ENGLISH

The study of English is at the heart of education. Our aim is to support all students in the school to experience the enjoyment of reading, to understand the power of language and to use words effectively themselves in writing and speaking and listening. Our English Department’s specialist teachers are well qualified and work as a collaborative team of English specialists offering very high standards of learning and teaching.  We teach in 7 well resourced classrooms. All have Promethean Interactive White Boards and we promote learning through developments in ICT, with the use of Fronter -our expanding Managed Learning Environment -which encourages independent learning.


KS3
All pupils at St Gregory’s study English at Key Stage 3 following a course developed from the National Strategy for English. In Year 9 students follow a programme of study which builds on the skills required to study GCSE texts.


KS4
The majority of our students go on to succeed at GCSE in both English Language and English Literature as the department offers an extensive revision programme targeted to the attainment targets of the students including after-school, Saturday and holiday revision sessions. Students follow the AQA Specification for English and English Literature They submit coursework folders including assignments on Shakespeare and pre-20th Century poetry and prose. In Literature the texts studied include 'Of Mice and Men and 'An Inspector Calls'.

New English GCSE Specifications:


Students will prepare for either:

    • Single award: English GCSE
    • Double award: English Language and Literature

    How is this new GCSE different from the old Specifications?


    Coursework no longer exists. Instead students will sit CAT assessments; these take place under controlled conditions, like an examination.  Student will prepare for their CAT during lesson time, and independent learning time.The teacher is not allowed to support students to redraft their work. 
    In addition, each of the units are modular.  Students will sit modules in either January or June.

    What are students currently studying? 


    English: Of Mice and Men (7% final grade)
    English Language: Of Mice and Men (15% final grade)

    How do I prepare?

    • Know my text, Of Mice and Men
    • Have a confident understanding of the keywords we have used and studied in class.
    • Plan carefully what I will write for the essay. This will help me to test out my ideas linked to the main question.
    • Take part in the discussion forum online, through Fronter.
    • Use the time given during the formal CAT to draft and redraft.  Do not write down everything I know, keep a focus on the question.
    • Use my mark scheme to guide my learning focus: do I understand each of the skills being assessed?
    • Focus on: language, structure, writer's techniques, writer's purpose and ideas about character/theme.  To move into Band 4/5 really explore what we learn from the writer and how the novel is an opportunity to explore the world. 

     

    YEAR 10

    English: Unit 1 exam (40% final grade).
    Language: Unit 1 exam (40% final grade). All Language students will sit the exam on Thursday,
    9th June 2011. AM exam.

    What is this exam?
    Section A: reading non fiction texts. (You will answer 4 or 5 questions on a number of
    different non fiction extracts).

    Skills to learn:

    Read, understand and extract key points.
    Be able to follow an argument.
    Identify facts and opinions.
    Select and explore language used by the writer
    Explore the presentational devices of a leaflet/article (eg.font, bold, underlining, headings,
    colour)
    Comparison of a number of items.

    Section B: creating non fiction texts. (You will have to create 2 pieces of writing).

    Skills to learn:

    clear sense of purpose, audience, genre.
    full and varied use of punctuation, correct sentences (simple, compound, complex), interesting
    ways to start sentences (eg.with adverbs Cautiously, anxiously, I crept towards the window.
    Moonlight swept across the velvet night sky.)
    paragraphs,
    strong vocabulary
    techniques for persuade, argue, explain, inform.

    What can I do to improve?
    I should regularly access the Year 10 Fronter room for resources that are being added regularly.
    I should be regularly reading non fiction texts (newspapers, magazines, the news, 'Question time'.)
    I should be starting to recognise the areas in my own writing that I need to develop, in order to
    move towards (or exceed) my target grade.

     


    KS5
    At A Level we offer both English Literature and Media Studies which are very popular, successful and challenging disciplines.

    Beyond the curriculum there are regular activities  set up for students such as the celebration of World Book Day , drama and poetry workshops and theatre visits which  all add an extra depth to the learning experiences our students enjoy. Also our close links with the library ensure that pupils have a broad experience of reading and writing beyond the curriculum.
    The  ENGLISH subject leader is Ms. S. Lane

     

English