GCSE English
GCSE English Literature
English Literature Specification
English Literature Course overview
The English Literature course will test the following skills:
- Comprehension skills: how well can you infer information about plot, character, events and settings?
- Critical Reading: how well do you consider different ways of interpreting a text?
- Does the historical context of a text help you come to your own informed opinion?
- Analytical skills: how well can you analyse how writers use language, form and structure. Comparison skills: how well do you compare and contract texts that you have studied.
English Literature Course content
Over the course of year 10 and 11, you will study the following texts in full:
- A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens
- An Inspector Calls by J. B. Priestley
- Macbeth by William Shakespeare
- Conflict Anthology by Various Poets
English Literature Exam board and Exam Structure
| Paper | Content | Marks | Board |
| Paper 1 |
19th Century novel - A Christmas Carol Written exam: 1 hr 45 mins |
64 marks - 40% | AQA |
| Paper 2 |
Modern Text - An Inspector Calls Poetry Written exam: 2 hr 15 mins |
96 marks - 60% |
GCSE English Language
English Language Specification
English Language Course overview
The English Language course develops your reading and writing skills.
English Language Course content
Your ability to retrieve information from a range of different texts:
- Your ability to comment on the overall structure of a text
- Your ability to analyse a writer’s use of language
- Your ability to compare the content of two different texts
- The overall structure of your writing; how well you can plan and paragraph
- Your ability to use different types of sentences
- The breadth of your vocabulary
- Your accuracy with spelling and grammar
English Language Exam board and Exam Structure
| Paper | Content | Marks | Exam board |
| Paper 1 |
There are two papers which ask you to look at different types of text. Read and comment on an extract of fiction and write a piece of descriptive or narrative writing. Read and comment on an extract from non-fiction text and write to present your viewpoint on a topic. Written exam: 1 hr 45 mins |
80 marks - 50% | Eduquas |
| Paper 2 |
Non-Fiction Texts - What's assessed? Section A: Reading one non-fiction text and one literary non-fiction text (19th Century) Section B: Writing to present a view point |
80 marks - 50% |