English Language

Course summary

The things we say, the things we shouldn’t say, how and why we say them; English Language focuses on these concepts. If you enjoy writing creatively or are interested in harnessing a more journalistic style, then this course also allows you to develop your own creative writing and editorial skills in the original writing components. Whilst A Level English Language builds upon the knowledge and skills gained at GCSE, you will acquire a far deeper understanding of the workings of our language from viewing it through a range of new perspectives. The course will consolidate and develop your understanding of some important aspects of how the English language works (grammar, lexis and semantics, phonetics and phonology, graphology, pragmatics and discourse). It will introduce you to different sociolinguistic topics: gender, social class, occupational varieties, accents and dialects, and international varieties of English. As well as unearthing truths concerning these language varieties, you will consider how and why our language has changed over time. Furthermore, you will also learn how we acquire language in the first place and look critically at psycholinguistic theories on child language acquisition.