Unit

Outline

% Weighting

Examination

Topic List

Unit 1

Categorising texts

60% A/S

30% A2

1hr 30mins exam

• Exploring and understanding spoken and written language in use.
• The roles of purposes, audiences and contexts and the impact of these pressures upon language production and reception.
• An analysis and investigation of a variety of extracts taken from everyday sources.
• This unit covers the introductory aspects of the study of language, using a variety of texts for the basis of this study. In addition it focuses on three specific social contexts: language and power, language and gender and language and technology.

Unit 2

Creating texts

40% A/S

20% A2

Coursework

• Development of personal writing expertise through individual coursework.
• Writing to entertain, to persuade, to inform and to instruct.
• The use of register and style; characteristics of genres and subgenres; the impact of language choices and discourse strategies; the purposes and skills of planning, drafting and redrafting; the use of primary sources and of clear referencing of these materials; skills associated with analysing and reviewing the writing processes and the reception of their own texts.

Unit 3

Exploring comparison and production

30% A/S

 2 Hrs Exam

• Language acquisition – the nature and functions of language acquisition and social development of children from 0-11 years.
• Language change – historical and contemporary changes in the English language from Late Modern English to the modern day.

Unit 4

Investigating Language

20%

Coursework

• Coursework exploring and analysing language data.
• Data collection methodology.
• Analysis and interpretation of data using appropriate linguistic methods and techniques.
• Evaluation and investigative conclusions.