The AQA specification for A Level English Literature encourages independent study of a range of texts within a shared context. Studied together they create an understanding of English Literature that will deepen students’ knowledge and love of the subject. Paper 1: Love through the ages This topic area aims to encourage students to explore aspects of a central literary theme as seen over time, using unseen material and set texts. Students should be prepared for Love Through the Ages by reading widely in the topic area and reading texts from a range of authors and times. The examination consists of: Section A: Shakespeare's text, comprising one extract-based essay on the chosen set text (closed book). Section B: Unseen poetry, comprising a comparative response to two unseen poems (closed book). Section C: The AQA anthology of love poetry and set prose text. Students answer one question from a choice of two (open book) Closed and open book Written exam: 3 hours. Paper 2: Texts in shared contexts - Option Modern times: literature from 1945 to the present day. Areas that are explored include wars and the legacy of wars; personal and social identity; changing morality and social structures; gender, class, race, and ethnicity; political upheaval and change; resistance and rebellion; imperialism, imperialism, and nationalism; engagement with the social, political, personal, and literary issues which have helped to shape the latter half of the 20th= century and the early decades of the 21st century. The examination consists of: Section A: Prose set text, in which students answer one question from a choice of two. Section B: Unseen prose extract and poetry and drama set texts. This section comprises two parts in which students provide a critical response to an unseen prose extract followed by a comparative response referring to the drama text and two poems from a set poetry text. Open book. Written exam: 2.5 hours. Non-exam assessment: Independent critical study: texts across time In Texts across time, students write a comparative critical study of two texts on a theme of their choice. Possible themes include, but are not limited to: the struggle for identity; crime and punishment; minds under stress; war and conflict; representations of race and ethnicity; representations of sexuality; representations of women/men, and representations of social class and culture. One extended essay (2,500 words) and a Bibliography.
Minimum of 5 GCSE passes at grade 4 or above including Maths and English. Grade 5/5 or higher in English Language and Literature.
Assessment is by two exams worth 80% sat at the end of year 13 with a 20% NEA component (non-exam assessment).
About Education Provider
| Region | South East |
| Local Authority | Kent |
| Ofsted Rating | Good |
| Gender Type | Co-Educational |
| Address | Buckland Road, Maidstone, ME16 0TJ |
The AQA specification for A Level English Literature encourages independent study of a range of texts within a shared context. Studied together they create an understanding of English Literature that will deepen students’ knowledge and love of the subject. Paper 1: Love through the ages This topic area aims to encourage students to explore aspects of a central literary theme as seen over time, using unseen material and set texts. Students should be prepared for Love Through the Ages by reading widely in the topic area and reading texts from a range of authors and times. The examination consists of: Section A: Shakespeare's text, comprising one extract-based essay on the chosen set text (closed book). Section B: Unseen poetry, comprising a comparative response to two unseen poems (closed book). Section C: The AQA anthology of love poetry and set prose text. Students answer one question from a choice of two (open book) Closed and open book Written exam: 3 hours. Paper 2: Texts in shared contexts - Option Modern times: literature from 1945 to the present day. Areas that are explored include wars and the legacy of wars; personal and social identity; changing morality and social structures; gender, class, race, and ethnicity; political upheaval and change; resistance and rebellion; imperialism, imperialism, and nationalism; engagement with the social, political, personal, and literary issues which have helped to shape the latter half of the 20th= century and the early decades of the 21st century. The examination consists of: Section A: Prose set text, in which students answer one question from a choice of two. Section B: Unseen prose extract and poetry and drama set texts. This section comprises two parts in which students provide a critical response to an unseen prose extract followed by a comparative response referring to the drama text and two poems from a set poetry text. Open book. Written exam: 2.5 hours. Non-exam assessment: Independent critical study: texts across time In Texts across time, students write a comparative critical study of two texts on a theme of their choice. Possible themes include, but are not limited to: the struggle for identity; crime and punishment; minds under stress; war and conflict; representations of race and ethnicity; representations of sexuality; representations of women/men, and representations of social class and culture. One extended essay (2,500 words) and a Bibliography.
Minimum of 5 GCSE passes at grade 4 or above including Maths and English. Grade 5/5 or higher in English Language and Literature.
Assessment is by two exams worth 80% sat at the end of year 13 with a 20% NEA component (non-exam assessment).