A Level English Language & Literature
Do you love analysing literature and the language of the world around us? Prepare to study a wide variety of texts that will hone your critical thinking and perceptive abilities, whilst also developing your creative writing skills.
Top Course Highlights
- Expert tutors
- Creative opportunities
- Breadth and variety
- Innovative approaches to texts
- Personalised support
Innovative and creative approaches to texts
Our team of expert lecturers offer a range of innovative approaches to exploring both literary and non-literary texts. From exploring the different stage and screen versions of Hamlet to using texts as springboards for your own writing, you can be assured of an enjoyable, challenging and creative learning experience.
Enjoy breadth and variety
This course is not just about analysing literary texts. You will investigate non-fiction works from both past and present writers, whilst honing your creative writing skills via our coursework module. This varied approach means that no two lessons are ever the same!
Develop transferable skills
English Language and Literature is a facilitating subject for many degree courses and is highly regarded by both universities and employers. The skills that you gain on this course are transferable to many future pathways, leaving you well equipped for the demands of undergraduate study and the world of work.
WHY CHOOSE THIS COURSE?
Love writing? Like to analyse…well, everything? English Language and Literature allows you to be creative – not only through your fiction and non-fiction coursework – but also through the creative approach you can take in your analytical work. How? This multi-disciplinary course approaches analysis from both a linguistic and literary point of view. Word class? Sure. Imagery? Of course! This A Level differs from those focused primarily on literature by extending its coverage to explore non-literary and non-fiction texts. You can expect to study prose, drama, and poetry, but also a range of texts such as newspaper articles, online copy, and adverts.
WHAT WILL I LEARN?
Unit 1 – Voices in Speech and Writing
- Anthology of non-fiction and non-literary genres
- Tennessee Williams’ play, A Streetcar Named Desire
Unit 2 – Varieties in Language and Literature
- Focus on the theme of ‘Society and the Individual’
- Compare and contrast the novel The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald and the poetry of Philip Larkin from The Whitsun Weddings
Unit 3 – Investigating and Creating Texts (Coursework – worth 20% of A Level grade)
- One piece of fiction writing
- One piece of creative non-fiction writing
- Analytical commentary of both pieces
WHERE WILL IT TAKE ME?
English graduates have gone on to pursue Law, Medicine, Journalism, Business Management and Education, as well as careers in academia and the civil service, to name but a few. The course provides an excellent foundation for any degree which requires an essay-based subject, and compliments many other subjects well.
Formal assessment for the A Level is at the end of two years. There are two exams, one for each unit, and each worth 40% of your overall grade. Coursework is worth 20%. There will be regular assessments throughout the course and more formal end of Year One internal assessments to track your progress.
Five GCSEs at Grade 4 or above including a minimum of Grade 5 and 6 in English Language and English Literature (either way around). You should have an interest in reading and be prepared to analyse and study a range of texts.
To prepare for this course you should begin reading a core novel, for example A Room with a View by E.M.Forster. It is also beneficial to be familiar with a range of non-fiction genres. You may like to begin by reading one of the non-fiction texts below:
- A Room of One’s Ow
, Virginia Woolf - I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, Maya Angelou
- Into the Wild, Jon Krakauer
- Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, Frederick Douglass
- Persepolis, Marjane Satrapi
- The Autobiography of Malcom X, Malcom X
- The Motorcycle Diaries, Che Guevara
- Becoming, Michelle Obama
- In Cold Blood, Truman Capote
- Wild, Cheryl Strayed
Awarding Body: Edexcel
