Cambridge AS & A Level- English Language

by Nandana Surendran

Cambridge International AS and A Level English Language provides learners with the opportunity to study English language and its use in communication. Learners will be encouraged to respond critically to a wide variety of texts in a range of forms, styles and contexts, and to promote skills of communication, reading, research and analysis.

Through their study, learners will develop an ability to read and analyse material, gaining further knowledge and understanding of English language features and issues. Learners will also develop the skills of writing clearly, accurately, creatively and effectively for different purposes and audiences.

Aims of the Course

The aims are to enable students to:
• Enjoy the experience of studying English language
• Develop a critical and informed response to texts in a range of forms, styles and contexts, produced for a variety of audiences
• Communicate effectively, creatively, accurately and appropriately in their writing
• Develop the interdependent skills of reading, analysis and research
• Develop an appreciation of concepts and techniques in the study of English language
• Build a firm foundation for further study of language and linguistics.

Key Concepts

Key concepts are basically ideas that help students develop a deep understanding of their subject and make links between different aspects. Key concepts may open up new ways of thinking about, understanding or interpreting the important things to be learned.

Good teaching and learning will incorporate and reinforce a subject’s key concepts to help students gain-
• A greater depth as well as breadth of subject knowledge
• Confidence, especially in applying knowledge and skills in new situations
• The vocabulary to discuss their subject conceptually and show how different aspects link together
• A level of mastery of their subject to help them enter higher education.

The key concepts for Cambridge International AS & A Level English Language are-

• Text and context
A text can be defined as a single, coherent unit of language, from the briefest spoken utterance to a book published across several volumes. However, no text exists without context; students of English language must always consider how a text’s meaning is informed by the circumstances not only of its production, but also of its communication and reception.

• Meaning and style
The study of English language involves developing a range of strategies for exploring the complex ways in which different linguistic elements come together to create meaning. Whether producing their own texts or analysing texts produced by others, students of English language must consider how choices regarding form, structure and language also interact to create a distinctive style.

• Audience
Students of English language must learn to identify and analyse the strategies writers and speakers use to communicate with their intended audience(s). Likewise, they must be able to predict, recognise and analyse the various responses these strategies might elicit.

• Creativity
Whether writing artfully for a specified purpose and audience, reading deeply between the lines of a challenging text, or developing strategies for acquiring the language in the first place, users of the English language must demonstrate creativity in a range of forms and contexts.

• Diversity
Constantly subject to a range of influences – whether personal, social, geographical or otherwise – the English language exists in a range of competing and overlapping forms at any given moment. This extraordinary diversity offers a rich opportunity for analysis, comparison and exploration.

• Change
The phonological, morphological, semantic, syntactic and other aspects of the English language are liable to change over time. Students of English language must analyse these changes and explore in detail the factors that drive them.

Objectives of Assessment

  1. Read and demonstrate understanding of a wide variety of texts.
  2. Write effectively, creatively, accurately and appropriately, for a range of audiences and purposes.
  3. Analyse the ways in which writers’ and speakers’ choices of form, structure and
    language produce meaning and style.
  4. Demonstrate understanding of linguistic issues, concepts, methods and approaches.
  5. Analyse and synthesise language data from a variety of sources.

Assessment

1. Paper 1 Reading
Candidates answer two compulsory questions:
Question 1 in Section A, and Question 2 in Section B. Externally assessed
50 marks
(2 hours 15 minutes)
AS Level- 50%
A Level- 25%

2. Paper 2 Writing
Candidates answer two questions: one
compulsory question from Section A, and one question from a choice of three in Section B. Externally assessed.
50 marks
(2 hours)
AS Level- 50%
A Level- 25%

3. Paper 3 Language Analysis
Candidates answer two compulsory questions:
Question 1 in Section A, and Question 2 in Section B. Externally assessed
50 marks
(2 hours 15 minutes)
A Level- 25%

4. Paper 4 Language Topics
Candidates answer two compulsory questions each on a separate topic area: Question 1 in Section A, and Question 2 in Section B. Externally assessed
50 marks
(2 hours 15 minutes)
A Level- 25%

Want to improve your grades? Request for one to one online tutoring at Vidyalai.com with the best IB teachers. 100% money back guarantee.Request your first lesson now!