Welcome

Thank you for taking the time to attend our Year 10 English Literature Evening.

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Exam Timetable!

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Exam Timetable!

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GCSE External Examination Dates

English Literature; Unit 1-Monday 18th May-9.20am Unit 2-Friday 22nd May-9.20am Core Science; B1, C1, P1-Wednesday 20th May 1.30pm (75 minutes) B2, C2, P2-Friday 5th June 1.30pm (90 Minutes) Statistics; Thursday 18th June-1.30pm (90 Minutes)

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Year 10 GCSE English Literature

Why is English Literature so important? •  A complete GCSE in its own right – 1 full GCSE •  Highly regarded by employers, sixth forms and colleges

due to the essay writing nature of the course •  Taken into consideration as part of the entry criteria for

some non-English A Level courses (e.g. Government and Politics)

•  Now comparable with English Language as a key measure of success

•  A strong indicator of GCSE English Language success 5

Outcomes of this evening...

1.  To understand the nature of the exams sat by Year 10 this summer

2.  To learn about the texts studied by Year 10 students

3.  To pick up tips on how to support Year 10 students

4.  To explore the revision materials available to Year 10 students

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AQA English Literature

•  2 exams – 18th and 22nd May •  1 controlled assessment essay •  Unit 1 Exam – Exploring Modern Texts (An Inspector

Calls; Of Mice and Men or Purple Hibiscus) 40% •  Unit 2 Exam – Poetry Across Time (Conflict Cluster and

Unseen Poetry) 35% •  Unit 3 Controlled Assessment – Shakespeare and the

English Literary Heritage (Macbeth and Frankenstein) 25%

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An Inspector Calls

A wealthy family are sat at the dinner table in their suburban home in 1912, celebrating the engagement of Sheila (their pretty daughter) to Gerald (the son of a rival businessman). Champagne flows, port is sipped and the family talk about how bright the future is... after all, the unsinkable Titanic is about to set sail and the talk of an imminent war is surely nonsense! All of a sudden, their talk is interrupted by the ring of a doorbell... An inspector has called at the house... A young woman has committed suicide by drinking disinfectant! Naturally, the family is bemused. How can they have anything to do with the death of this young woman? However, the cosy atmosphere soon unravels and tensions within the family are revealed, as the Inspector grills each and every one of them about their involvement in the girl’s death. Will they all accept responsibility and see the error of their ways?

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AQA English Literature Unit 1 Section A

What types of questions are asked about An Inspector Calls? •  Students are given a choice of 2 essay questions •  The questions might be about characters, key themes,

staging, a key quote or devices •  Students need to plan and write an essay in 45 minutes in

response to the question •  They need to show an understanding of the whole play •  There are 30 marks available, with a further 4 marks for

spelling, punctuation and grammar

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An example question

How important do you think social class is in An Inspector Calls and how does Priestley present ideas about social class?

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Another example question!

!!Arthur Birling says, ‘If we were all responsible for everything that happened to everybody we’d had anything to do with, it would be very awkward, wouldn’t it?’!!How does Priestley present ideas about responsibility in An Inspector Calls?!

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Unit 1 Section B

•  10A1, 10A2 – Purple Hibiscus •  All other classes – Of Mice and Men •  This question requires close analysis •  Students will be given a passage of the text which they

must pick apart to show their understanding of the writer’s language

•  They also have to make inferences about what the passage shows, exploring their interpretations

•  They also need an understanding of the context of the text – they need to make links to key themes and issues in the time it was set

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Of Mice and Men

Of Mice and Men follows the relationship of two migrant workers in 1930s America, George and Lennie. The two men travel together from ranch to ranch in the desperate hope of saving enough money to buy their very own ranch. But the childlike Lennie frequently gets in to trouble and they have to move on. Perhaps this time it will be different... Perhaps it won’t turn out like last time, and the dangerous situation with the girl in the red dress... Will George and Lennie finally achieve their dream?

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Key Issues in Of Mice and Men

•  1930s America – The Wall Street Crash and Great Depression

•  The Dust Bowls of America •  Race and segregation •  The role of women in society •  Disability •  Age •  The American Dream

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Purple Hibiscus

Purple Hibiscus is set in post-colonial Nigeria against a backdrop of a military coup against the government in the 1990s. Fifteen year old Kambili lives a privileged life with her wealthy, charismatic and deeply religious father, her mother who has been weakened by a series of miscarriages and her older brother Jaja who begins to challenge his father’s oppressive ways. When Kambili and Jaja are forced to escape from their home after the military coup, which their father publicly challenges, their eyes are opened by a stay at their aunt’s home. How will their lives be affected by this place of freedom, noise and laughter? Will they ever be able to return to the oppression of their family home?

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Key issues in Purple Hibiscus

•  Post-colonial Nigeria and its turbulent past •  Imperialism and colonial rule •  Christian missionaries and their relationship with

native religion •  Catholicism •  Democracy and military dictatorship •  Oppression

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Unit 2 Poetry Across Time

•  Section A – Conflict Poetry •  In this section, students compare two poems from a cluster of

15 which they have studied in lessons •  Poems cover topics such as the Crimean War, World War

One, 9/11, terrorism, immigration, the Irish ‘Troubles’ and patriotism

•  Questions are based around key themes and ideas which can be compared across poems

•  For example: Compare how poets present the effects of war in ‘Mametz Wood’ (page 36) and in one other poem from Conflict.

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Unit 2 Poetry Across Time

•  Section B – Unseen Poetry •  In this section, students’ skills of analysis and interpretation

will be assessed through a poem which they have never been taught

•  For the first time this year, this comes from an ‘approved’ list of poets

•  Students need to be familiar with the style of each poet – however, they don’t need to write specifically about the poet in the exam

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The Unseen Poetry Approved List

•  William Blake •  John Keats •  Thomas Hardy •  Christina Rossetti •  W.H. Auden •  Robert Frost •  Wilfred Owen •  Dorothy Parker

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•  Maya Angelou •  Wendy Cope •  Tony Harrison •  Jo Shapcott •  Sophie Hannah •  Owen Sheers •  Brian Patten

How should students revise?

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Index cards - Characters, themes, devices, context

Study Guides - Order forms are available tonight

Online clips and resources

English revision site (password: English) and revision sessions

Past papers – www.aqa.org.uk