English Faculty

Faculty Introduction:

The Year 7 curriculum in English is vibrant and challenging. We look to develop the students’ core skills, building on their primary years and refining it above and beyond this level. We aim to expand the genres and text forms that students are exposed to and build students' confidence in analysis of language and structure. We aim to reinforce the focus on technical accuracy in writing that they have had at KS2 and encourage vocabulary expansion with a focus on tier two vocabulary.

Topics / Modules to be covered:

English in Year 7 aims to show students a breadth of possibility across language and literature. Due to the nature of the curriculum, texts can change year on year, however, the set texts that our current cohort are studying are Fabio Geda’s ‘In The Sea There Are Crocodiles’ and Shakespeare’s ‘A Midsummer Night’s Dream’. This runs alongside language units based on a diverse range of short extracts that consider the themes of survival, freedom and revenge as well as a poetry unit themed around growing up.

Assessment:

Students are assessed in a range of ways throughout the course. We track the skills needed for students to confidently unlock their next levels in their learning, gaining a clear picture of each learner and their needs. Formally assessed work each term gives students the opportunity to showcase their skills and knowledge and enables us to forge a pathway for our students that is most beneficial to them.

Homework:

Homework is bespoke and set on a weekly basis. Homework is usually used to prepare students for upcoming learning and develop their resilience as learners so that they can take control of their learning journey.

Enhancement & Enrichment Activities:

We offer many opportunities for students to develop their writing skills through entry to national writing and poetry competitions. Across their time at Kingsthorpe College, students have access to author visits, theatre trips and exciting literary events in the KC Library.

Faculty Introduction:

The Year 8 curriculum in English builds upon the solid foundations set out in Year 7. We introduce more of a focus on literature skills such as whole text structure analysis and character and theme development. We will also ensure that students continue to be exposed to a range of genres and text types and start to compare the purpose, audience and form of texts, whilst also considering the intent and perspective of the writer. In writing, students will start to focus more intently on whole text structure and creating a voice in their own writing.

Topics / Modules to be covered:

The Year 8 curriculum in English builds upon the solid foundations set out in Year 7. We introduce more of a focus on literature skills such as whole text structure analysis and character and theme development. We will also ensure that students continue to be exposed to a range of genres and text types and start to compare the purpose, audience and form of texts, whilst also considering the intent and perspective of the writer. In writing, students will start to focus more intently on whole text structure and creating a voice in their own writing.

Due to the nature of the curriculum, texts can change year on year, however, the set texts that our current cohort are studying are George Orwell’s ‘Animal Farm’ and R.C. Sherriff’s ‘Journey’s End’. This runs alongside language units based on a diverse range of short extracts that consider the themes of science, rebellion and heroism as well as a poetry unit themed around relationships.

Assessment:

Students are assessed in a range of ways throughout the course. We track the skills needed for students to confidently unlock their next levels in their learning, gaining a clear picture of each learner and their needs. Formally assessed work each term gives students the opportunity to showcase their skills and knowledge and enables us to forge a pathway for our students that is most beneficial to them.

Homework:

Homework is bespoke and set on a weekly basis. Homework is usually used to prepare students for upcoming learning and develop their resilience as learners so that they can take control of their learning journey.

Enhancement & Enrichment Activities:

We offer many opportunities for students to develop their writing skills through entry to national writing and poetry competitions. Across their time at Kingsthorpe College, students have access to author visits, theatre trips and exciting literary events in the KC Library.

Faculty Introduction:

In Year 9 we aim to bring the skills learnt in year 7 and 8 together to ensure that students can showcase a range of reading, writing and oral skills. In reading, this will mean a key focus on the higher-level skill of evaluating texts. We also aim to ensure that students are looking at texts as constructs, considering the context and intention of writers, and comparing texts and writers' viewpoints. In their writing, students will focus on exam skills such a planning and timing as well as continuing to develop their creativity and sense of voice that has been developed throughout KS3.

Topics / Modules to be covered:

A wide range of different topics are covered across an academic year. Due to the nature of the curriculum, this can change year on year, however, the set texts that our current cohort are studying are Arthur Miller’s ‘A View from the Bridge’ and Robert Stevenson’s ‘The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde’. This runs alongside language units based on a diverse range of short extracts that consider the themes of tragedy and time. 

Assessment:

Students are assessed in a range of ways throughout the course. We track the skills needed for students to confidently unlock their next levels in their learning, gaining a clear picture of each learner and their needs. Formally assessed work each term gives students the opportunity to showcase their skills and knowledge and enables us to forge a pathway for our students that is most beneficial to them.

Homework:

Homework is bespoke and set on a weekly basis. Homework is usually used to prepare students for upcoming learning and develop their resilience as learners so that they can take control of their learning journey.

Enhancement & Enrichment Activities:

We offer many opportunities for students to develop their writing skills through entry to national writing and poetry competitions. Across their time at Kingsthorpe College, students have access to author visits, theatre trips and exciting literary events in the KC Library.

Faculty Introduction:

GCSE English Language is a two-year course covering years 10 and 11, in which all students follow the AQA English Language route. Students will develop the ability to communicate clearly, accurately and effectively when speaking and writing. They will also develop their ability to analyse, infer and present opinions effectively. We encourage students to read widely, both for their own enjoyment and to further their awareness of the ways in which English can be used.

Topics / Modules to be covered:

Students will cover a range of topics and texts from the 19th, 20th and 21st century time periods as well as focus on being able to write clearly, coherently and accurately using a range of vocabulary and sentence structures. Students will draw upon a range of texts as reading stimulus and engage with creative as well as real and relevant contexts. Students will have opportunities to develop higher order reading and critical thinking skills that encourage genuine enquiry into different topics and themes.

Assessment:

Students will all be assessed through external examinations at the end of the course sitting two papers. Throughout the course students will complete formative and summative assessments each term which will be assessed by their class teacher. These will allow staff to monitor the progress of students in line with exam board requirements.

Homework:

Homework is set and marked regularly by class teachers and students are expected to stick to deadlines set for them. All students should spend at least one hour a week completing additional independent study on Century Tech.

Faculty Introduction:

Our GCSE English Literature students are given the opportunity to immerse themselves in the world of Literature throughout the duration of their two-year study period. Students will explore and analyse different forms of prose, drama and poetry from various time periods and cultures. This course will be invigorating and inspiring.

Topics / Modules to be covered:

A Students will study a Shakespeare play, a 19th century novel, modern drama and poetry. Texts are subject to change, but students currently study:

• Macbeth by William Shakespeare
• A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens
• An Inspector Calls by J.B. Priestley

In preparation for the poetry element of the course students will study poems from a collection called Power and Conflict from AQA’s Power and Conflict anthology as well as unseen poetry.

Assessment:

Students will all be assessed through external examinations at the end of the course sitting two papers. Throughout the course students will complete formative and summative assessments each term which will be assessed by their class teacher. These will allow staff to monitor the progress of students in line with exam board requirements.

Homework:

Students will be asked to read literature in advance of studying to prepare them for lessons and complete their own research to support creating their own opinions around the different texts; this will also include writing notes, summaries and practice exam responses. Students are expected to spend an hour a week working on Century Tech on English Language/Literature to improve against their own targets. Homework will be set and marked in line with College policy. It will aim to enable students to become responsible for their own revision and stretch their understanding further.

Faculty Introduction:

The aim of A Level English Language is to enable students to build on the skills they've developed at GCSE, by engaging creatively and critically with a wide range of texts and discourses. Students will be introduced to exciting and relevant text and data-based sources to inspire their study of English Language. The course will introduce the study of English in its various forms and contexts, with the concepts and methods appropriate for the analysis of language underpinning all elements of the course.

The variety of assessment styles used, such as data analysis, discursive essays, directed writing, original writing and research-based investigative writing, allows students to develop a wide range of skills. These include critical reading, data analysis, evaluation, the ability to develop and sustain arguments and a number of different writing skills which are invaluable for both further study and future employment.

Topics / Modules to be covered:

Through Year 12 and 13 students will cover the following units:

• Textual variations and representations
• Child language development
• Language diversity, including accent & dialect, gender, occupation and social groups
• Language change
• World Englishes
• Language in action: a language investigation
• Original writing

Assessment:

The A-level specification is designed to be taken over two years with all assessments taken at the end of the course. The exams and non-exam assessment will measure to what extent students have achieved the following assessment objectives.

• AO1: Apply appropriate methods of language analysis, using associated terminology and coherent written expression.
• AO2: Demonstrate critical understanding of concepts and issues relevant to language use.
• AO3: Analyse and evaluate how contextual factors and language features are associated with the construction of meaning.
• AO4: Explore connections across texts, informed by linguistic concepts and methods.
• AO5: Demonstrate expertise and creativity in the use of English to communicate in different ways.

Paper 1: Language, the Individual and Society – 2 hours 30 minutes

• Section A: Textual Variations and Representations
• Section B: Children’s Language Development

Paper 2: Language Diversity and Change – 2 hours 30 minutes

• Section A: Diversity and Change
• Section B: Language Discourses.

Non-exam assessment: Language in Action

• This consists of an investigation, original writing and a commentary.

Homework:

Homework will be set and marked in line with College policy. It will aim to enable students to become independent in research skills and to engage creatively and critically with a wide range of texts and discourses. Students will be given formative feedback throughout the duration of the course and they will be expected to respond to their teachers’ feedback in order to improve their written and analytical skills.

Enhancement & Enrichment Activities:

Students will be given the opportunity, where available, to attend lectures by a range of leading linguists, including those given at the British Library. They will be exposed to a huge variety of wider reading, including coverage of the most up to date research in relation to all aspects of linguistics. Students will be encouraged to develop their own research and investigative skills in relation to a huge range of written and spoken texts, including those written as early as the 1700s.

Faculty Introduction:

The aim of A Level English Literature is to develop students as informed and independent readers of a variety of genres of texts. Students will study prose, drama and poetry all linked to the theme of ‘Love through the Ages’ and explore the portrayal of love ranging from the 16th century and extending to the 21st century; students will study how the complexity of love has been conveyed through Literature and will be able to link this to different relationships and contexts. They will develop comparison skills and a coherent understanding of the social and historical context which influences texts as well as developing analytical skills and the ability to approach familiar texts and unseen literature with confidence.

Topics / Modules to be covered:

Through Year 12, students will study four core texts;

• William Shakespeare’s ‘Othello’
• F.Scott Fitzgerald’s ‘The Great Gatsby’
• A pre-1900 Poetry anthology
• Tennessee Williams’ ‘A Streetcar Named Desire’

Homework:

Homework will be set and CAR marked in line with College policy. It will aim to enable students to become independent in research skills and their application in their production work and in developing their own views and interpretations of individual case studies across the full range of media industries. Students will be given formative feedback throughout the duration of the course and they will be expected to response to their teachers’ feedback in order to improve their written and analytical skills.

Enhancement & Enrichment Activities:

Students will be given the opportunity, where available, to attend performances of key texts. They will be exposed to a huge variety of wider reading and encouraged to develop their knowledge of context and tradition. They will also have the opportunity to become involved in shadow judging the BBC Short Story competition and develop their own writing skills through after-school sessions.

Faculty Introduction:

The aim of A Level English Literature is to develop students as informed and independent readers of a variety of genres of texts. Students will study prose, drama and poetry all linked to the theme of ‘Love through the Ages’ and explore the portrayal of love ranging from the 16th century and extending to the 21st century; students will study how the complexity of love has been conveyed through Literature and will be able to link this to different relationships and contexts. They will develop comparison skills and a coherent understanding of the social and historical context which influences texts as well as developing analytical skills and the ability to approach familiar texts and unseen literature with confidence. ‘Love through the Ages’ will have been studied in Year 12 but examined at the end of Year 13.

They will also study a variety of genres of texts from modern times. Students will study prose, drama and poetry produced of recent, looking at women in literature. They will develop comparison skills and a coherent understanding of the social and historical context relating to each of the texts. Students will explore literature written from both the male and female perspective as well as from a variety of time periods in order to gain a true understanding of how women are perceived in different genres and how attitudes may have changed.

In the examination, candidates will respond both to their prepared texts and unseen extracts.

Topics / Modules to be covered:

Students will complete their examination text studies with a comparison of ‘The Handmaid’s Tale’ by Margaret Atwood and ‘Feminine Gospels’ – a collection of poetry by Carol Ann Duffy.

The ‘Love through the Ages’ texts will be studied in Year 12 and revised and examined in Year 13.

Through Year 13, students will study the set texts for the examination and work with unseen extracts and wider reading to support their analysis, comparison and contextual understanding.

They will complete a piece of NEA which will compare two texts.

Assessment:

Paper 1 – 3 hours, open book for section C. 40% of overall A level.

• Section A: passage based question on ‘Othello’
• Section B: comparison of two unseen poems
• Section C: Comparison between poems from the pre-1900 anthology and ‘The Great Gatsby’

Paper 2 – 2 hours 30 minutes, open book. 40% of overall A level.

• Section A: question on ‘A Streetcar Named Desire’
• Section B: analysis of unseen prose
• Section C: comparison of ‘The Handmaid’s Tale’ and ‘Feminine Gospels’

Homework:

Homework will be set and marked in line with College policy. It will aim to enable students to become more independent learners, taking responsibility for furthering and recapping their own skills and knowledge. Students will be given formative feedback throughout the duration of the course and they will be expected to response to their teachers’ feedback in order to improve their written and analytical skills.

Enhancement & Enrichment Activities:

Students will be given the opportunity, where available, to attend performances of key texts as well as linked texts. They will be exposed to a huge variety of wider reading and encouraged to develop their knowledge of context and tradition.