SPARK Studies
English
Story is at the centre of everything in our creative industries. Consuming and analysing great story, writing great stories, oracy and communication, literacy in its widest sense runs through everything we do here from designing games environments to writing screen plays and (yes) essays!
Key Stage 4
English Language GCSE
Course Code: AQA 8700
Specification: AQA GCSE English Language
About:
English Language is vital to students and their studies across all other subjects. As such it is a compulsory GCSE along with English Literature. Students will learn how to analyse both Fiction and Non-Fiction writing; thinking about how language and structural techniques are used for effect.
They will also use the techniques in their own creative writing. The skills they learn can be transferred to other areas of their education and covers aspects of critical thinking and engagement that will help students become well rounded and thoughtful adults.
Communication is a big part of life and English Language allows students to develop these abilities throughout their learning; both written and spoken language skills are acquired and built upon through essay writing and discussion.
Success in English Language will allow students to go on to their desired destination after their GCSEs; it is imperative that students engage with the course in order to fulfil their potential across all subjects.
Careers and Industry Connections:
English Language is an essential part of all industries and has connections no matter what direction you intend to go in! It enables you to understand the world around you and to communicate persuasively and make your voice heard.
A great deal of colleges, jobs and universities require you to have passed English Language so it is not to be ignored! You will always draw upon your experiences in this subject, often without even realising it!
Assessment:
Paper 1 - Explorations in Creative Reading and Writing
Paper 2 - Writers' Viewpoints and Perspectives
Non-examination Assessment - Spoken Language
Key Stage 4
English Literature GCSE
Course Code: AQA 8702
Specification: AQA GCSE English Literature
About:
English Literature is vital to students and their studies across all other subjects. As such it is a compulsory GCSE along with English Language.
Students will study a variety of texts across their GCSEs including a Shakespeare Play, a 19th Century Novel, A Modern Prose Text and Poetry. This variety of texts allows students to build up analytical skills across all forms of Literature which can then be transferred to other areas of their studies.
In English Literature we get to lose ourselves in stories, explore new places, understand new characters and appreciate the time, skill and determination writers have. There are no wrong answers in English, as long as you can explain your position and give evidence for your point of view you can do well in the subject. It is this ability to enjoy and engage with the subject that will allow students to succeed in both the subject and life.
Careers and Industry Connections:
This year students' Literature texts are being brought to life in a variety of exciting forms! Productions of A Christmas Carol and War and Conflict poetry will be hosted to bring the English Literature syllabus alive. Literature is a fantastic subject to study here at Elstree and it brings together other areas of the school in Film and Drama, harnessing on the same skill set of analysis and contextual exploration.
Assessment:
Paper 1 - Shakespeare and the 19th-century novel
Paper 2 - Modern texts and poetry
Non-examination Assessment - Spoken Language
Key Stage 5
English Literature A-Level
Course Code: AQA 7717, 7718
Specification: AQA AS and A-level English Literature B
About:
At A level, English Literature allows students to explore texts in depth alongside the considerations of genre, social and political contexts, authors’ intentions and personal opinion.
Students are invited to explore a range of texts from Shakespeare to the 21st century and learn how texts can help understand the human condition.
Students read and explore plays, prose, novels, short stories, and poetry and develop their own analytical writing skills. The study of English Literature allows students to develop their world views, compare perspectives and representations and critically appreciate their consumption of media and literature.
Careers and Industry Connections:
A-level Literature students can go onto study English at University. The subject works well with Media based subjects or analytical subjects such as Sociology or Film Studies. A Literature A-level can open doors to the continued study of texts, as well as sharpen skills for the writing and editing of screenplays. Students are also able to persue other courses that require the analytical skills that are required for advanced subjects as Politics and Law.
Assessment:
Paper 1: Aspects of Tragedy. Students explore Shakespeare’s Othello, Miller’s Death of a Salesman and collected works of poet John Keats, examining how each writer works with the tragic genre to understand and appreciate what it is to be human.
Paper 2: Social and Political Protest Writing. Students examine Hosseni’s The Kite Runner, Atwood’s Handmaid’s Tale and Blake’s Songs of Innocence and Experience through a social and political lense, learning how writers use their work to engage the consciousness of society to evoke change. There is an unseen section to this exam, students prepare for this through the analysis of various work of political protest writing.
Coursework: Students select one prose and one poetry work to examine through their chosen critical lenses. Students can choose from Feminism, Marxism, Eco-Critical or Post-Colonial theory, or examine the narrative structure and restrictions of a text, or its place in literary canon.
