English

English Curriculum Intent 

Curriculum Map

We have sky high ambitions for our students and want them to be given the means necessary to study English at university. 

Through our English curriculum, students read high-quality literature from a repertoire of authors who have stood the test of time, are taught to write clearly and confidently with a strong grasp of technical accuracy and learn how to speak eloquently and fluently in a variety of contexts.

Guiding them on this journey are teachers who are passionate about their subject and share their love of literature in class.

Our students follow a knowledge-rich curriculum, guided by the principles of direct instruction and cognitive psychology, so that they know more, understand more and remember more about English.

Social justice underpins our English curriculum, with all students having access to the same core curriculum so that they may succeed no matter their prior attainment, background or educational need.

By providing students with a strong core of knowledge in English, we create the foundation for them to criticise, question and evaluate other texts by themselves throughout their future lives.

Course Structure 

Our curriculum is structured around the disciplinary knowledge that students would need in order to continue their studies of English at university and in the wider world.

These academic disciplines share the common ground that knowledge in English can be viewed as ‘the exploration of truth through beauty and power’; a guiding principle of our curriculum.

Lying beneath these disciplines are the substantive knowledge and concepts needed by students, which are mapped out across the curriculum so that they build cumulatively, providing students with specific quality examples.

For example, knowledge of the 'bildungsroman genre' is explored in Year 8 in Oliver Twist and then revisited in Year 9 with Jane Eyre, allowing pupils to see how genres can be manipulated in different types of texts.

Texts have also been chosen with chronology in mind, so students can understand how literature fits into a structure overtime. This allows students to see how texts talk to each other, are built on the back of other texts and how our culture has been shaped by our literature.

Exam Board

Students are entered for the 8700 English Language and the 8702 English Literature specifications with the AQA exam board.

Assessment

Formative assessment is used to capture what students do and do not know, allowing teachers to give the feedback needed for students to learn from their mistakes and make rapid progress.

Formative assessment takes place in class through activities such as knowledge retrieval tasks, quizzing, cold calling, choral response, targeted questioning, scaffolding or modelling.

At KS3 and KS4 students complete a summative assessment at the end of every year, assessing the expanding domain of the curriculum.

Homework 

A range of homework tasks is set using the academy’s homework policy.

This could include a reading challenge, subject research, online quizzes, comprehension questions, drafting essays, completing past papers, preparation for oral assessments or exam revision.

All homework tasks and instructions may be found on Bromcom.

Books, Equipment, Materials and Resources Recommended/Needed

All students are encouraged to read a wide variety of fiction and non-fiction outside of class.

Students use a reading ruler to follow the text during guided reading sessions in class.

Opportunities For Study Beyond Key Stage 4

Both GCSE English Language and GCSE English Literature provide an excellent preparation for the study of English Language, English Literature, Creative Writing and Media Studies at A-Level.

The analytical skills developed during the GCSE years would also prove useful for courses that require critical, objective consideration such as History, Psychology and Law.

Career Opportunities Supported By This Subject 

Career opportunities include digital copywriting, journalism, marketing, advertising, TV production, social and welfare work, tourism, web content management and arts administration.

Useful Links

AQA Specifications

http://www.aqa.org.uk/subjects/english/gcse

GCSE Bitesize English Language

http://www.bbc.co.uk/education/subjects/zr9d7ty

GCSE Bitesize English Literature

http://www.bbc.co.uk/education/subjects/zckw2hv

Curriculum Map

The Curriculum Lead is Mr Dave Sutton.