Sample controlled assessment material
- The 'guidance for teachers' section details the requirement of the task, the time available and how students should go about completing the task. You can share this information with your students at any time you deem appropriate.
- Texts can be selected for a task on the basis of both your department’s resources and your students’ interests.
- The assessment criteria will remain unchanged throughout the life of the specification, ensuring consistency across the department.
- The language used in the Assessment Objectives grids is straightforward, with consistent terminology used within bands to help you assess students’ work.
Sample assessment material
- Section A
- Questions are structured to take students through an analysis of the language of an extract in three stages: Parts (a)(i) and (ii) focus on the language of the extract, and Part (b) focuses on how the writer uses language to present an aspect of the extract in another part of the book. Each question part has a key focus (character/ performance/ relationship - what happens elsewhere in the play) which is unchanged over time so that students feel confident, and can be well prepared with no surprises in the exam.
- Questions are written in clear and accessible language with direct command words.
- At Foundation Tier, students are asked to explain language features and are given supporting bullets to help frame their answers. At Higher Tier, students are asked to explore language features, without the supporting bullets.
- Section B
- Contains familiar writing questions which will allow you to use existing teaching resources to prepare your students. In both questions offered, students will be given bullets to support their answers.
- Speaking and Listening
- The overview section details the activities through which students' skills will be assessed. These are familiar activities which allow you to continue using existing resources.
- Sample tasks are offered for guidance. You may wish to create your own based on your current practice.
- Unit 1 themes, texts from Unit 2 or a text you have chosen for GCSE English Literature can also be selected as a stimulus for your students’ tasks.
- You may also wish to assess your students for Functional English using the appropriate assessment criteria.
- Spoken Language
- Students have a choice of Spoken Language Study task to allow them to focus on an aspect of language that interests them.
- In each task, bullets that have been developed through test and trial with our pilot centres guide students in their response.
- Students will respond to two examples of spoken language. There is no requirement to compare the two examples.
- The language in our assessment criteria grids is straightforward with consistent use of terminology within bands. We are using our own tried and tested spoken language assessment criteria as these have been used successfully by teachers on our pilot over the last four years.
- The wide range of tasks in the Writing for the Spoken Voice section allows students to write in a form that they find most interesting and creative.
Mark scheme
- Section A
- Questions are supported by answer boxes giving details of possible responses specific to the text chosen and to the part of the question. This is guidance for the examiner and is not exhaustive.
- Descriptions of likely features of students’ work are given for each mark band. These descriptions will be specific to the part of the question being asked, but will be common to all texts.
- Section B
- Indicative content sections give details of possible responses specific to the text chosen and to the question being asked. This is guidance for the examiner and is not exhaustive.
- Descriptions of the likely features of students’ work are provided for each mark band.