For a very long time, the French education system was known as one of the best in Europe, if not worldwide.

However, over the past few years, this affirmation has become rather questionable. Indeed, every three years every French 15 years old pupil undertakes a test in reading, Maths, and Science and so do pupils from other countries.

Their tests’ results are then compared to each other in order to determine rankings of the best education system. It is the PISA (Program for International Student Assessment) test. The latest one dates from 2016. Its data gathers results from over 500, 000 pupils all over the world.

France arrived 26th out of 70 countries. It has lost a place in these rankings as it was 25th in 2012. This makes the French education system average compared to other developed countries. Moreover, France seems to perform really badly and owns the dunce’s cap when it comes to giving students equal opportunities.

Reducing this inequality of opportunities is something the French government is actively working on.

In this blog, I will introduce you to the French education system. More precisely, I will highlight the different French courses and their various levels and I will present you the different type of schools and their diplomas/degrees.

1) Level of French language evaluated in “Le cadre européen commun de référence pour les langues” (CECRL)

Before I start to underline the French education system, let me bring out the “cadre européen commun de référence pour les langues” (CECRL) as it is commonly used in France and actually displayed in languages classrooms.

It is also known as the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR). The European Union, which is a multilingual group, has for objective to promote communication within Europe.

For this reason, the Europe council, as well as the University of Cambridge, have created the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages. Firstly used in Europe, it is now used worldwide to evaluate students’ levels in any language and plays a central role in language and education policy.

It contains a series of descriptions of abilities, 6 to be exact. They help teachers and students to set clear targets and to know exactly what a pupil is able to do or not, what is his/her language proficiency level. Here are the six descriptors:

1) Level A

This first level is divided into two parts: A1 and A2. A1 corresponds to beginners and A2 to elementary. Learners falling in one of these two groups have usually just started learning a language.

Description of each level of French language proficiency:

French language level A1 beginner

French language level A1 syllabus
→ Listening:

– Understanding everyday words and very basic expressions.

→ Reading:

– Understanding everyday words and very basic expressions (adverts, posters or brochures).

→ Taking part in a conversation:

– Communicating in a simple way provided the interlocutor repeats and speaks slowly.
– Asking and answering questions about everyday topics or about yourself.

→ Speaking continuously:

– Using simple expressions and sentences to describe where you live and people you know.

→ Writing:

– Writing a small postcard, when on holiday for example. – Filling in a questionnaire (name, nationality, address).

French language level A2 Advanced beginner French language level A2-1 syllabus

→ Listening:

– Recognising simple texts already read and heard in familiar situations. – Understanding numbers.
– Understanding simple words describing people in a very short story.

→ Reading:

– Understanding written texts already encountered before.
– Understanding the overall of a wording in a personal letter.

→ Taking part in a conversation:

– Conversing about easy and familiar situations (meetings, asking information) without the interlocutor having any understanding difficulties.

→ Speaking continuously:

– Introducing yourself and your family and friends (identity, job, hobbies…) in a few simple sentences.

→ Writing:

– Transcribing a simple spoken information in a couple of sentences.

French language level A2-2 syllabus
→ Listening:

– Understanding simple wordings never heard before but about familiar topics. – Understanding clear and short instructions.
– Understanding numbers said in sentences.

→ Reading:

– Understanding the most important points of very short and easy texts containing only very short amount of new structures and new words.
– Finding information in an informative document dealing with one or several familiar topics.

→ Taking part in a conversation:

– In a short conversation, asking and answering, briefly and without personal opinions, questions about familiar topics

→ Speaking continuously:

– Describing in a few sentences and in a simple way your personal situation.

→ Writing:

– Writing a short and easy note or message to communicate an information using documents and a dictionary. Some mistakes can appear but the overall text stays understandable.

French language level A2-3 syllabus
→ Listening:

– Understanding the main topic of an everyday conversation.
– In a short text, understanding simple sentences and recognising words or groups of words indicating tense changes, as well as the most common link words.

→ Reading:

– Understanding the main points of a text or of a simple and short letter dealing with one or several familiar topics.

→ Taking part in a conversation:

– Communicating in a simple and common situation, after having prepared it.

→ Speaking continuously:

– Describing in a few sentences a recent experience (past tense).

→ Writing:

– Writing a personal letter to introduce yourself, thank someone or speak about yourself.
– Writing a short note or message to answer a question.

2) Level B

This second level is also divided into two parts: B1 and B2. B1 is called intermediate level and B2 upper intermediate level. At the end of college, students are usually expected to reach level B2 in their first foreign language (they have to learn two languages in France).

French language level B1 Intermediate

French language level B1-1 syllabus
→ Listening:

– In a brief story, recognising the framework of the events and linking the characters and places to these events.
– In every other type of audible text, understanding the main information.

→ Reading:

– Recognising the structure of a simple and rather short text or letter.
– Understanding the main events and essential ideas in a text or post dealing with familiar topics.

→ Taking part in a conversation:

– Speaking about your own personal situation (family, hobbies, job, studies).

→ Speaking continuously:

– Coherently describing, in a few sentences, an experience or an event. – Expressing your opinion.

→ Writing:

– Writing a simple and coherent text about a familiar topic. – Writing a personal letter.
– Being able, when proofreading, to correct the most obvious mistakes.

French language level B1-2 syllabus
→ Listening:

– In a less than two minutes long conversation, understanding the opinion of each character. – Noticing and understanding specific information in an informative document.

– In a longer story, understanding the events’ framework (when the topic is familiar).

→ Reading:

– Understanding information about work, family life or about a known topic.

→ Taking part in a conversation:

– Taking part in a conversation without many difficulties when interlocutors speak about known topics (you might still need to look for some words or to ask your interlocutors to help you express yourself).

→ Speaking:

– Briefly and coherently explaining your opinions or plans.

→ Writing:

– Relating events, giving a report on a course or an experience and describing your thoughts in an at least ten lines text without using a dictionary (at least not too often).

French language level B1-3 syllabus
→ Listening:

– Understanding details of an at least two minutes long story on a known topic. – Understanding technical information about products or services.

– Understanding arguments formulated by different protagonists of a discussion when they are clearly said.

→ Reading:

– Understanding the main points of every text or post which don’t exceed 40 lines and which deal with a known topic.

→ Taking part in a conversation:

– Being able to speak about the majority of situations you can encounter when traveling in a French-speaking country.
– Being able to speak about everyday life and personal matters without any preparation.

→ Speaking:

– Telling the plot of a film, book… and describing your reactions with the use of connectives.

→ Writing:

– Writing without any difficulties a personal letter or a simple and coherent text about familiar topics and making sure there aren’t many mistakes.

French language level B2 Advanced

French language level B2 syllabus
→ Listening:

– Understanding a speech of a certain length and an argumentation about a known topic.
– Understanding most newspapers, TV programmes and films (spoken in an informal language).

→ Reading:

– Reading articles in which authors express their point of view. – Understanding a literary contemporary text in prose.

→ Taking part in a conversation:

– Communicating rather spontaneously which makes a discussion with a French native person possible.

→ Speaking:

– Expressing yourself clearly about many topics.
– Developing an opinion about currents events.

→ Writing:

– Writing detailed texts about most topics related to things you like.

3) Level C
French language level C1 and C2 Expert

This last level is, like the first two, divided into two parts: C1 and C2. When students get to these levels, they are more or less bilingual (level C2) or at least understand long and difficult spoken and written texts and are able to speak clearly and with a wide range of vocabulary (level C1).

II) The different type of schools and their diplomas/degrees

1) The years before entering school

Nursery, “la crèche”, doesn’t actually belong to the French education system but I thought it could be interesting mentioning it as a lot of children go there before entering school. Indeed, many mums have to go back to work quickly after having had their baby.

Ten weeks to be precise which is rather depressing I must admit (well it was for me…). Parents have the choice between different types of childcare. There is “la crèche” which is a nursery.

These are daycare centers which keep babies from two months to three years old. It is very complicated to get a slot in a nursery as they are so popular (mainly because mums have to go back to work when their baby turns two months old). In fact, parents are advised to try and book a slot as soon as they are pregnant! Other options are available such as “les assistantes maternelles”. These are qualified women who can look after three or four babies at their house. They are officially recognized by the French state.

It is a better solution in my view as they are more flexible than a nursery. Moreover, they meet up with other “assistantes maternelles” to organize activities for children so they can develop great social skills too.

2) “La maternelle” (preschool/kindergarten)

In France, children start school rather early at the age of three years old and sometimes at two and half years old.

Even though most children attend “la maternelle” at that age, school is actually compulsory from 6 years old when pupils start “l’école élémentaire” (primary school/elementary school). There are three classes in the French preschool system: “la petite section”, “la moyenne section” et “la grande section”.

Over the past couple of years, a new level has appeared: “la toute petite section”. This class is for children aged 2. It is primarily developed in deprived areas, mainly to help children developing their speaking.

Unlike preschool in many other countries, “la maternelle” is not just a place for children to develop their social skills. Indeed, its curriculum contains specific knowledge to be worked on such as reading (letters and phonemes), writing and numeracy.

A foreign language is also offered in French preschools. Everything is based on games. Artistic activities are also very present as they help children developing their creativity and imagination while playing.

3) “L’école élémentaire”

Children go to this school for five years from 6 to 11 years old. There are therefore five levels: CP (cours préparatoire), CE1, CE2 (cours élémentaire 1 and 2), CM1 and CM2 (cours moyen 1 and 2).

They spend about 24 hours in class Monday to Friday. It is up to the local town hall to decide whether children have to attend school on Wednesday morning or not and therefore split the 24 weekly hours over four or five days.

Like in most countries, the French curriculum includes literacy, numeracy, a foreign language (mainly English, even though teachers don’t seem to put a big emphasis on that subject…), PE, History, Geography…

4) “Le collège” (secondary school)

Every child, aged 11 to 15, go to secondary school in France. The four classes, corresponding to grades 6 to 9, are called “sixième”, “cinquième”, “quatrième” and “troisième”.

Pupils receive a very general learning as it is only at the end of secondary school that children are oriented and that they can therefore slightly specialize in a certain learning area.

The curriculum includes French, Maths, PE, two foreign languages (mainly English and Spanish/German/Italian), Arts, Music, History, Geography, Civil Education, Technical Education, Science, Physics, and Chemistry.

In their last year, pupils undertake an exam, “le brevet des collèges”. This exam has totally lost its value as it is so easily obtained…

5) Le lycée (sixth form/college)

Students go to college from 15 to 18 years old. The classes correspond to grades 10 to 12 and are called “seconde”, “première” and “terminale”.

There are three types of college they can be oriented towards, mainly depending on their school results and their professional wishes: “lycée général”, “lycée professionel” and “lycée technique”.

During their “lycée” years, pupils prepare to sit for their final exam: “le baccalauréat”, very often shorten to “le bac”.

Supposedly, every “lycée” in France offers the same educational standard and the same chance to their students.

However, each year a sort of survey highlights the results of the “bac” for each college in France, basically showing which schools are the best. The same ones come back to the top of the list every year. They are the Lycée Louis-le-Grand or Lycée Henri-IV in Paris, the Lycée Fermat in Toulouse, and a handful of other famous public lycées.

6) Le lycée professsionel

Students who wish to learn a manual or clerical job may choose to study in a “lycée professionnel”.

Their academic syllabus is rather reduced as they principally focus on learning usefull skills for their chosen career but they do have to study French, Maths and a foreign language.

At the end of their three years in a “lycée professionnel”, students also take “le baccalauréat” but it is called “baccalauréat professionel”.

Some extra knowledge:

The success rate of the “baccalauréat” in June 2017 was 87.9% which is a bit less than the previous year. With less than 13 percent failure, it is considered by many French people as a far too easy exam… Some even go as far as saying that it is actually given to students… Nonetheless, it is a rather rigorous exam with oral, speaking and written parts and students are evaluated in many subjects. It lasts up to six days.

Every year, in June, media discuss the subjects in Philosophy which always is, as some sort of ritual, the first exam that students have to take. To obtain his/her “baccalauréat”, a student must have at least 10/20 (average mark).

If (s)he gets between 8 and 10/20, (s)he goes to the “rattrapages”. They can basically resit the exam. There are three distinctions (“mention” in French) when passing the “baccalauréat” :

“Bac with mention assez bien” (rather good): between 12 and 14/20 “Bac with mention bien” (good): between 14 and 16/20
“Bac with mention très bien” (very good): 16/20 and more

7) Higher education

In most countries, going to university is considered as the pinnacle of education. Not so much in France. Indeed, anyone can go to uni as long as they have their “baccalauréat”. Moreover, universities are underfunded compared to international standards.

Having said that, French universities actually do a remarkably great job in terms of productivity (ratio between investment per student, quality, and the results obtained). At university, students take their “licence” (three years degree).

Once they pass their bachelor’s degree, they can take a “maîtrise” also called “master” (an extra two years studying). Finally, they can take, if they pass their Master’s degree, a “doctorat” which is a Ph.D. However, the crème de la crème in higher education in France is the “Grandes Ecoles” which teach to tomorrow’s “haut fonctionnaires” (senior civil servants), leaders of industry, top military brass, top politicians, engineers, physicists and others.

After having obtained their “baccalauréat”, students have to take a competitive exam to enter those very elitist schools. They prepare this exam in the “classes préparatoires” which are also very selective.

Two of France’s Grandes Ecoles (ENS and Polytechnique), but no universities, are listed in the 2018 QS world’s top 100 universities listing. L’ENS (école nationale supérieure) of Paris comes 43rd and the Ecole Polytechnique 59th.

So here you have it: the French education system and its various courses and levels.

Conclusion

Please do share your in which level are you in the comment section on your experience/difficulty in learning each levels to study French

Side Note: Want a light introduction to French Courses Online? Check Out Our French Courses Online for Beginners

French Homophones are words that are pronounced the same but spelt differently.

They also have a different meaning.

Affirming that French is the language with the most homophones would be risky and I could be totally wrong as I do not know every single language spoken in our Earth’s vast lands.

However, I can definitely confirmed, as a French native speaker, that yes French intrinsically has quite a lot of homophones !

They are all French children worse nightmare during spelling tests !

Let’s take a closer look at the most common ones.

First, we can mention verbs endings.

Indeed, with the second person singular, “tu” (“you” in English), one has to add an “s” at the end of the verb. However, you do not pronounce this added “s”. Same difficulty appears when it comes to the third person plural, “ils” ou “elles” (“they” in English).

You must add -nt at the end of the verb but again, you do not pronounce it.

Why make things easy eh? Thus, if we wanted to conjugate “manger” (“to eat”) in the present tense, we would say:

Je mange / I eat

Tu manges / You eat (informal you) Il, elle, on mange / He, she, it eats
Nous mangeons / We eat
Vous mangez / You eat (formal you)
Ils, elles mangent / They eat

“mange”, “manges” and “mangent” are spelt differently, refer to different persons but are pronounced exactly the same.

Most of the time, the last consonnant isn’t pronounced in French which can make things rather complicated! Indeed, we can think about the following words : Sans / s’en / c’en / sens / sent / sang / cent or quand / quant / qu’en / camp / khan.

These are just examples among so many others!!

Not always easy to understand what someone is speaking about without seeing the words written down. This possible meaning confusion led to the lovely story of Cinderella. The beautiful princess wore, in the Honore de Balzac version, the once fashionable pantoufles de vair (slippers made with squirrel’s fur).

However, Charles Perrault mentioned some pantoufles de verre (glass slippers).

This difference between both stories versions has, ever since, created a big debate: what type of slippers did Cinderella wear?!

In 2016, the French government wanted to institute a new reform about word spelling. They wanted to get rid of the circumflex accent. You know the little hat “^” on top of either the letter “i”, “o” or “u” in some French words?

The government wanted to make French spelling easier. Well… that did not go down very well with the French population. And quite rightly so. You will understand why with the following couple of examples!

Please excuse the very familiar expressions!

“Salut, je suis sûr, ta femme, elle est heureuse !” (Hey, I’m sure, your wife, she’s happy!)

« Salut, je suis sur ta femme, elle est heureuse ! » (Hey, I’m on top of your wife, she’s happy!)

« Salut ma belle ! Je vais me faire un jeûne demain ! » (Hey beautiful, I’m going to abstain myself from eating tomorrow!)

« Salut ma belle ! Je vais me faire un jeune demain ! » (Hey beautiful, I’m going to sleep with a young lad tomorrow ! »)

Not quite the same meanings…

Sometimes, it can even get more tricky than this !!

Some expressions can be only made with homophones such as « un vieil armagnac » (« an old Armagnac/Brandy ») and « un vieillard manique » (« a fussy old man »). They are called « holorimes ».

Let’s look on the bright side though : yes, the French language has some asperities but it does allow us to play with words and have some fun !!

Conclusion

Please do share your story in the comment section on your experience to study French

Side Note: Want a light introduction to French Courses Online? Check Out Our French Courses Online for Beginners

When you learn French online you set your own pace to best suits your busy lifestyle.

Learning a language is extremely demanding.

Going to classes, visiting a tutor, going out and buying books take a lot of time.

And I know that as a parent, as a partner and with your everyday job and life, it’s not always possible.

Well, in fact, it can sometimes be totally impossible.

However, this should not mean that you should give up on your will, on your dream to learn French. How can you juggle everything then you might ask?

Your best option is to lean French online from the comfort of your own home.

Peacefully in your pyjamas on your sofa with a coffee.

Sounds perfect?

That’s because it is not only would it make your life easier and stop you from running around to be here, there and everywhere trying to squeeze everything in, it would also provide a familiar and reassuring environment.

In these conditions, you would feel much more relaxed and mentally more ready to learn. Your brain would memorize information so much better and quicker if you simply feel mellow rather than stressed out!

A peaceful mind maximizes your learning capacities. Moreover, learn French online from home would make you a self-directed learner.

You would take responsibilities of your own learning and be in charge of your learning program!

So how can you do this then?

Where should you start?

Your starting point should definitely be the Internet!

It is a wonderful source of information which contains so many useful and interesting resources. So many though, that’s often the problem!

You could easily get lost in the amount of information available on the web. In this blog, I will guide you towards some apps, podcasts, PDF, YouTube videos and websites I find particularly good and helpful.

1) Learn French fast with these apps

Learning a language used to be synonym of carrying loads of textbooks and very heavy dictionaries … and pay for them obviously!

Well not anymore!

Like most people, you more than likely own a smartphone.

This little technological wonder is all you need and it will get you to speak the language of love in no time!

All you have to do is to download an app.

Before I tell you about a few apps I like, let me list some benefits of studying French with apps rather than with a more traditional method using books or going to classes.

First of all, you can learn whenever you want and wherever you want!

Going to work using public transport?

Make the most of this dull journey!

Click on your app and start learning.

Not only would this save you from being bored, it would also stop you from wasting your time. Why do nothing when you can pass the time doing something useful such as studying?

Our phones are always with us so it seems normal to use them intelligently, doesn’t it? A lot of people (including me…) tend to go on their phone before going to sleep (yes we are so addicted to our phones it can sometimes be worrying…).

Why not revise some French vocabulary or grammar structures just before bed?

Another advantage is that you are not constrained to attend a course on such a day at such a time. Instead, you can learn French on your own pace whenever your mind and body feel the readiest for it.

Traditional methods seem, for most of us, boring and therefore not very effective. Methods using new technology, pictures, videos and sounds are however a lot more fun and consequently much more motivating.

Let’s now see a few good apps.

1. Apps for Android

• “Memrise: Learn Languages” has been awarded the best 2017 app. Download it and you’ll understand exactly why. It does make studying and learning very fun and will more than likely help you progress in no time!
• “Learn French” is a free app mainly aimed at beginners and travelers. It contains about 800 commonly used French words and expressions. It also allows you to work on your pronunciation as you can listen to these terms in an authentic pronunciation and repeat them. You can store your favorite sentences too.
• “Learn Languages: Rosetta Stone” is another free application for Android. Its method is based on first language learning. Its creators help you to learn French the way you learnt your native tongue: without translation. You start speaking French straight away. You also get feedback on your pronunciation.
• “Learn French 6,000 Words” is a free and easy app to learn new vocabulary. It contains illustrated words, phonetic transcriptions and pronunciation recordings by native speakers as well as games which makes it very fun!
• “Learn French with Babbel” is a free innovative app which includes a wide variety of courses designed by experts and a speech recognition. It is made for all students so whether you’re a beginner or a more advanced learner, this app should help you to acquire an even better level in French!

2. Apps for iPhone

• “French 101, by 24/7 Tutor” includes interesting interactive programs. As part of its various features, it contains puzzle games, flash cards, multiple choice quizzes and write-in tests. It also lists vocabulary in categories such as family, friends, travel, home and more.
• “French Audio Flashcards” by Declan Software. This app is amazing to work on your pronunciation as it has over 4,400 words and phrases said by native speakers. It also helps you to develop some memorization techniques thanks to its many flashcard reviews and exercises.

• “Lingopal French-talking phrasebook” by Lingopal. The first advantage of this app: you access it without an Internet connection. It is specially designed for those who need phrases to get by. It includes audio files.

• “AccelaStudy French”, by Renkara Media Group, Inc. One of the best features of this app is that you can keep track of your learning thanks to its automatic statistics so you know exactly how well you’re progressing which is very motivating!Furthermore, it includes audio files made by native speakers (great to work on your pronunciation), over 2,400 words (all levels, from beginners to more advanced ones), quizzes, flashcards and a dictionary.

• “iSpeak French”, by Future Apps. This iPhone app basically is a speaking dictionary. Type any word or phrase and it will translate them and tell them out loud in French.This is great to learn how to pronounce perfectly and very handy when traveling as you can just write what you need to know and simply repeat correctly the translation you’ve just heard or even cheat a little and just ask the person you’re speaking to to listen to the translation…

2) Learn French fast with these Podcasts

Before I start, let me very briefly define what a podcast is.

Basically, a podcast is an Internet radio on demand. It allows you to listen to it whenever you want which is perfect when you have a very busy schedule!

That way, you can study and revise when it suits you best, when you’re the most inclined to learn in a relaxed and calm environment or when you’re on the go headphones in!

Why exactly should you study with podcasts though?

Listening to French, to a lot of French even, is a fantastic way to memorize new vocab and grammar structures. Thus using podcasts is considered as being one of the most efficient ways to learn French. So now let’s have a look at some very helpful ones.

• “Coffee Break French” by Radio Lingua Network is one, if not the one, most appreciated podcast by learners. If you’re a total beginner in French, this podcast is made for you! However, it also suits more advanced learners as the difficulty of each lesson increases.Each lesson focuses on what you actually need to know to be understood by a French person. They last about 15 minutes which is great if you don’t have much time. Its content is divided into seasons. Season 1 is the easiest one and it gradually increases in difficulty as the seasons progress.

• “Frenchpod101” is a must! Made for all levels from beginner to advanced, this podcast is hosted by two persons, a French native speaker and an English one. Their lessons include realistic conversations (which is obviously very useful as you want to learn things you’ll actually need! No time for messing around!). They also contain slow speed recordings, translations and various explanations about the language itself and the French culture. All this is divided into topics.

My next three chosen podcasts are rather aimed at intermediate and advanced learners as they contain more French language. Don’t worry though, they also have transcriptions and translations!

• “Français authentique”. Like most learners, you might understand (if not master? If not, you will soon!) written French but might find it difficult to actually grasp spoken French. If that’s the case, this podcast would be perfect for you. Indeed, its host speaks slowly about French expressions, motivation and lots of interesting topics.

• “One thing in a French day”. This podcast deals with everyday life. The host tells you about her daily life in France which is good to learn about vocabulary as well as the French culture.

• “Learn French with daily lessons” by FrenchVoila. Last but not least, this podcast is very interesting as it enables you to brush up on your French thanks to the news. The host speaks about recent events and explains it all in slow French.
•  Loads of examples and synomyms are used to help you understand better

3) Learn French fast with these websites

Whether you’re a beginner learner needing to start from scratch or a more advanced one who just needs to refresh on a few French grammar points, websites are a great place to learn. However, you can easily get trapped in the thousands and thousands of existing links! Luckily, I got you covered and chose a few good ones for you!

• https://simplefrenchwords.com/learn-french-pdf-free/ This website is fab as it contains many printable PDF on many useful topics. Great to get you started!

• http://www.bonjourdefrance.co.uk/learn-french-online/grammar/choose-level I really do like that one! Before starting on this website, you have to choose which level of the European scale of French level you want to study at (A1, A2, B1, B2, C1 and C2). Knowing your level is a necessity if you want to carry on your studies in France (or in most European countries) as specific levels are required to enter university (at least level B2). It contains grammar lessons and exercises to practice what you’ve learnt.

• https://www.fluentu.com/ This is another great website as it offers real-world French videos (music, videos, movie trailers, news and inspiring talks turned into French lessons). Perfect to learn French in a total immersion. And not only will you learn the ins and outs of the language itself, you will also learn so much about the French culture. Indeed, these videos were originally created for French native speakers. They are therefore filled with a lot of informal everyday French speech and many cultural aspects of the French society.

• http://www.wordreference.com/enfr/ One of my all-time favorite website! Yes, I know, I sound a bit (a lot) geeky but this online dictionary is so useful. So much so I, in fact, recommend it to my students, from beginners to more advanced ones, every single year. This website doesn’t only just translate words. It goes a lot further than that. You type a word and it will give you its translation as well as all the expressions containing that particular word. And if you can’t find the phrase you need, there is a forum on which you can ask any related question you want!

4) Learn French fast with these YouTube videos

As I said previously, listening to French is a great way to learn it but listening to it and watching videos at the same time can add a bit of fun to your learning journey.

While there are a lot of videos on YouTube, many contain far too much English which, yes, it can make things easier to understand but what’s the actual point in listening to English when you want to learn French?

I have selected some helpful videos to stop you browsing the net for hours and therefore concentrate on what matters the most: you learning French! I have divided my selection into two parts: channels for beginners and channels for intermediate and advanced learners.

1. Channels for beginners

• “ Frenchpod101” In the podcasts’ section, I told you about Frenchpod101. It is also a YouTube channel which will teach you everyday words and sentences and will help you to improve thanks to listening exercises.
• “Comme une française” is based on the same principle. However, the French host, Géraldine, will also teach you French cultural habits and the related vocabulary.

2.Channels for intermediate and advanced learners 

• “Français avec Pierre”. In his videos, Pierre chooses common French idioms and explains them. Then, he interviews French native speakers to discuss these expressions as well as other topics (cultural, grammatical…). Great channel if you already speak a bit of French and want to dig further inside the ins and outs of the language and if you want to learn how French people think.

• “Easy Languages” is rather similar to the previous one as the host also interviews French people about all sorts of topics. It’s interesting (if not funny) watching how wound up some French people can get when debating! It’s a great channel if you want to learn more about giving your opinion.

There are tons of great resources to learn French online but I hope my selected ones will help you on your online learning journey!

Conclusion

Please do share your story in the comment section on your experience to study French

Side Note: Want a light introduction to French Courses Online? Check Out Our French Courses Online for Beginners

You should study French! Don’t believe it?

Learning a language, any language shall I say, is extremely enriching. Linguistically and culturally.

1. It extends your travelling possibilities
2. It develops your communication abilities
3. It opens your mind
4. It makes you accept differences.

The list goes on.

Being multilingual can also sometimes be compulsory at school and essential at work, even more so with the importance of today’s globalization.

Yes!!

But there are so many different languages to choose from. Why pick French over Spanish or German or even Italian? The answer is simple: French is one of the most spoken languages in the world.

In fact, let’s highlight some interesting facts stated by the International Organization of Francophonie.

1) Significant aspects of the French language

The International Organization of Francophonie, which counts 84 member states and governments all over the world, gathers and analyses data about the French language.

Every four year, it publishes them in “La Langue Française dans le monde” (“the French language in the world”). Its last publication dates from 2014.

The report shows that French is present over the 5 continents. French is the official language in many countries. 29 to be precise. These are mainly old French colonies.

Moreover, French is commonly spoken in another 8 countries despite not being the official (or one of the official) spoken language. In 2014, French was spoken by 247 million people around the globe which makes it the fifth global language after Mandarin, English, Spanish and Arabic.

There are two different types of Francophones: people who speak French as a foreign language (mainly when you go abroad or speak with French people) and people who use French as their everyday language. Let’s take a deeper insight at the re-partition of French speakers: 7.6% live in America and Caribbeans, 36.4% in Europe, 54.7% in Africa, 0.3% in Asia and Oceania and finally 0.9% in the Middle East. This represents an increase of 7% of people who use French as their everyday language between 2010 et 2014. Speaking French is, therefore, a real advantage for your studies, your professional career, your everyday life as well as your access to information. If all these numbers don’t convince you choosing French when learning a language is the best option, let’s bury ourselves in more interesting facts!

2) Studying French

French is the second most learned language in the world. 125 million people study it each year. Among these 125 million people, 76 million study French as their educational learning language and 49 million as a second language.

More and more French teachers are required all over the planet as learning French as a second language has increased by 6 % since 2010.

In fact, we can be more precise and look at the evolution on each continent: + 2% in America and Caribbeans, – 8% in Europe, + 7% in North Africa and the Middle East, + 44% in Sub-Saharan Africa and + 43% in Asia and Oceania!

Today, we count about 900 000 French teachers in the world. This rise has a significant impact on the development of the French language itself. Indeed, as any other language, it evolves. Thus, to meet the needs of the growing French-speaking population, the dictionary of the French Academy went from 40 000 words to 60 000 words over the past 50 years.

Parlez-vous français? young woman holding tablet pc on the background with french national flag. french language learning concept

3) The importance to Study French language in international media and on the Internet

It goes without saying that French holds a crucial place in the international media and on the Internet. Indeed it is globally used to communicate. Thereby, there are 6 international French television channels (Euronews, Arte, TV5 monde, A24 and France 24) and many more French international radio stations.

180 million people surf the Internet in French which makes it the fourth most used language by Internet users. It holds the sixth place for the number of visited Internet pages (fifth place on Wikipedia and third place on Amazon which is incredible when we know how popular these two websites are!).

4) The French language and your professional career

French is the official working language for many international organisations such as the United Nations, UNESCO, NATO, the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), the International Labor Bureau, the International Olympic Committee, the 31-member Council of Europe, the European Community, the Universal Postal Union, the International Red Cross and the Union of International Associations (UIA).

French is also the dominant working language at the European Court of Justice, at the European Tribunal of First Instance as well as at the Press Room at the European Commission in Brussels, Belgium.

It is the third spoken language in the international business community after English and Chinese. But why is it so important for you to study French? As we mentioned previously, French has clearly made its way up the “most globally used and spoken language” rankings.

Global expansion is happening fast nowadays, faster than ever in fact. The globalization of the workforce is more predominant than ever before and this will only carry on increasing in the forthcoming years. Not only businesses are expanding abroad with thousand offices opening daily all over the world, there is also a significant increase in various business operations throughout the world thanks to the use of the Internet.

Being bilingual, if not multilingual, has, therefore, become a must when searching for a job. It will help you maintain a competitive career advantage. Even though most businesses are still conducted in English, the global business landscape is changing.

French, being the third most spoken language after English and Chinese in the business community, is clearly one of (if not THE) best option when deciding to learn a language.

Let’s summarize why it is vital for you to study French to enhance your professional prospects : international businesses choose more and more to hire multilingual people, knowing one or more foreign languages may give you an edge when competing for an important position, thanks to globalization, opportunities abroad are increasing daily, being able to speak another language makes you more marketable with companies doing business internationally and last but not least communicating with people in their native tongue demonstrates that you have some knowledge regarding the culture and rituals of those people.

5) The economic weight of French-speaking countries

In 2014, countries belonging to the International Organization of Francophonie represented 16% of the global population, 14% of the global gross income and 20% of the international trade.

The United States of America, which obviously has a massive impact on the international economic scene, has countless trading partners. The first one is the European Union in which France is located as well as Belgium and Switzerland (French is spoken in these three countries).

Their third trading partner (after China) is Canada with 544,894 million US dollars in 2016. France comes 8th with 77,706 US million dollars in the same year.

The economic relations between the United States and France are mutually beneficial as they allow growth and job creations in both countries. Trade in goods and services between the two countries reached $120 billion in 2016, according to Eurostat. There is a bilateral direct investment between the USA and France. In 2015, the French direct investment position in the US reached $251 billion, and the American direct investment position in France amounted to $80 billion, according to the Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA).

6) The impact of the French language in Science and Technology areas

France is one of the leader countries when it comes to Science and Technology. For example, France is a leading exporter of nuclear technology.

The country has many universities and colleges that offer courses in basic and applied sciences (we can think of the prestigious Palais de la Découverte and Cité des Sciences both located in Paris).

Pioneers in the automobile industry, today France is the third largest car producer in Europe. Three worldwide known automobile brands are French (Peugeot, Renault, Citroën) and create jobs all over the world. France holds many other technological assets including the TGV (the fastest train), Ariane rockets which put most commercial satellites into space, fiber optics which is one of the most advanced systems of telecommunication in the world… French also are avant-gardists in terms of medical advance.

Indeed, French doctors and scientists are one of the main leaders in the medical community. They have, as a case in point, isolated the AIDS virus. Medical genetics research has also tremendously progressed thanks to the French Genome Project located in Paris.

Another very important area in which the French community is largely represented is the army. The French army, officially known as the Land Army, is composed of about 123,000 people and is present in 15 countries to try and keep peace around the globe.

After having underlined some significant and essential facts about French and the predominance of this language around the world, it now seems crystal clear that speaking French is a safe bet and a must. Thanks to all this food for thought, we hope you are now as convinced as we are on the importance of choosing French when studying a language.

Conclusion

Please do share your story in the comment section on your experience to study French

Side Note: Want a light introduction to French Courses Online? Check Out Our French Courses Online for Beginners

Knowing French is great, but how to learn French quickly?

Learning a language is a long and difficult journey.

For this reason, most people quit before becoming fluent.

It’s an absolute shame as, yes, learning a language is tough but, no, it is not impossible!

One important thing to remember before starting learning French is that your learning journey will take you way beyond a simple academic learning.

You will discover a new culture, a new way of thinking that will open your mind and change the way you approach life. Learning French will enrich you.

In this blog, I will give you some useful basic tips to make sure you can learn French quickly.

1) Motivation

This might seem obvious but you do need a good reason for wanting to learn a language. Indeed knowing exactly why you want/need to speak French fluently and quickly will keep you motivated and focused. I would advise you to have visuals around your house or simply above your desk, anywhere really as long as you see them every day.

You could,

for example, write in big bold letters your reasons for learning French and hang them up on the wall or put pictures of Paris on your fridge.

2) Set yourself goals

One of the most important thing when learning a language is to be rigorous and consistent. You must set some time slots in your diary.

Sticking to your schedule is essential. Having a good reason for learning French and being motivated (as mentioned above) will help you to keep on track. Set yourself precise goals.

You could maybe decide to study French twice a week for one hour and to read or listen to 15 minutes of French daily.

Get into the routine of doing it so it feels part of your normal everyday life.

To come back to the visuals I mentioned previously, I would advise you to actually write down on your calendar or wherever you write what you have to do for the day the following sentences “French learning journey: 1 hour of studying” / “French learning journey: 15 minutes of daily French reading/listening” and tick them off once you have done it.

It will help you to measure your progress and it will be very satisfying to see that you are managing to stick to your plans!

3) Be realistic about your goals and about how long it will take you to achieve them

You need to be very clear about what you can and cannot do.

For instance, you cannot strongly believe you will be fluent in two weeks because you really want to and you will give it your everything. No.

You do have a life and everything that goes with it (work, children, family life…).

Learning French quickly is possible but be realistic on what quickly actually means and involves.

Think your language learning journey in stages and plan short and long-term achievable goals.

4) Find a learning method that is effective and works for you

Before starting, try to find your learning style. How do you learn best?

We usually count eight different learning styles: logical/mathematical (you enjoy using logic and reasoning), verbal (you need to read a lot and write things down to remember them), visual (using pictures, charts helps you learning), musical/auditory (you prefer sounds and music.

You make songs up to remember new vocabulary or grammar rules), physical/kinesthetic (you need to touch or to do play roles), social (you need to be part of a group, a class to share your understanding of things as well as learning from others), solitary (you prefer selfstudy and concentrate more when learning on your own), combination (your learning style is a combination of these).

Once you will know exactly which method suits you best you will maximize your daily learning journey and you will notice faster progress.

5) Don’t focus on grammar

Remember why you’re learning French.

To communicate with people. As an adult learner, you probably don’t want to feel like you’re going back to the good old school days!

And this is exactly how you’ll feel if you start your learning journey with grammar books. Obviously, I am not saying you should avoid learning grammar.

However, I would personally advise you to allow yourself to make grammatical mistakes (you’ll learn from them) as long as you manage to convey your message. This, after all, is the most important thing when you start learning a language.

When you’ll gradually be able to make yourself understood by native speakers, you can start polishing your linguistic skills and study grammar in more depth.

In other words, relax, take it easy and don’t forget that the most important thing when learning a language is to be able to understand people and to make yourself understood.

Perfection will come in time.

6) Remember the importance of vocabulary

Like I mentioned it above, it is essential to make yourself understood and to understand native speakers when learning a language.

To do so, you will need to know a wide range of words. As carrying a bilingual dictionary is not always handy nor practical, you will have to go through the stage of vocabulary learning.

And I promise you, it’s not as bad as it seems especially when you know that approximately 70% of French words are similar to English ones (thank you William the Conqueror and your invasion on British soil in 1066!).

I would advise you to make lists of words belonging to the same topic. This will ease your learning and help you memorizing more vocabulary.

For example, you could write a list of the most common words in French, a list of numbers, another one of words needed to introduce yourself

And, if despite learning your vocabulary lists, one day you’re stuck and you dont know a word, have a glance at the following website; Wordreference.

I use it every time I’m unsure about a word or whenever my mind goes blank.

7) Immerse yourself

This is crucial. To learn French quickly, you must speak French, think in French, dream in French. French needs to become a very important part of your day.

Whether you read French books, watch French films and/or TV, or listen to French music/radio, you must be surrounded by French.

French, French, French everywhere!

The best thing would obviously be to visit a French-speaking country to hear native French speakers, their accent and the musicality of the language. But if you cannot go to France just yet, make sure you follow my previous advice!

8) Speak with French speakers before going to France!

Of course, you’ll get to speak French to French people once in France but practicing speaking French before going over can be very useful as it will get you used to it and it will boost your confidence up!

Your first time speaking to someone in France won’t seem as daunting then! It could be very interesting to speak to local people around you, maybe real native speakers or people who, just like you, have learnt French as a second language.

Indeed, beyond practicing the French language, you will also discover French habits and cultural aspects which is always a bonus before going over there.

Enquire about local meetings which gather people who want to speak French or ask your family and friends if they know any French speaker who would want to have a little conversation with you!

9) Have a French pen pal

To carry on what I was saying about immersing yourself, you could have a pen pal. This would obviously help you with your actual learning (grammar, vocabulary, syntax) but not only.

Indeed speaking to a French person either by letters, on Facebook, Skype, WhatsApp or whichever other way you might prefer would make learning French meaningful. It would give it a real purpose as well as making it fun.

10) Don’t be ashamed to make mistakes nor of your accent

Unfortunately, many people give up learning a language because they feel stupid either because they don’t perfectly speak (yet) or because they don’t have a perfect French accent.

Realistically, who cares about little mistakes or a strong foreign accent as long as you can communicate? No one but you.

People will actually envy you as being multilingual is such an amazing achievement and can take you so far in life.

It shows true dedication and motivation. You should be proud of yourself. And don’t forget, everyone actually finds foreign accents and little mistakes cute (if not sexy!).

11) Dispel that false (but unfortunately so fixed and believed by many) idea that French is somehow impossible to learn

First of all, let me be very (very, very) clear: No?

French is not that hard and even less impossible to learn. Learning French is achievable just as long as you are motivated, focused and consistent (which, if you’re reading this, you must be).

What makes learning French (or any other language) difficult isn’t grammar, vocabulary nor syntax. It’s our everyday life and a lack of motivation because yes, as much as you want to become fluent, some days you will not feel like studying, you’ll feel more like watching your favorite TV program because, let’s face it, you’ve had a long day at work so you do deserve to relax after all.

Well, that’s when an important motivation and a very good learning routine come in. In these wandering moments, remember why you have decided to learn French and go and have a look at that beautiful picture of Paris you’ve put on your fridge!

12) Don’t give up!

Have you ever been in that awful situation where you’re having a drink (or more likely a meal in France!) with native speakers and conversations are coming from every angle, everyone is talking and smiling and you’re just sat there in your own world pretending you’re part of it all, pretending you understand everything when in fact you clearly do not have a clue what’s going on.

You see people laughing at that joke you’ve not understood so what do you do? Well, you fake a laugh too hoping no one will ask you anything about it or about anything else for that matter…

This situation is psychologically and physically exhausting but do remember: it will not last forever! You need to keep going, you need to carry on learning and socializing with people.

And one day, you will finally get that joke you didn’t understand before, you will gradually grasp more and more of each conversation.

And one day, you will speak French fluently. Never give up and believe in yourself and in your learning capacities!

Conclusion

I hope these 12 tips will help you on your learning journey and that you will learn french quickly as possible.

And remember, French isn’t that difficult to learn.

You’ve got it sorted!

Either way, leave a quick comment below right now on what are the ways you have tried to learn French quickly?

Side Note: Want a light introduction to French Courses Online? Check Out Our French Courses Online for Beginners