FRANCOSCOPE POUR AQA. By David Sprake and Steve Harrison. Student’s book pound;11. Teacher’s manual pound;25. Repromasters pound;35. Set of three cassettes pound;47. Set of three CDs pound;47.50plus VAT. Oxford University Press

It is a difficult task to keep abreast of change in the world of education and the changing GCSE specifications reflect this. Thankfully, the many excellent courses being written to fit the needs of the linguist update us all in their approach and content. Telescope is one such course. It is a two-part course designed for students in Years 10 and 11 (Telescope 2 is to be published in spring 2002).

It certainly pulls out all the stops in the pupil’s book to make the course appealing. It is both attractive and informative with colour photographs of the ubiquitous Britney Spears, David Beckham et al. There are 14 units in Book 1, 11 of which are the main study units ranging from Je m’amuse; En Forme! La France en 8 Jours; La Plan te Bleue and so forth. There are three shorter units interspersed by way of a break and an insight into other French-speaking parts of the world: Quebec, Mauritius and Haiti. These are well-researched, interesting units which add a multicultural dimension to the course.

Each unit states the “unit goals” in terms of language skills. The student is informed of the grammatical points to be studied and the language functions covered. There is a section called “Point Grammaire” with explanations in English and references to the “Section Grammaire” at the end of the book. There are also tips on pronunciation - “ca se dit comment?” The accompanying teacher’s guide informs and inspires teachers on how best to deliver the material, bearing in mind the need to sustain interest and (that old chestnut) motivate the boys. In addition, the authors have included many differentiated tasks. Indeed, even in the student’s book they are made aware of the more challenging questions which are colour-coded in blue.

The cassettes are clear and use a variety of voices. As always, the repromaster book provides extra material for practice.

Francoscope pour AQA sounds uncannily like Telescope 1 and, whether by accident or design, the two courses show some similarities of format and content. However, Francoscope is a revised version of Francoscope ... la Mode, already familiar to many teachers. It has certainly been updated - right down to circus tickets being quoted in Euros.

The student’s book is every bit as eye-catching as Telescope’s and targets the same age and ability range. It addresses the changes in criteria at 2003 regarding greater emphasis of distinct language progression. The revised version divides into four modules to embrace subject content and structures required in both modular and linear AQA specifications, but the course is designed to cater for all major awarding bodies at GCSE level. Within each module there are grammar revision sections. There is an English-French glossary linked to each unit as well as a general vocabulary and an exhaustive grammar section, plus practice grammar section with exercises.

The teacher’s book is full of good advice and creative tips - invaluable for newly qualified teachers. The student’s book is comfortingly less cluttered than many modern courses, without being staid. There is a wealth of valuable information for student and teacher and stimulating articles about the French-speaking world.

The cassettes are of an exceptionally high quality with emphasis on clarity of speech and variety of accents. Both these courses are appetising and carefully structured and at the same time cater for a wide ability range.

Mary O’Sullivan is a senior lecturer at the Department of Modern Languages at the University of Hertfordshire