English

Year 10 begins the WJEC GCSE English Language and English Literature courses, which are examined separately and reward different skills.

Language work covers reading unseen 20th and 21st century fiction and non-fiction, comparing texts, and producing narrative, descriptive and transactional writing to time. Literature work covers a Shakespeare play, a 19th century novel, a contemporary drama or prose text and a poetry anthology.

The most common weakness at this stage is essay structure under time pressure. Practising full-length responses with detailed feedback, rather than reading more content, is what moves grades in Year 10.