English Literature

EXAMINATION BOARD: EDEXCEL SPECIFICATION CODE: 9ET0

EXPECTED GCSE REQUIREMENTS: A GRADE 7 OR ABOVE IN GCSE ENGLISH LANGUAGE AND LITERATURE.

WHAT WILL I LEARN?

Lessons are seminar style: we sit around a central table and analyse a text together. We discuss, debate and exchange our ideas about the novel, play or poem we are studying. Everyone has a voice. We explore a wealth of different philosophical, historical and cultural concepts such as: the fundamental inequalities of class, race and gender; the nature of oppressive societies; Platonic philosophy; Romanticism and the Gothic, and much, much more.

In lessons and in your academic essays you will become confident defending your own opinions, critiquing others’ views, and creating an argument based on your personal interpretation of the text. All of these are fundamental life skills that can take you into any field of study in the future. You will become a confident and articulate scholar and an exceptional communicator.

The Edexcel course allows us to explore a diverse range of texts across the literary canon. Here are some of the texts you may study:

Frankenstein by Mary Shelley, The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood, A Thousand Splendid Suns by Khaled Hosseini, Tess of the D’Urbervilles by Thomas Hardy, A Streetcar Named Desire by Tennessee Williams, Hamlet, Othello or Measure for Measure by William Shakespeare, the poetry of Chaucer, Keats or John Donne and a selection of 21st Century modern poems.

There is a coursework unit, worth 20% of the final A Level grade, which allows you to choose your own literary text to study as part of a comparison with a core modern text. This is a fantastic opportunity to explore your own interests and read beyond what the exam board stipulates.

HOW WILL I BE ASSESSED?

You will be assessed through regular essays, marked by your class teacher. In terms of exams, you will sit three: a Drama exam including your Shakespeare and other studied play, a Prose exam comparing two novels, and a Poetry exam covering modern poetry, a studied poet, and an unseen text.

WHERE WILL THIS TAKE ME?

English Literature is a highly respected subject at both A Level and degree level. Employers love English students as they have learned the skills of analysis, critical thought, disseminating essential information, creativity, empathy, people skills and independent thought. English students become excellent communicators and this is vital for a variety of professions including law, theatre, media, business, publishing, PR and marketing, entertainment, politics and even medicine.

WHAT ENRICHMENT ACTIVITIES ARE THERE?

There are many extra-curricular opportunities if you choose to study English. Going to the theatre is a regular occurrence for us and everyone takes part in a creative writing and essay writing competition. In addition, we visit conferences hosted by university academics on the set texts and we take part in directing and acting workshops with a professional actor based on a Shakespeare text. We run the New Views programme with the National Theatre, a wonderful scheme in which all participants take part in workshops and over the year write their own half-hour play, supported by a professional playwright. We encourage all our A Level students to take part in a variety of enrichment talks and readings, and we have our Sixth Form book group and school newspaper. There is also an opportunity to become a reading mentor who will help to promote reading to the Lower School and lead a variety of initiatives for the department.