English Literature

Assessment

How will you be assessed? The course is assessed through both exams at the end of the second year and via a coursework (non-examined assessment) component. Each exam is worth 40% of the overall A Level with the non-examined assessment counting for 20% of the overall grade. Paper 1: Love through the ages examines shifting attitudes towards love and relationships. Paper 1 is split into three sections: Shakespeare, Unseen Poetry, and a third (open book) section where students must compare two texts. Paper 2: Texts in shared contexts takes a historical approach to three texts (prose, poetry and drama) and explores how texts are shaped by society and how Literature can be a voice of change and protest in the world. Paper 2 is an open book exam and is split into two sections. Section 1 asks students to answer a question on their core set text. Section 2 requires that students answer a question on an unseen extract and then answer a comparative question on the two other texts they have studied for this unit. The non-examined assessment allows the students an independent study of literature across time and culminates in the student writing a 2,500 word essay comparing two texts.