In English, our students gain a wide-ranging and thorough appreciation of both literature and language, in order to help to prepare them for the next stage of their lives. We aim to encourage a love of reading and writing that underpins academic success in the broader curriculum, as well as developing a deeper understanding of the links between ourselves, people from different times and across cultures. As a department, we feel that this reflects the world we live in, both in terms of our local community and in terms of our own school community. Our provision is designed to develop the high level skills that the students come to us with; we foster academic rigour, perceptive analysis and sophisticated communication skills, in order to match the needs of our academically selective cohort.

We firmly believe that there is a genre to suit everyone and that everyone deserves the time and space to enjoy reading for pleasure. Reading is also the key to success across all subjects, so we encourage our students to become critical readers of anything and everything, from Shakespeare to advertising slogans. As well as developing analysis and interpretation skills, we use texts such as Steinbeck’s Of Mice and Men, Shakespeare’s Macbeth, Hosseini’s A Thousand Splendid Suns and Prebble’s Enron to encourage debate and discussion of moral, social, emotional and political issues. We encourage reading for pleasure, be it manga, graphic novels, nineteenth century Gothic horror or autobiographies. Reading helps our students to connect to each other and to the outside world, developing a sense of community. However, through reading we can not only see our own place in the world more clearly, but we can extend the horizons of many of our students, challenging mindsets and introducing new cultural ideas and practices.

Writing provides a crucial opportunity for creativity and conceptualised thinking. We encourage students to take risks, to develop sophisticated vocabulary and to craft their writing in an original and nuanced way, in both fiction and non-fiction writing. Whilst building on firm foundations of grammatical accuracy, structure and written form, students develop fluent and articulate writing. Through creative and innovative teaching, we encourage students to develop the skills to articulate their thinking and to express themselves concisely and coherently, not just for examinations but in order to support their academic success across subjects and throughout life. There are numerous competitions and opportunities to write both fiction and non-fiction, giving students a means to develop their own unique voice.

Oracy plays a vital role in our teaching of English, helping students to organise and develop abstract ideas and concepts both academically and personally. Whether engaging in the cut and thrust of debate, discussing themes in poetry, presenting research or taking part in a performance of a play, we believe that everyone should have the opportunity to express themselves orally in lessons. Progress in speaking and listening is measured in various ways including a presentation at GCSE level. A-level lessons are often discussion-led, allowing us to explore ideas and perspectives whilst encouraging students to make independent judgments.

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English at Key Stage 3

At Key Stage 3, we build on the range of experiences that our students have had at Key Stage 2, working closely with primary colleagues in their literacy hubs and at regular meetings to discuss the changing nature of Key Stage 2.  Students arrive with a range of skills that are assessed through the Key Stage 2 Sats exam; the analysis of this data enables our staff to work with students in a focused way, informing our teaching and helping us to identify students who may benefit from challenge or support in specific areas. We also tailor our teaching style to encourage a smoother transition into secondary school English, for example scaffolding writing as we build up to independent, timed pieces needed at Key Stage 4.

The content of the curriculum at Key Stage 3 is designed to engage our increasingly diverse cohort, who are drawn from a number of primary settings. We begin with a modern novel in order to engage students and promote reading for pleasure. This also provides a smooth transition, using familiar skills but developing these for our high ability cohort. This is then built on with analysis and language production activities that stretch and challenge the students, such as poetry analysis and non-fiction reading in Year 7. We have introduced a Mechanics of Language unit that delves deeper into grammar and successful communication.

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GCSE Curriculum

Exam Board - AQA

All students study both English Language and English Literature across Year 10 and 11, reflecting the academic nature of our cohort. This follows on from a foundation year in Year 9 where we develop skills such as analysis of structure, as well as new skills such as the use of context to support literary analysis. The course builds upon skills introduced in Key Stage 3 and introduces new skills such as synthesis, evaluation and comparison of viewpoints and perspectives in texts written from different time periods.  Students are encouraged to develop their interpretation of texts, forming independent opinions and justifying their views in verbal and written forms.  There is opportunity for close analysis of how writers manipulate their readers’ responses, which includes reading polemic writing on worldwide issues and ethical debates, as appropriate for the academic ability of our students. Fiction texts are selected to open up discussions, promote cultural understanding and provide scope for high level analysis, for example using extracts from The Road, The Help, The Reluctant Fundamentalist and The God of Small Things.

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A Level Curriculum

A-Level English Language - Exam Board - AQA

The A-Level English Language course focuses on how we use language as well as how language has developed over time. It is very popular with students and many go on to study either Language or Linguistics at University.  Students are given the opportunity to study an area of English that particularly interests them in their individual NEA project. They also develop creative writing skills in the Original Writing element of the course.

Students are given a strong grounding in grammar, syntax and linguistics from which to develop their own writing.

A-Level English Literature - Exam Board - Eduqas

The study of literature encourages enjoyment of literary studies based on an informed personal response to a range of texts. This course covers three components in discrete genres of study: poetry, drama and prose to allow learners to focus on the conventions and traditions of each genre in turn, whilst placing them in a relevant literary and historical context. A further component offers unseen prose and poetry to allow learners to focus separately on applying the skills of literary analysis acquired during the course as a whole. A vital aspect of the course is the development of interpretation and the discussion of the interpretations of others, a skill that promotes both autonomous thinking and an appreciation for the views of others.  Students are required to read widely and independently both set texts, such as Jane Eyre  and others that they have selected for themselves in their prose study ( coursework ), such as The Kite Runner, A Brief History of Seven Killings and Vernon God Little.

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The enriched curriculum

In English,  there are a range of opportunities for students to engage on a wider level and develop cultural experiences as well as transferable skills, such as communication, team work and self-confidence.  The English Department runs various reading groups as well as a debating society. Each year, there are drama productions, either whole school or as part of the House Drama competition.  We have visiting authors, theatre groups, live streaming of national productions and a variety of reading and writing competitions, encouraging students to explore English in various different media.  There are trips to support the curriculum such as theatre trips, a visit to the Imperial War Museum North during Key Stage 4, residential courses for writing and lectures on texts that students are studying.  We firmly believe that the study of English extends well beyond the classroom and can enrich our lives well beyond our secondary education.