English

Gareth Hughes

Throughout Key Stage 3 – that is Years 7, 8 and 9 – classes have undertaken some new units of work, all designed to provide them with the skills and knowledge required in later years of study, as well as each being enjoyable in their own right. Year 7 started the year with a novel, ‘A Monster Calls’ which both in content and style challenged them but nonetheless, offered a flavour of how to approach analysing a piece of prose and moreover, navigating some difficult themes and issues. Next came a variety of fiction and non-fiction texts which explored ‘Life in London’, tackled thematically: health in the city across the ages, crime and punishment, even London as a backdrop for fantasy novels such as those in the Harry Potter series. An ‘Introduction to Shakespeare’ offered students background knowledge to the work of English’s most famous playwright, using a variety of extracts from his plays. The ‘Poetry of Childhood’ module aimed to show students that many of their feelings and emotions, if not the actual experiences, were shared by poets – and most recently, Year 7 students have embarked on a unit focusing on improving those skills required to become effective creative writers, the idea being it is best to practise these skills over a number of years in preparation for this crucial element of the Language GCSE. Underpinning all students have done in English – but obviously essential across the whole curriculum – Year 7 students have been using an online platform to improve their literacy skills, an area which has become a primary focus for all students, in all year groups. Subject and unit specific vocabulary and spelling tests have become a weekly feature of lessons at Key Stage 3. Year 8 also began with a novel, Steinbeck’s ‘Of Mice and Men’, again requiring students to engage with some demanding issues, which although based almost a century ago in California, still holds relevance today. In the second half of the autumn term Year 8 appropriately studied ‘Literature of World War I’ forming an introduction to and better understanding of our Remembrance Day commemorations. Next up, and to lighten the tone somewhat, but important nonetheless to students’ study skills, was a Research Project based on zoos. This required both creative and analytical work in devising and presenting ideas on building the zoos of the future. This time building on the previous year’s work, another unit improving creative writing, then a module introducing Year 8 to Theatre Studies, which explored dramatic conventions and traditions, relevant to the study of both Shakespeare and other modern texts.

Finally this year, students have been looking into the language of ‘Powerful and Inspirational People’, obviously a rich vein in this day and age. Using the work from the previous two years, Year 9 began the year studying an entire Shakespeare play, a challenge made considerably easier when applying the knowledge gathered from the past. Students then took on the role of reporters, researching and collating information before practising their transactional writing skills, in articles, letters and speeches. Another module focussing on ‘Poetry of Power’ before the final unit of the year exploring the writing of Conan Doyle and his most well-known literary creation, Sherlock Holmes, as an example of literature created during and set in, Victorian London. An appropriate end to Key Stage 3 with Year 10, and Key Stage 4, starting with Charles Dickens’ ‘A Christmas Carol’, obviously able to apply some of their contextual knowledge from the previous term’s work. Then onto another GCSE Literature text in Priestley’s ‘An Inspector Calls’, both with clear and moreover, relevant, messages about social responsibility. A focus on preparing the students for the poetry element of their Literature GCSE has marked the end of the academic year, as has preparation for the Speaking and Listening assessment, in which students both write and ultimately present a speech on a topic of choice. Faced with a month’s worth of assessments in both English Language and Literature, Year 11 conducted themselves superbly, rising to the challenge with enthusiasm and maturity, producing work of excellent quality. It goes without saying that we wish them all the best in the pursuit of their future objectives.

This year has marked the introduction of the IB in English Language and Literature in Year 12. In keeping with this qualification’s key characteristic, a focus on global issues, the texts studied have taken on a truly international flavour ranging from ‘Purple Hibiscus’ a novel written by the Nigerian author Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie to American playwright Arthur Miller’s 20th century masterpiece ‘Death of a Salesman’. The IB encourages students to read a variety and breadth of text types with an objective of identifying connections which cross boundaries of space and time, the human condition being the focus. Students have also studied linguistics and semiotics, exploring more conceptual concerns such as the nature of reading and what is meaning?

It has been an interesting and stimulating year’s work which has tested our approaches to both teaching and learning. Through a time of change and adaptation, a constant has been the effort and application made by students in consolidating and improving their study of English. We all look forward to the challenges offered by the next academic year, building on the successes of the last twelve months.