AQA A Level English Language

at Churchill Academy

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ContentsAims

About the course

Key areas and topics

Further learning and support materials

Useful websites and guides

Studying at Advance Level

Marking and annotating

Key questions

Assessment overview

Key information on Paper 1, Paper 2 and Coursework

Assessment objectives

How to ace each question

Assessment trackers/sheets

Language Levels

Key definitions for each language level

Additional definitions

Linguistic toolkit

Coursework ideas 2

Specification aimsThis specification aims to inspire you to develop your interest in and enjoyment of English. It also encourages you to:

• develop and apply your understanding of the concepts and methods appropriate for the analysis and study of language

• explore data and examples of language in use

• engage creatively and critically with a varied programme for the study of English

• Hone your skills as a producer and interpreter of language

• develop your interest in and enjoyment of English as you independently investigate language in use.

To encourage you to:

• undertake independent investigations of language in use

• engage creatively and independently with a varied programme for the study of English from the past to the present day

• expand your interest in and appreciation of English, through learning about its structures and its functions, its developments and its variations

• express yourself in speech and writing, producing texts for different audiences, purposes and in different genres

• become a fully-fledged student of language and critically engage with the world around you, using the toolkit of language analysis skills you learn

In addition, the overall

aims of the course

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The A Level English Language Course

As a student of English Language, you will enrol on an exciting and challenging journey, analysing and writing in detail about the way that language works, and how we use it differently to achieve our purposes. Over the two year course you will analyse genuine texts from a variety of different sources via group work, independent research, practical investigations, essay writing and creative writing.

To begin with you will be introduced to the study of language, where you will learn how to analyse and categorise a wide range of texts according to linguistic frameworks. You will have the opportunity to develop and apply this knowledge as we focus on:

• Language and the Individual – you will analyse the difference between spoken, written and blended mode texts and investigate the representation of social groups, individuals, events and issues across a range of different types of texts

• Language Varieties – you will study and analyse how language varies according to region, social class, occupation and nationality.

• Directed Writing – you will learn how to write about the language issues in a variety of forms to communicate your ideas to a non-specialist audience.

Then, you will deepen your knowledge and understanding of language by focusing on these areas:

• Children’s Language Development – you will analyse the way children learn to speak

• Language Change – you will identify the ways in which language has changed since 1600

• Language Diversity– you will extend your understanding of how language use varies because of mode, personal, social, geographical and temporal contexts

• Language in Action :Investigation Coursework - you will pursue an area of individual interest (gendered talk, children’s language, code switching etc.) to explore

• Language in Action: Original Writing Coursework – you will undertake a piece of creative writing on either the power of information, persuasion or storytelling.

The course is designed to develop and build upon your prior learning during every topic, therefore continually extending the depth of your understanding of language. 4

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ModeMode is how we categorise texts on the continuum

between spoken and written texts e.g. emails; websites;

chat rooms; bulletin boards; SMS (texts); transcriptions of

phone calls; recorded messages (incoming or outgoing);

transcripts of spontaneous radio/TV broadcasts; sports

commentaries; newspaper/magazine articles; formal

and informal letters; textbooks; official documents;

adverts; election leaflets and information posters.

Key Topics

GenderTexts aimed at a specific gender group e.g. editorial

from Sugar; review from Men’s Health.

Texts written about a specific gender group.

Transcripts of conversations between a specific gender

group or when mixed, where gender issues are

apparent.

Accent and DialectHow are attitudes to accent and dialect changing? Find

examples of texts (spoken and written) which show the

increasing influence of, for example, Estuary English in

the media. What assumptions are made about the link

between accent and social class?

Children’s Language DevelopmentExamples of how language is used by children of

different ages and stages and in different contexts, for

example in nursery with other children or in the home

with a care-giver.

Language ChangeLanguage is always adapting to purpose and evolving,

through different processes of change. Can you find

examples which show how lexis, syntax, pragmatics etc.

has changed over time? How is language continuing to

change e.g. on Twitter, Facebook etc.? What do these

changes reveal about society and attitudes to

language change?

World EnglishHere we examine how English is used across the globe,

in different contexts, for different purposes. Is English

becoming a world language? What evidence/texts can

you find about the number of people around the world

who speak English? What predictions do you have for

the future of English?

Social GroupsTexts aimed at or written about particular social groups,

which is any set of people who interact with each other

and share similar characteristics and a sense of unity. This

could include texts about the LGBTQ community, people

with disabilities, genders, people who do the same job

etc.

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A note on theory (AO2)

For all the above topics there are theories to understand. As language is in a constant state of flux, these models can help us to explain new

phenomena and allow us to engage more fully with our own data. It’s important not only to learn the theories taught to you in class, but to read around the subject and discover new theories published and case studies conducted. Refer back to page 6 for reading guidance.

AQA A Level English Language

The full specification can be downloaded from:

http://www.aqa.org.uk/subjects/english/as-and-a-level/english-language-7701-7702

English Language A/AS Level for AQA Student Book (Cambridge University Press) –

Marcello Giovanelli, Gary Ives, John Keen, Raj Rana and Rachel Rudman

ISBN 978-1-107-46562-6

There are also plenty of e-resources on the VLE to help guide you with your studies. English > KS5 > English Language > Relevant Course Module

The study of English Language equips you for many different higher education courses. It is also a course which will develop important skills whichever academic or vocational direction you take in the future. It is essential if you wish to study English Language or Linguistics at university and also complements most subjects with social sciences, such as psychology, sociology and law-related courses. Students who take English Language are very employable due to their analytical and communication skills and can find themselves in a broad range of professions including: Journalism, Law, Publishing, Marketing and Teaching.

1. Your teachers

2. Ms Birkett – Head of KS5 English

3. Mr Grimmett – Head of English

4. Head of Sixth Form

Qualification and awarding body

Course book to purchase

Further learning and career options

Who to contact for support

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Useful websites and guides

People to follow on Twitter:David Crystal; Daniel Clayton; Beth Kemp

Fantastic blogs for you to subscribe to:http://david-crystal.blogspot.co.uk/

http://englishlangsfx.blogspot.co.uk/

http://www.bethkemp.co.uk/blog/

http://alevellanguage.blogspot.co.uk/

https://aggslanguage.wordpress.com/

Guides and interesting reads:Aitcheson, Jean (2012) Language Change: Progress or Decay?

Bragg, Melvin (2004) The Adventure of English

Bryson, Bill (2009) Mother Tongue

Crystal, Ben (2015) You Say Potato

* Crystal, David (2003) The Cambridge Encyclopedia of the English Language

(in fact any textbook by Crystal would be useful – in particular ‘How Language Works’ and ‘A Little Book of Language’.

Truss, Lynne (2003) Eat, Shoots and Leaves: The Zero Tolerance Guide to Punctuation

Depending upon your coursework topic choice, your teacher will be able to recommend or lend you some other guides too.

*If you can only get hold of one, this is the one to get.

News and current affairsReading the newspaper is also a great way to keep on top of language debates and familiarise yourself with difference types of texts. We recommend you read as wide a range of newspapers as possible, but refer to The Guardian and The Independent as most important. You will need to write an opinion article in the style of one of these producers of news, so it’s vital you are confident with their style in order to emulate it.

Access these website regularly in order to do this:

https://www.theguardian.com/uk/commentisfree

https://www.independent.co.uk/voices 8

The academic study of English Language requires the

development of an extensive range of skills, such as analysis,

research, communication, evaluation and the ability to make

comparisons. It demands self- management, initiative and

engagement with the media and current affairs as well as

excellent written and oral communication skills. It also requires

high levels of organisation and a willingness and interest in

learning new ideas and concepts. These are essential qualities

which employers and universities demand.

Studying English Language at Advanced Level

The importance of independent learning and

strategies for success

Language logs

It is critical to note that a strong element of independent

learning is required in this subject. Teacher’s essay plans

are likely to be a thing of the past! You will need to

embrace this jump in expectations, with a combination

of diligence and creativity. Background work is a key

criteria for success, but many students will relish the

opportunity to shape their own individual arguments in

their writing.

The emphasis of this course is about how ‘real’ language is used by

different groups of people. The real life element is what makes it

exciting and so it is essential that you engage with the wide range

of language that you interact with. You will be expected to record

‘real’ evidence of texts which illustrate all the theories and

concepts we study in class e.g. language and gender, politeness

strategies etc. Here are some suggestions for what you might

include and how you might annotate each text: 9

You must annotate each text you include in your

Language Log. Use these questions to help you:

• Who is the audience? How does that influence the text?

• What is the purpose? How does that influence how the text written?

• What is the format? Layout? How have images been used?

• What aspects of grammar are interesting and relevant e.g. use of verbs, pronouns, modification, complex sentences, word order etc.

• Has the position of the audience or producer influenced the text?

• How is the subject being represented in the text? Which dominant ideologies are supported/challenged?

At certain points throughout the course, your teacher will ask to see your Language Log Book and the texts you collect will be used in lessons.

Mark schemes

Reflecting on practice essays

From the very start of your course, we will share the Assessment Objectives with you as well as the grade criteria. Use this, even when not prompted by your teacher, to self assess essays that you plan or write.

You will get the chance to complete numerous practice essays before you sit the real exam. When your marked essays are returned, it is important that you reflect on your strengths and weaknesses. You will be given a chart which you will keep in your folder for the whole for the whole course. Use this to record your grade, strengths and areas that you need to improve. Make sure that you take the time to go back to your essays and use your targets to develop your responses. This chart should also be used to make sure that you progress through your course and continue to do the ‘good bits’ and learn from your mistakes. Your teacher may give you time to do this in class for some essays but not for all and it is essential that you get into the habit of doing this for every essay –it will make a difference! 10

We aim to encourage you to take responsibility for shaping your own learning. In some lessons, you will be set a ‘key question’ and you are required to ensure that you can confidently answer the questions(s) by the end of that lesson or series of lessons.

Key questions

Individual and group projects

to consolidate class learning

Background research

Leading the teaching of others

We do quite a lot of work on theories /complicated

concepts so we often set group project tasks e.g. prepare a

presentation/electronic revision resource on a particular

area which can then be emailed to all students.

Use the reading lists provided in this booklet as well as the

library, and selective use of the internet, to find texts which

will extend your knowledge of the subjects we focus on in

class.

Throughout the course you will be given the opportunity to

research specific areas of language and present and teach

your knowledge to the rest of the group.

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The Assessment Overview

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Paper 1: Language, the

individual and society

Paper 2: Language diversity

and change

Non-exam

assessment:

Language in action

What's assessed

• Textual variations and

representations

• Children's language

development (0 – 11 years)

• Methods of language

analysis are integrated into

the activities

What's assessed

• Language diversity and

change

•Language discourses

•Writing skills

•Methods of language

analysis are integrated into

the activities

What's assessed

•Language

investigation

•Original writing

•Methods of

language

analysis are

integrated into

the activities

Assessed

•written exam: 2 hours

30 minutes

• 100 marks

• 40% of A-level

Assessed

• written exam: 2 hours

30 minutes

•100 marks

•40% of A-level

Assessed

•word count: 3,500

•100 marks

•20% of A-level

•marked by teachers

•moderated by AQA

Questions

Section A – Textual

variations and

representations

Two texts (one

contemporary

and one older text) linked by

topic or theme.

•A question requiring

analysis of one text

(25 marks)

• A question requiring

analysis of a second text

(25 marks)

• A question requiring

comparison of the two

texts (20 marks)

Section B – Children's

language development

A discursive essay on

children’s language

development, with a choice

of two questions where the

data provided will focus on

spoken, written or

multimodal

language (30 marks)

Questions

Section A – Diversity and

change

One question from a choice

of two:

either: an evaluative essay

on

language diversity

(30 marks)

or: an evaluative essay on

language change (30

marks)

Section B – Language

discourses

Two texts about a topic

linked

to the study of diversity and

change.

•A question requiring

analysis of how the texts

use language to present

ideas, attitudes and

opinions (40 marks)

•A directed writing task

linked to the same topic

and the ideas in previous

question (30 marks)

Tasks

Students produce:

•a language

investigation

(2,000 words

excluding

data) (50 marks)

•a piece of original

writing

and commentary

(1,500 words total)

(50 marks)

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Language Levels 1 & 2

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Language Levels 3 & 4

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Language Levels 5 & 6

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Lexis and Semantics

Denotative and connotative meanings: the literal (denotative) and associated (connotative) meanings of

words.

Figurative language: language used in a non-literal way in order to describe something in another’s terms (e.g. simile or

metaphor).

Semantic fields: groups of words connected by a shared field of reference, eg medicine, art. Synonyms: words that

have equivalent meanings.

Antonyms: words that have contrasting meanings.

Hypernyms: words that label categories, eg animal (this category includes for example dog, cat and rabbit).

Hyponyms: words that can be included in a larger, more general category (e.g. the hyponyms car, bus, aeroplane

as a form of the hypernym transport).

Levels of formality: vocabulary styles including slang, colloquialisms, taboo, formal and fixed levels.

Occupational register: a technical vocabulary associated with a particular occupation or activity.

Sociolect: a language style associated with a particular social group.

Dialect: a language style associated with a particular

geographical region. Neology: the process of new word formation, including the following: blends, compounds,

acronyms, initialisms, eponyms.

Semantic change: the process of words changing meaning, including the following: narrowing, broadening,

amelioration, pejoration, semantic reclamation.

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GrammarMorpheme: the smallest grammatical unit.Free morpheme: a morpheme that can stand on its own as a word.Affix (or bound morpheme): a morpheme that cannot stand on its own as a word, but combines with others to create a new word.Phrase: a group of words centred around a head word.Head word: the central word in a phrase which gives the phrase its name (e.g. noun phrase, adjective phrase) and may be modified by other words.Modification: the adding of additional words to provide more detail to a head word in a phrase either before it (pre-modification) or after it (post-modification).Clause: a group of words centred around a verb, which may be either grammatically complete (main clause) or incomplete (subordinate clause).Active voice: a clause where the agent (doer) of an action is the subject.Passive voice: a clause where the patient (the entity affected by an action) is in the subject position, and the agent either follows or is left out.Tense: how the time of an event is marked (usually through verb inflection): past, present & future. *Please note that there is a debate over whether or not there is a future tense in English*Aspect: another element of marking the time of an event, by specifying whether they are progressive (ongoing) or perfective (completed).Coordination: the joining of two or more independent clauses via co-ordinating conjunctions. Single words and longer phrases can also be co-ordinated.Subordination: the joining of two or more clauses where only one is independent (the main clause) and the others dependent (subordinate clause/clauses).Sentence: a larger unit of meaning, which may be formed of a single clause (simple sentence) or several clauses (compound or complex sentences). Minor sentences are sentences without a verb.Sentence function: the purpose a sentence fulfils in communication: as a statement, question, command or exclamation. These are also referred to in many grammar books as (respectively): declaratives, interrogatives, imperatives and exclamatives.Word class: the grammatical category into which words can be placed, including noun, adjective, verb, adverb, determiner, pronoun, preposition, conjunction.

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Phonetics, phonology and prosodicsPhoneme: the basic unit of sound.

Diphthong: a vowel sound that is the combination of two separate sounds, where a speaker glides from one to another.

Voicing: the act of the vocal cords either vibrating (voiced) or not vibrating (unvoiced) in the production of a consonant

sound.

Place of articulation: the position in the mouth where a consonant sound is produced.

Manner of articulation: the extent to which airflow is interrupted by parts of the mouth in the production of

consonant sounds.

Syllable: a sound unit with a vowel at its centre.

Accent: a regional variety of speech that differs from other regional varieties in terms of pronunciation.

Accommodation: the ways that individuals adjust their speech patterns to match others.

Sound iconicity: the use of the sound system to mirror form or meaning.

International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA): an internationally recognised system of phonetic transcription.

GraphologyLayout: the way in which a text is physically structured.

Typographical features: the features of fonts used in

texts such as font type, size and colour.

Orthographical features: the features of the writing

system such as spelling, capitalisation and punctuation.

Multimodal texts: texts that rely on the interplay of

different modes (e.g. images, writing and sound) to

help shape meaning

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PragmaticsImplicature: an implied meaning that has to be inferred as a result of a conversational maxim being broken.Inference: the process of deriving implied meanings.Irony: using language to signal an attitude other than what has been literally expressed.Deixis: words that are context-bound where meaning depends on who is being referred to, where something is happening or when it is happening.Speech acts: communicative acts that carry meaning beyond the words and phrases used within them, for example, apologies and promises.Politeness: the awareness of others’ needs to be approved of and liked (positive politeness) and/or given freedom to express their own identity and choices (negative politeness).Face: the concept of how all communication relies on presenting a ‘face’ to listeners and audiences, and how the management of positive and negative face needs to contribute to interaction.Cooperative principles in conversation: how interaction is thought to be based upon various kinds of cooperative behaviour between speakers.

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DiscourseDiscourse markers: words, phrases or clauses that help to organise what we say or write (e.g. OK, So, “As I was

saying…”).

Adjuncts: non-essential elements of clauses (usually adverbials) that can be omitted (e.g. “I’ll see you in the

morning”).

Disjuncts: sentence adverbs that work to express an attitude or stance towards material that follows (e.g. “Frankly, I’m

appalled at what she said” or “Sadly, not one of them

survived”).

Narrative structures: how events, actions and processes are sequenced when recounting a story.

Anaphoric reference: making reference back to something previously identified in a text (often using pronouns to refer to

an already established reference point e.g. “The woman

stood by the door. She made detailed notes of what she

could see”).

Cataphoric reference: making reference forwards to something as yet unidentified in a text. E.g. “It was warm. It

was living. It was a rabbit.”

Exophoric reference: making reference to things beyond the language of a text itself (as opposed to endophoric, which is

within the language of the text), perhaps within a speaker’s

immediate physical context e.g. “Look at that”.

Interdiscursivity (or intertextuality): the use of discourses from one field as part of another (e.g. the use of science

discourses in the selling of beauty products, or the use of

commercial

discourses in education).

Critical discourse analysis: the use of linguistic analysis to explore and challenge the ideologies, positions and values of

texts and their producers.

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Additional useful definitions Audience: the receivers or intended receivers of a text (written, spoken, multimodal). The concept of an ideal audience/reader/narratee is often

found in critical discourse. Texts might also have multiple audiences.Discourses: used in many different ways in language study. Can be used to refer to a mode of language (e.g. spoken or written discourse), a register (e.g. medical or legal discourse), a way of thinking about and presenting something (e.g. representing language using a discourse of decay).Foregrounding: the way in which texts emphasise key events or ideas through the use of attention-seeking devices (in terms of lexis, semantics, phonology or grammar) that either repeat content (parallelism) or break established patterns (deviation). Deviation may be:• External: breaking from the normal conventions of language use, for example in the use of nonsense words or ungrammatical constructions;• Internal: breaking from a pattern that has previously been set up in the text for a striking effect.Genre: the way of categorising and classifying different types of texts according to their features or expected shared conventions or functions. Genres come into being as the result of people agreeing about perceived similar characteristics in terms of content or style. Genres are fluid and dynamic and new genres continually evolve as a result of new technologies and cultural practices.Literariness: the degree to which a text displays qualities that mean that people see it as literary and as literature. However, since many so called ‘non-literary’ texts display aspects of creative language use that is often seen as a marker of being literary, it is best to think of literariness as acontinuum rather than viewing texts as being absolutely ‘literary’ or ‘non-literary’.Mode: the way in which language is communicated between text producer and text receiver, eg as an image, in writing, in speech or as a logo. The term mode (from semiotics and linguistics) is related to the term medium (from media studies) which is how messages are mediated (egpaper or digital text), and also to the term channel (from communication studies) which is the physical means of transmission (eg auditory, visual or olfactory). Mode also encompasses ideas around planning and spontaneity, distance between text producer and receiver, how transitory or longlasting a text is. Mode is more than a binary opposition, is sometimes visualised as a continuum and is constantly changing as new communication technologies blur the lines between older forms.

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Narrative: a type of text or discourse that functions to tell a series of events. A narrative is the organisation of experience told by a narrator to any number of narratees. A narrative has two distinctive parts:• The story: the events, places, characters and time of action that act as the building blocks of the narrative;• The narrative discourse: the particular shaping of those building blocks into something worth telling through specific choices in language and structure.Poetic Voice: the way in which a sense of identity is projected through language choices so as to give the impression of a distinct persona with a personal history and a set of beliefs and values.Grammatical voice (i.e. active and passive) is a different concept and mentioned in the relevant section. Point of view: the way in which events and experiences are filtered through a particular perspective to provide a particular version of reality. Point of view may be:• Related to how a narrative is presented in terms of space and time through the use of deixis, time frames, and flashbacks and flashforwards;• Related to a particular ideological viewpoint, such as an individual’s way of seeing the world or thinking about events (often in an extreme way). These might be shown through the use of modal verbs, adjectives and adverbs to stress belief or commitment and/or the use of idiosyncratic words and phrases;• Related to distinguishing between who tells and who sees, as in the case of a narrative told in the third person but which seems to be filtered through a particular character’s consciousness.Positioning: how a text producer places or orientates him/herself to the

subject being presented and towards the audience or reader being addressed.Purpose: the intention or objective behind a text in terms of what it is designed to do and how it is used. Texts can have many different and overlapping purposes.Register: a variety of language that is associated with a particular field of reference, eg occupational discourse. Registers may be either written, spoken or multimodal.Representation: how experiences, views and ideas are ‘re-presented’ to

readers, listeners and viewers through language and other meaning-making resources in order to influence their way of seeing the world.Style: the level of formality in a text. This can be seen as distinct from its register (eg an occupational register can exist at different levels of formality).

Your Linguistic toolkit – the slimmed down version/bare essentials

Grammar

• Morphology – the way words are made up – prefixes and suffixes

• Word Classes

• Nouns- common/ proper/abstract/collective

• Verbs- tense/auxiliaries/active/passive

• Adjectives – comparatives/superlatives

• Adverbs –time/frequency/manner/degree

• Pronouns

• Prepositions

• Conjunctions

• Sentence types– Declarative/ interrogative/ imperative– Minor – no verb– Simple – one main verb– Compound – and/ or/ but – each clause of equal value– Complex – main clause and subordinate clause(s)

Phonology

• Onomatopoeia

• Alliteration

• Sibilance

• Assonance

• Plosives

• Fricatives

Lexis and semantics

• Cliché

• Cohesion

• Collocation

• Colloquial language

• Hyperbole

• Formal/informal language

• Euphemism

• Figurative language

• Metaphor

• Simile

• Jargon

• Personification

• Idiom

• Slang/taboo language

Do remember that this list is just a reminder and that you will need to consult your own notes to ensure you are using the terminology correctly. Do ask if you are at all unsure.

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It’s never too early to start thinking about coursework…

Comparison of language in news programmes – R4, Newsbeat, local radio, Newsround, BBC News at Six.

Interview techniques e.g. Fiona Bruce, Jeremy Paxman, Alan Carr, Graham Norton, Oprah Winfrey.

The language of investigative journalism (TV).

Study of transcribed examples of regional varieties of spoken English – accent and dialect.

A study of how parents talk to their children how parents speak to children e.g. when reading stories.

Analysis of a stretch of everyday discourse e.g. Big Brother, sales talk, greetings, gossip, occupational variations (politicians, lawyers, detectives, doctors, hairdressers … the list is endless).

Comedy styles – stand-up, sitcom, taboo. How an individual comedian creates comedy e.g. Billy Connolly, Eddie Izzard, Harry Hill.

Do common linguistic definitions of gendered language match ordinary people’s perceptions?

The Language of toys for boys/girls in TV advertisements for children (Barbie vs. Action Man etc.)

The Language of nursery/playground rhymes, lonely hearts columns, match.com, car/food/cosmetics adverts, comics, political speeches, children’s books, fly-on-the-wall documentaries, Big Brother diary room, children’s books, tele-sales, chat-rooms, birthday cards etc.

The language of war-related speeches from 1939-1945 versus modern day

Gender issues. Record a male group & female group discussing the same topic/stimulus. Compare.

Taboo language. Record two different age/social/gender groups and compare their use of taboo language. Is it becoming more prevalent? More acceptable?

Occupational lexis. Record a person at work, or within any social group (e.g.: doctors/solicitors/mechanics/football fans) where specialised language might be used. Examine the functions of their jargon. How & why is it used?

Child language acquisition. Record children talking as they perform a task e.g. Lego building. Read them stories and ask them to re-tell it in writing, or on tape, compare via age.

The lexis of sports commentators. Record & transcribe a few commentaries. Compare extracts of at least three different speakers to investigate if there is a recognisable genre.

Language change in advertising e.g. Coca-Cola, Kodak, Levis.

You will need to have read/listened to plenty of texts to be able to confident analyse and then write a text of your own.

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