectives of national English programmes in a range of anglophone countries. The following strands are developed through the first three years in secondary (6ème to 4ème):

  • Reading literature from different genres, historical periods and cultures
  • Reading non-fiction and media texts
  • Writing for different audiences and purposes
  • Spelling, punctuation and grammar
  • Speaking and listening
  • ICT skills
HISTORY / GEOGRAPHY The collège teaching programmes in History / Geography follow the requirements of the French national curriculum. Students at collège level are taught two hours of the programme by Anglophone Section History / Geography teachers and two hours by their French teachers. Aims & Objectives : To develop history / geography skills: understanding maps, essay writing, debating and decision-making, making presentations and problem-solving. To encourage students to become independent learners through active and cooperative participation in individual and group work such as creative writing, using drama / film, class debates and presentations. To promote inquiry-based projects, ICT and research skills, and critical thinking. To foster an understanding and appreciation of the diversity of human experience across time and place. History Topics Historical change and its impact on society; evidence, interpretation and bias; the concept of historical time and the role of individuals; the Neolithic revolution; the fall of Rome and Roman Britain; Anglo-Saxons and the Norman conquest Geography Topics The concept of place and region; the relationship between human activities and the natural environment; describing, measuring and representing spatial information; sustainable development and environmental protection; understanding geographical concepts (biosphere, ecosystem, adaptation); natural hazards, hot and cold zones, map skills



The French secondary curriculum​

The French national curricula for collège and lycée can be found here. 

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French baccalauréat : specialité choices for première students

In Première students will be required to choose which specialités they want to follow in their Bac. The options that are available at the CSI Lyon can be found here along with presentations about the course content and requirements. 

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Further information about the Bac specialités is available from the school by contacting lycée@csilyon.fr