“I have enjoyed the range of different skills we have developed in class, from reading to speaking, and seeing how I’ve progressed during my time at Xaverian. The support from the Spanish teachers is great, especially with the focus on the speaking exam in the second year, which you are guided through step-by-step. In Spanish, we are currently reading ‘La Casa de Bernarda Alba’, and we are each reading a part of the play in class, whilst looking at the difference in language and meaning the author intended for the audience in the context of the 1930s.

The issue of women’s rights is very prominent in Spain, so after having looked at why there was a lack of them during the Francoist historical background, we moved on to look at rights in Spain today and explore examples using Spanish with English translations. Students from the University of Manchester came into College in Year 12 to inspire us to study a beginners’ subject at university alongside our main subject, such as Arabic, Portuguese or Italian, and I have decided to learn German alongside specialising in French. MFL French and German students also experience similar fulfilling activities related to their subjects.”