Foundation Cymraeg
Entry Level Foundation Cymraeg is a 120 guided learning hour qualification for learners aged 14 to 16 who are working towards GCSE Cymraeg Language and Literature or need a coherent Welsh course in its own right. It has three units: reading and writing tests, written responses to texts, and oral tasks. Digital work is light and mostly optional. Centres can run the Unit 1 tests on screen, one of the Unit 1 writing forms is an email, the translanguaging task can produce a poster, leaflet or article that suits digital layout, and the Unit 3 group task asks learners to discuss filming techniques in a Welsh language TV programme or film. The specification also lists using digital technology as a learning experience that is not directly assessed.
- Awarding body
- WJEC
- Level
- Entry Level
- First taught
- September 2027
- Amount of digital work
- Low
- Specification
- Open the specification
How this qualification is assessed
- Unit 1: Reading and Writing: Two written subject tests, 60 minutes in total (2 x 30 minutes, plus 10 minutes reading time before Subject Test 1), 30%, 30 marks (15 per test), set and marked by WJEC, taken on screen or on paper within a four week summer window
- Unit 2: Responding to Texts: Non-examination assessment, two written tasks (up to 6 hours), 40%, 40 marks (25 for Task 1, 15 for Task 2), set by WJEC, marked by the centre and moderated by WJEC
- Unit 3: Oral: Non-examination assessment, two oral tasks (individual task 2 to 5 minutes, pair or group task about 5 minutes), 30%, 30 marks (10 for Task 1, 20 for Task 2), set by WJEC, marked by the centre and moderated by WJEC
Skills that use Communication
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Writing an email, article or letter for an audience
In Unit 1 Subject Test 2 learners write one extended task in a set form, such as a speech, email, article, letter or conversation, using language to communicate with a particular audience. Centres can run this test on screen, so learners may type their answer and lay it out to suit the form.
DCF: Communication, Evaluating and improving digital content, Creating digital content
Getting pupils ready
- Year 7
- Pupils type a short Welsh email to a pen friend about their new school, adding a clear subject line, a greeting and a sign off.
- Year 8
- Pupils write the same news, a school trip, as a Welsh email to a parent and as a short article for the school website, and say how the layout changes for each reader.
- Year 9
- Pupils write a formal Welsh email to a local business asking about work experience, then check it against a list of features of a formal email before sending it to the teacher.
Show the specification wording and the DCF statements
Where it is in the specification: Unit 1, Section 1.1.2, page 12; Summary of assessment, page 5; Section 3.2, page 19
“use extended writing using language for the purpose of”
Progression step 3
I can show an understanding of the advantages and disadvantages of different forms of communication and when it is appropriate to use each, e.g. explain when video conferencing may be more appropriate than e-mail, and vice versa; explain the pros and cons of using instant messaging in social contexts; talk about purpose and audience.
I can ensure my output is appropriate for specific purposes.
Progression step 4
I can explore and develop a range of formal text document structures for different audiences and purposes.
Good to know
- Unit 1 can be taken on screen or on paper: "Centres will have the option to complete the test digitally or on paper." (Section 3.2, page 19), and there are separate entry codes for "Unit 1 (on screen)" and "Unit 1 (paper-based)" (Section 5.1, page 23).
- The Unit 2 creative task uses books, not screen texts: learners respond to a short story, novel or play, "printed texts only" (Unit 2, Section 2.1.1, page 14).
- The specification calls all three units non-examination assessment and follows the JCQ rules for vocational qualifications: "All non-examined assessment (NEA) must adhere to the instructions included in JCQ's Instructions for Conducting Non-Examination Assessments" (Section 3.3, page 20). No separate rule on AI use is given.
- Teachers supervise the NEA tasks and "must not give feedback on the evidence that is produced." (Section 3.3, page 20). Units 2 and 3 allow one resubmission before moderation (Section 3.4, page 21).
- Oral work is evidenced by the teacher rather than by a recording requirement: "evidence of performance (e.g. presentations) must be recorded using observation records" (Section 3.3, page 20).
- Results are reported at Entry Level 1, 2 or 3 only: the qualification "is reported on a three-point scale" (Section 5.3, page 24). There is no Level 1 grade.
- Using technology is encouraged but not assessed: the course creates opportunities to "use digital technology whilst completing the qualification", and "the experiences will not be directly assessed" (page 17).
- Appendix A (pages 26 and 27) ticks Digital Competence Citizenship, Interacting and Collaborating and Producing for all three units, and Data and Computational Thinking for Unit 3 only, without saying which content sections they refer to.
Links with other qualifications
The qualification is designed as a route to GCSE Cymraeg Language and Literature: the specification says it "provides a broad foundation for progression to GCSE Iaith a Llenyddiaeth Gymraeg" (page 8). The same strands appear in both, but the GCSE steps them up. Foundation learners discuss one Welsh language TV programme or film in a pair or group of three, while GCSE learners analyse film and identity in a group discussion; the Foundation individual oral is a 2 to 5 minute talk on a topic of the learner's choice, while the GCSE presentation is researched and supported with sources; Foundation creative writing responds to one printed short story, novel or play, while the GCSE adds poetry, comparison and literary terminology; and both qualifications ask learners to take information from an English text and express it in Welsh. The translanguaging task and the writing forms (email, article, letter, leaflet) also link with English at Foundation level.
Source: WJEC Entry Level Foundation Cymraeg specification, approved by Qualifications Wales, teaching from September 2027, for award from 2029 (© WJEC CBAC Ltd 2026).