English Language - A Level

The A Level widens students’ knowledge of aspects of language study and deepens their knowledge of how language works. Students develop their awareness of the key constituents and systems of language and learn to apply this to the analysis of a wide range of texts, spoken or written, from the present or the past. Students develop their writing skills and learn to tailor their language according to the demands of audience, purpose and genre.

AS Level - Unit 1
Exploring Language (Written examination: 1 hour 45 minutes)
Section A: Analysing language
Section B: Contemporary English

AS Level - Unit 2
Language Issues and Original and Critical Writing (Written examination: 2 hours)
One question in two parts: one essay on a language issue and
one original writing task plus an analysis linked to the language issue selected.

A2 Level -Unit 3
Language over Time (Written examination: 1 hour 30 minutes)
One multi-part question and one essay question analysing language change over time.

A2 Level -Unit 4
Spoken Texts and Creative Re-casting (Written examination: 2 hours)
Section A: Analysing spoken language – one question based on unseen transcripts
Section B: Creative re-casting – one creative writing task using Section A as stimulus.

A2 Level - Unit 5
Language and Identity (Non-examination assessment: 2500-3500 words)
An investigation based on one of the following:
• language and self-representation
• language and gender
• language and culture
• language diversity

Each unit is worth 20% of the A Level qualification.