Latin

Assessment

Unseen Translation (33%) and Prose Composition / Comprehension (17%) Pupils will build upon their GCSE knowledge and deepen their understanding of already familiar grammatical features and vocabulary. They will study passages in both prose and verse to develop their linguistic skills and practise translating both Latin to English and English to Latin. In the Unseen Translation paper, candidates will translate a passage of unseen prose and a passage of unseen verse into English. For the unseen verse passage, there is a prescribed author from whose works the passage will be selected so pupils can become familiar with their typical style and meter. In the Prose Composition/Comprehension paper, candidates will either translate a short passage of English into Latin or answer comprehension, translation and grammatical questions on an unseen prose passage. There is a set list of grammatical features for both language papers. Prose Literature (25%) and Verse Literature (25%) Pupils will study two prose and two verse texts in depth, translating and analysing them for their literary content, as well as learning about the society and values of those who produced them. Knowledge of this historical context will be supported by reading further sections of the texts in English. The prescribed texts may be selected from a variety of genres and authors including Cicero, Tacitus, Seneca, Livy and Apuleius, for the Prose Literature paper and Virgil, Ovid, Horace and Catullus for the Verse Literature paper. In both examinations, candidates will be required to translate a section from the set texts, critically analyse the texts’ literary style and demonstrate their understanding of the wider context of the texts. Pupils will be well prepared for all parts of these exams, having studied the set texts in depth for two years.