Latin GCSE if not studying other languages?

[Strumpetpumpet]

Evening all. My DS (yr 8) is choosing his GCSE options. They currently study French, Spanish and Latin, and school strongly recommend they choose to take a language gcse. Until recently, DS was planning to take Spanish but he's now thinking about Latin as he enjoys it - and, as a geeky introvert he likes the sound of no spoken exam and no overseas exchange programme 😂. I've always assumed Latin is a subject for linguists and think Spanish would be a more sensible option but I wondered if anyone has any advice/experience of Latin GCSE? Thanks in advance x

[cantkeepawayforever]

laughing at this one - especially the story of the mock exam translation.

It is the only O-level exam that i still remember in vivid detail ... knowing that 'the rock [lapis] who was the mother of the Mother of the Gods' from the unseen translation made ABSOLUTELY no sense but seemed to me to be the only possible translation... kept my nerve and it all turned out OK!

I am such an old gimmer that we also had to do English to Latin translation - I loved that, it was like a Maths logic puzzle.

[TheSecondOfHerName]

DS1 did both Latin and German GCSE. Got an A in Latin and a B in German.

DS2 is doing both Latin and French. Likely to get a 7 or 8 in both.

DD (Y8) is currently studying Latin and French. At her school, they have to do a language for GCSE but it doesn't have to be a modern one. At the moment, she is tempted to continue with Latin because she struggles with speaking and listening (auditory processing disorder).

[Strumpetpumpet]

Just a quick update to thank you all for your replies which we found really helpful. DS has submitted his options & has plumped for Latin so we will see how it goes! Still amazed that it counts as a modern foreign language for ebac purposes but there you go!
Thanks again x

[SquidgeyMidgey]

I took Latin at GCSE and got an A* but our teacher was so strict and frankly terrifying excellent that we all did. I loved it, absolutely loved it, and everything I know about grammar came from Latin lessons. I didn't take it any further but it's great brain training as it's so structured, I would definitely recommend it.

[MyVisionsComeFromSoup]

DD1 chose Latin as her "fun" subject (I made a rule that the DDs could pick one "easy" subject and one "fun" subject for GCSEs from their free choices) and found it really helped with German grammar (which weirdly wasn't really taught at GCSE, it was all learning phrases by rote - DD3 is now start pupil in her GCSE German class as she knows "der, die das" off by heart ). It also appealed to her mathematical brain as it's very logical and has "proper rules which are properly followed"as she put it. In terms of usefulness otherwise, none so far, but was a talking point in job interviews.

OP, do check it counts as a language for the school's reporting (is it Progress 8 now?), otherwise you'll find your DS is "encouraged" to chose Spanish [cynical].

[samandcj]

DD1 found her latin GCSE and AS really useful for her English Lit degree. DD2 is currently finding her latin GCSE useful in her History degree. Both are glad they studied it - even tho they did find it the most difficult of their subjects (the only B grade amongst As)

[Littledrummergirl]

Ds1 took Latin last yr, it was the only subject he didnt do well in and he intends to forget he ever took it.
Hes hoping it doesn't need to go on his ucas application.

[tropicalfish]

I would advise checking whether you need a mfl for applying to university.
My dd was able to do both French and Latin and carried Latin on to A Level she liked it so much.

[M0stlyBowlingHedgehog]

I loved Latin (O level as it then was) because you got to study the literature to a high level. I'm learning Italian now, and it's amazing how useful a solid grasp of Latin grammar is proving - I seem to find the grammar of Italian much easier than my class-mates (unfortunately, my middle-aged memory is shot to shit, so I'm really struggling with remembering enough vocabulary to make conversations work...)

[Bestthingever]

Latin was perhaps the most useful languages I studied at school. It helps your English vocabulary and your understanding of grammar. It also facilitates the learning of romantic languages. I think everyone should be taught Latin but I bet there aren't nearly enough teachers to go around!

[bojorojo]

The figures I have found relate to Latin in 2003 (?) for some reason but 2016 for French. 33% A in Latin, 10% A in French. (Is Latin IGCSE only from 2004?)

[Allthebestnamesareused]

Actually I have heard it the other way round that Latin is one of the GCSEs where there is a higher percentage of A*/A grades mainly because it is the brighter children that tend to chose to study it.

[fairweathercyclist]

If I had a TARDIS, I would go back and do Latin GCSE. I wish I had chosen it, I had the option at my school.

[happygardening]

DS2 did Latin for IGCSE and now dos it for fun. To be good at it you have to be disciplined in your work, a useful skill, he loves the stories which he translates and their relevance to today, and the way the words/sentences are constructed.
He was reliably told that if you can become good at Latin then other languages will come much easier as most of the romantic languages have their roots in Latin and the logic applied to learning Latin could also be applied to German. He's dyslexic so not necessarily an obvious linguist but he feels Latin enabled him to do well in both French and German as well. I know at the moment he may have no interest in learning an MFL but in my personal experience adolescent can change their mind.

[Frazzled2207]

I'm sure Latin does help with other
Languages generally but a bit pointless if you're not actually doing other languages IMO.

Unless you're really into the roman civ stuff (fair enough if so)

[FurryGiraffe]

When I did GCSEs (1998 ) Latin was the only subject I really needed to do any work for. I was very good at languages but the GCSE exam had an unseen translation element that you couldn't coast through. I still remember turning over the page in my mock and finding an unfamiliar chunk of Caesar's Gallic Wars- and not having a clue what to do with it! I realised I'd have to practice a bit to get the A* I wanted. Not that that did me any harm! French was an absolute doddle in comparison though.

Latin was probably the most useful GCSE I did actually. It gave me access to a couple of really interesting options on my degree and masters.

[thesockgap]

My son, like yours, did French, Spanish & Latin up to Y8. When picking GCSE options they had to pick one MFL so he chose French over Spanish, but he continued with Latin as one of his free choice subjects. He absolutely loved it and excelled in it, and is now halfway through his first year of A Level Latin. (His other subjects are Physics, Maths and Further Maths so not related in any way!)
If he could have just done Latin for GCSE he would, but had to study either French or Spanish.

[ScrapThatThen]

Latin connects well with Maths and with literature, its a fine subject to study.

[Feelingworriednow]

My DD is doing Latin GCSE and enjoying it alongside French which she loathes! One thing to bear in mind is the grade boundries are much higher than a lot of other subjects, so if straight As or As is important, you might want to think again. DD is forecast all A/As but a B in Latin on same % mock exam. On the otherhand actual grades are not always the most important thing and the enjoyment and learning are.

[Strumpetpumpet]

Thank you so much for all your responses, I feel very reassured now :-). Zen your son sounds very similar to mine! We've parents' evening on Tuesday so we will have a chat with Mr Latin but I feel much happier about the prospect of Latin after reading all your comments. Best of luck to all the Latin scholars in your households! X

[SuperRainbows]

My DS did Latin GCSE as his only language. In his first term of A2, he taught himself French up to AS level, ended up getting A* in his French A Level later that year and studied French and Russian at Cambridge. He is now also fluent in German and Chinese.

He is gifted at languages, but I think his background in Latin was invaluable.

[zen1]

DS is year 9 and chose Latin last year. He didn't choose any other languages, but was forced to do French (which he hates) due to timetable clashes. He is definitely not a linguist, but there is something about the way Latin is taught that really appeals to his learning style (he's also very quiet and hates spoken exams) and he is predicted a top grade. I can not say the same for French, which he finds very confusing. He is really enjoying the Latin and has had no problems with understanding and learning all the declensions. He also likes the "Civilisation" aspect of the GCSE syllabus.

[sandgrown]

I did Latin O level in the 70s and found it helped greatly with other languages

[AppleMagic]

I didn't find the exam tough at all. I mucked around a fair amount in the class and managed to teach myself enough in the revision period to get an a*.

[Fozzleyplum]

I did Latin GCSE and A Level, DS1 is about to GCSE Latin and DS2 has just chosen it as a GCSE option (along with Classical Greek). No problem at all doing it as the only language IMO - although DSs and I all took at least 1 modern language, too.

I can recommend it, and my understanding is that universities are often interested to see it on an application form as it's considered to be intellectually rigorous.