English Language

Course Description

This course allows you to explore, discuss, analyse and evaluate the English language in all its varied and exciting forms. It also allows you to recreate language and write creatively for a specific audience and purpose.

You will be expected to learn the terminology, methods and processes that you need to analyse the language of English. You will explore data about language use and transcripts of dialogue as well. You will explore how language is used by individuals to represent their identity and who different groups manipulate language for their own purposes. This is very much a living subject and evolves as the language around us does.

You will be preparing to use these skills in examinations and lengthier coursework pieces.

Further information about our courses, including results

In English Language and Literature at GCSE level, we achieved our excellent record of providing quality teaching and delivering with fantastic results, outperforming similar schools substantially for all Assessment Objectives.

Over the last two years our A Level Language results reveal that we always attain higher marks than similar centres in all exam questions and Assessment Objectives. Our coursework marks and exam marks were once again significantly above the level achieved by similar schools and our coursework support for our A’ Level students is comprehensive. Feedback from the examiner assessing our 2025 coursework, included comments such as: “the students work showed insightful and specific analysis.” and, “Thank you for the evident pains taken in the preparation of this excellent sample and for the high quality of the work in it.”

You will be studying a course in a department which has a proven record of outstanding teaching from linguistic specialists who not only mark the exam papers but who have close links and strong networks to Russel Group University academics who work with us on the courses.

Alongside A Level Language we also offer A Level English Literature. As a department, we attained amazing results in both A Level Language and A Level English Literature in 2025. Again, our highly experienced and skilled teachers are exam markers and have year on year proven success at getting all our students to achieve way above their target grades. We now also offer Media A Level within our department utilising the skills and experience in our team in an exciting new way.

Financial Information

We suggest that our students purchase the Cambridge AQA Student Textbook for English Language. We sell this for £30.41 and if the books are returned in usable condition, we will re-fund £15.

Course Content and Teaching Units

Paper 1: Language, the individual and society

You will study a range of texts, audiences and genres. You will learn comprehensive methods of language analysis in areas such as:

• Grammar

• Lexis

• Pragmatics

• Discourse

You will explore how representations are produced and you will also study child language development.

Paper 2: Language diversity and change

In this unit you will identify, research and explore how language has changed, the process by which the changes occur and how diversity is created.

You will explore areas such as dialect, sociolect and idiolect. Areas such as how language is used by people of different ages and how language is used to represent and create gender identities are always particularly interesting for students in this unit.

This unit will build on your methods of analysis introduced in Unit 1 and also allows you to debate issues in greater depth.

In the exam, you will also be required to write creatively in response to some of the texts you have analysed and evaluated.

Coursework

You will complete two pieces of coursework totalling 3500 words.

Your first piece is an Original Writing assignment, which allows you to write creatively at length, expressing many of the ideas you have analysed over the duration of the course.

Your second piece is a Language Investigation. You will explore an area of language which particularly interests you, collect data and research, before writing your findings and conclusions. This is always an individual and fascinating task in which you get to express your ideas about something that personally interests you.

Trips, visits and extra-curricular

The sixth form has a newsletter committee and encourages budding journalists to contribute articles for that publication. The English department also organise several visits from University lecturers who are specialists in the field of Language and Linguistics such as Chris Montgomery and Rob Drummond. We also make trips to plays, museums and Sheffield University and Lancaster University for subject specific lectures.

Paper 1: Language, the individual and society (2 hour 30 minute exam) 40%

Paper 2: Language diversity and change (2 hour 30 minute exam) 40%

Coursework (2 pieces: 1 language investigation, 1 creative writing) 20%

GCSE English Language – Grade 5 in Language and Literature GCSE

As with all Arts subjects, English courses offer entry to a huge range of further course and careers. Whether you are interested in courses and careers such as teaching, law, journalism or civil service roles, or you are seeking an alternative to your other courses to provide variety to your CV, you could not select a better course than English Language.

In the past two years, students who studied our English courses have progressed to study some of the following courses in universities such as Oxford University, Sheffield, University of Birmingham, Bristol University and Durham University:

English Language and Literature, Law, Sociology, Criminology, Journalism, Psychology, Creative Writing, Medical Anthropology, History, Accounting and Finance and Nursing.

It provides you the opportunity to develop higher level thinking, discussion and writing skills, as well as exploring a huge variety of topics, contextual settings and wider ideas.