English Language AS/A2

English Language AS/A2 · AQA (B)

This course will provide you with the opportunity to study different aspects of the past and present use of English. You will be able to analyse written and spoken language, and write your own texts for particular contexts, audiences and purposes. If you are interested in why people talk and write like they do, or are curious about the social and historical contexts in which texts are produced, you should enjoy this course.

Course Outline
4 units — 2 for AS level and 2 for A2 level — to include:

AS Level
Unit 1: Categorising Texts (exam unit)
Section A (Text Varieties) requires students to place combinations of unseen texts into groups, on the basis of the features they have in common.
Section B (Language and Social Contexts) requires students to explore how written and spoken texts reproduce ideas about any of the following areas: Language and Power; Language and Gender; Language and Technology. Unit 2: Creating Texts (coursework unit)

Students will produce writing in different genres for different audiences and purposes, for a coursework folder containing TWO pieces of original writing (differentiated by audience, purpose, genre and topic) and TWO commentaries which explore the writing process.

A2 Level
Unit 3: Developing Language (exam unit)
Section A (Language Acquisition) requires students to explore written and spoken texts produced by children aged 0–11 years, discussing the nature and functions of language acquisition.

Section B (Language Change) requires students to explore texts produced between 1700 and the present day, discussing the causes and impact of changes in language use.

Unit 4: Investigating Language
(coursework unit)
Students will undertake an exploration of a language topic area of their choice, for a coursework folder containing an investigation into an area of language use and a ‘media text’ (a newspaper/magazine article, for example) which re-presents the topic of the investigation to a non-specialist audience.