Key Stage 3

In Years 7 & 8, students are introduced to a wide range of reading material and are also encouraged to develop their individual writing skills. Schemes of Work follow the National Strategy guidelines and aim to offer students a diverse and inspiring experience in English.

At the end of Year 9, Students take the National Standard Attainment tests (SATs). All pupils will study a Shakespeare play; analyse texts written for a variety of audiences and purpose and write in a range of styles. Following the SATs exam in May, students begin work on the coursework component of their GCSE in English.

Key Stage 4

GCSE English and English Literature

During Key Stage 4, students follow the AQA – A syllabus for GCSE English. The programme of study is separated into three areas: Speaking and Listening, Reading and Writing. Students will have the opportunity to explore their own personal experiences; share and exchange ideas; use language to inform and explain; plan and take part in group and individual presentations and vary their communication to suit a wide range of situations. Students will also read a number of fiction and non-fiction texts together with Shakespeare, poetry and Drama.

Most students will also take AQA – A GCSE Literature. Students will study a range of stories, novels, poetry and plays, including Shakespeare. Students will learn to compare texts and also study individual texts in depth. Students will also acquire some understanding of those social and historical influences which have combined to produce a particular book, play or poem. They will be helped to make mature responses to literature and to interpret a range of texts.

Students are either entered for higher or foundation tier exams. (Higher – grades A*-D, and foundation – grades C – G)

AQA- A GCSE English

20% Coursework

1. Original Writing 5%
2. Media 5%
3. Shakespeare 5%
4. Prose 5%

20% Speaking and Listening (3 assessments for a range of purposes)

1. Drama activity
2. Group activity
3. Individual activity

60% Exam

Paper 1 30%
Section A – questions on unseen material
Section B – Writing to Advise, argue or persuade

Paper 2 30 %
Section A – Poetry from other Cultures
Section B – Writing to explain, describe or instruct.

AQA – A GCSE English Literature

30% Coursework

1. Prose (from GCSE English)
2. Shakespeare (From GCSE English)
3. Drama

70 % Exam
Section A – Poetry
Section B – Compare two short stories

Along with more detailed information on the syllabus, sample papers are available to download from the AQA website – www.aqa.org.uk

Key Stage 5

Students have the choice of studying AQA English Literature or Language. Both are popular subject choices and allow students to further develop skills learned at GCSE level.

AQA English Literature offers a range of texts to be studied:

Modules:
1 The Modern Novel
2 Shakespeare (Coursework)
3 Texts in context: Drama and Poetry
4 Texts in Time: Drama and Poetry
5 Themed Coursework texts – comparison of two novels
6 Themed unit on the World of War

The course is an enjoyable and challenging venture. Units one and two are designed to help students develop the higher level skills required at A Level and many of the written tasks will be similar in style to GCSE work. As students progress through the course, they will find the level of work increasingly challenging as they explore a wider range of texts in more depth.
Students will be encouraged to develop their personal wider reading during the course. This is particularly important in the coursework components of the course and for Unit 6 at the end of year13. A full reading list will be available from the appropriate member of staff on request.

AQA English Language

Modules:

1.  
   1. Introduction to Language Study
   2. Language and Social Contexts
   3. Original Writing (AS coursework)
   4. Investigating Language (A2 coursework)
   5. Editorial Writing
   6. Language Development – Language Change and Language Acquisition.

The texts studied on the English Language course are hugely varied and include transcripts of real and scripted conversations, media and non-fiction texts, and short literary texts. The first module introduces students to the skills and teaches the all-important grammatical knowledge needed to study English Language. Then students move on to modules where those skills can be applied in two pieces of original writing and study areas such as Language and Gender, Language and Technology, Language and Occupations and Accent and Dialect.

At A2 Level, students are expected to continue building on their grammatical and linguistic knowledge with application in the more complex areas of child language acquisition and language change in the last 400 years. Students are also given the opportunity to investigate a topic of their choice in Investigating Language. Recent successful projects have included: Investigating the language of televised cosmetics adverts; Investigating George W. Bush’s use of rhetoric; Investigating the language of children’s magazines aimed at boys and girls.