<p>Okay so Im taking french right now and am in grade 10 and quite honestly I absolutely hate it.</p>
<p>Our teacher doesn't teach anything and just prints off tests from a textbook that we haven't even learned. My mark is a B+ and its a subject thats pulling my average down. I can speak the language fluently so I am wondering:</p>
<p>Should I drop the course for grade 11 and 12 and continue with my community service work on Aboriginal Reserves where French is spoken?</p>
<p>Should I take French until grade 12 to fulfill the recommended 3 or more years of foreign language by Harvard?</p>
<p>Or should I take spanish in grades 11 and 12?</p>
<p>What do you guys think is best and will dropping french hurt my chances at Harvard ??</p>
<p>My other courses are the hardest in the school however.</p>
<p>It doesn’t make sense to switch languages at this point. If you’re fluent in French you should find ways to document it. While you might not like your French teacher, you can probably do something to bring your grade up, such as showing that you really know the material, on tests, or organizing French-related activities with the students, showing enthusiasm. By all meants, if you are doing work outside of school that’s related to French, you should continue that, but without dropping French.</p>
<p>In general, college adcoms don’t look favorably on people switching languages. They’d rather see a solid foundation in one language than switching from one to another, which is why the stipulation is “3 years.”</p>
<p>If you’re fluent in French, why aren’t you breezing through the course with an easy A? Also, you complain that your teacher prints off tests containing material that you “haven’t even learned,” but there is nothing to learn in Grade 10 French if you’re fluent in the language.</p>
<p>You might have already heard of it, but basically the government pays for you to take French language courses at a Quebec university for a month. The programme accommodates all language levels, including near-native fluency, and you’re pretty much guaranteed admission if it’s your first time applying. So definitely apply for it if you haven’t already.</p>
<p>But whatever you do, don’t drop French! If you hate your teacher that much and you really are fluent in the language, take Extended French or the French course for native speakers. If you’re school doesn’t offer either of those, there are ways to take them online at a reasonable price.</p>
<p>If you already speak French, my guess is your Bs are a result of not learning spelling and new vocabulary. If the teacher uses the text book exams, then you should study the textbook! That means doing the elementary school lists of spelling words, vocabulary sheets as if you were in 3rd grade again. If it’s written you are doing poorly on, your studying should be primarily writing, not oral, or looking in the textbook. If you need some specific ideas, PM me.</p>
<p>I’d stay with the French, since you can really use it if you work on your written language! Two years of Spanish will not be nearly as useful to you in “real life”, regardless of what universities want. Take this chance to become an educated speaker of your second language, not just a home language speaker!</p>