English Language

Assessment

Examination (80%) You will sit two examinations at the end of the course. The examination units will focus on individual and immediate social contexts for language and theories about language change and variety, drawing on regional, ethnic, national and global English. Another examination unit is the study of language acquisition which will help you to grasp some of the fundamentals of how children rapidly develop from pre-verbal babbling to fluent, subtle and creative communication in the space of a few short years. After understanding some of the main approaches adopted by researchers, you will also tackle the wider issues of literacy and how reading and writing are mastered by children. Non-Examined Assessment (20%) The importance of original writing has been retained at A Level. Your first piece of writing will be a piece of original writing with a commentary. The commentary is the opportunity for you to reflect, explore your style and analyse your writing. In addition to this, you will also complete a language investigation. Taking any area of language that you are interested in as a starting point, you’ll be able to ask your questions, formulate your methodology and collect your data. You will then analyse this, looking for patterns. Both of these pieces will make up your NEA folder. You will be expected to participate fully in lessons, discussing observations and ideas with your classmates. You will need to have an analytical mind, thinking carefully about the details of language use.