KS4 Options

English Language

Throughout Year 10 and 11, Pupils will follow a carefully structured course designed to develop their writing skills in a creative and a persuasive response.  They will be assessed on their ability to communicate effectively and their accuracy, in terms of spelling, punctuation and grammar.  Pupils will be assessed on their inference, analytical and comparative skills when reading fiction and non-fiction texts from different times in history.

English Literature

The English Literature examinations are essay based where pupils will analyse the characters, themes, context and language of a range of texts as outlined below:

The English Literature examinations are essay based and will cover the following topics:

• A Shakespeare play and 19th century novel
• A modern play or novel
• Poetry – anthology of 15 studied poems and unseen poetry

English is an essential requirement for all careers and all forms of further and higher education.  A GCSE in English informs an employer that you have reached a certain level of literacy and they will then know what they can expect you to be able to do in a way of communicating both orally and in writing.  They will know what to expect of your level of understanding of written texts, and they will understand that they can rely on your ability to respond appropriately.

Both English Language and English Literature examinations will be carried out in the summer term of Y11. Throughout Y10 and Y11 there are formal assessments within the classroom to assess your progress, and show you which areas of your knowledge and skills require further development.

The English Language GCSE has two examination papers. Both papers last 1 hour 45 minutes and equate to 50% of your GCSE each

The English Literature GCSE has two examination papers. One paper lasts 1 hour 45 minutes and will focus on a Shakespeare play and a 19th century novel; this exam equates to 40% of the final GCSE. The second exam lasts 2 hours 15 minutes and will focus on the modern text, the poetry collection you have studied, and unseen poetry; this exam equates to 60% of the Literature GCSE.

Studying English enables pupils to develop many transferable skills including critical thinking, using a broad vocabulary and effective written and spoken communication.

Pupils who have studied English go on to study courses at college, sixth forms and universities such as English Language, English Literature, Journalism, Media Studies, Law, Ethics and Philosophy.

Pupils who have studied English have access to a wide range of careers and employment opportunities such as publishing, teaching, journalism, human resources, law and project management.

Talk to your English teacher or to Mrs M Bennett, the Head of English.

Although on pupils timetables they will have ‘English’ as one subject, we will cover two GCSEs during those lessons – English Language GCSE and English Literature GCSE

The vast majority of pupils study both English Language and English Literature GCSEs – this gives pupils the best possible opportunity to showcase their analysis skill across a wider range of texts, enjoy a wide range of fiction, and develop a variety of writing styles for different audiences and purposes. It better prepares them for their next steps in education or employment.

There are no tiers of entry in English Language or English Literature GCSE – all pupils sit exactly the same exam paper, and are marked with the same mark scheme. All pupils have the opportunity to be graded up to grade 9.

In both GCSE subjects, pupils are taught the knowledge of how writers use language and structure to influence their readers. In English Language pupils are also taught how to skilfully analyse writers’ use of language in fiction and non-fiction from different time periods, and how to adapt their own writing for a variety of purposes and forms. In English Literature pupils gain knowledge about extended pieces of literature from different time periods, and are taught how to use that knowledge to write critically to analyse how writers use language, structure and form to entertain and inform their readers.

It is incredibly helpful for pupils to have their own copies of the Literature texts that we study. Usually, we are able to order these in bulk and therefore secure a discount – we offer these at cost price to pupils, which is usually between £12-16 for all 3 of the set texts. We would of course offer use of a school copy in class if it is not possible for pupils to buy their own, but these will not be able to be annotated; another option is to purchase these second hand, or use ones from older siblings or friends. The Poetry Anthology is provided free of charge from the exam board. We recommend the CGP study guides, which can be purchased through most online book retailers including Amazon and WH Smith.

Spoken Language is assessed through a formal presentation. The judgement is recorded separately to the GCSE grade. It does not form part of either English Language or English Literature GCSE, but is entirely separate.

We encourage every student to read as much as they are able to, and as widely as possible. Newspaper articles, good quality online newspapers, magazine articles, non-fiction books, biographies and autobiographies of people of interest, as well as novels and poetry, are all excellent choices of reading material to prepare pupils for GCSE study. Reading not only broadens our vocabulary, aids our grammar and spelling, but reading a wide range teaches us about the differences between these forms and styles – this makes it much easier for pupils to emulate these styles in their own writing. Finally, reading offers us a new view of the world in which we live – either to teach us something new or to provide a much-needed escape from our very busy lives!