A LEVEL
Join our English Combined course to study Shakespeare one session, and then wield your own words to wax wonders on the world in the next session.
If you’re passionate about communication, and love to read, this is a course you’ll find irresistible.
Learn from the masters, and then put those lessons to the test by concocting a cocktail of your own creative craftsmanship.
We’ll spend lots of time discussing ideas and language, and then use those ideas to inform our own inspired output.
This is a magnificent and extensive introduction to both fields of language and literature as one A Level. But Xaverian also offers English Language and English Literature as separate A-levels, meaning you could choose one or the other – or both, for double the fun!
Today’s session is all about screenplays and characterisation.
This is a great overview of how an English student would tackle a subject more familiarly associated with another Xaverian course – Drama and Theatre.
Whereas the actor would evaluate scripts to influence their live performance, on this course you’ll be analysing how language in its many forms, including colloquialisms and slang, are used to build characters and drive dialogue, action and experience.
You’ll spend much of your time studying in Marylands, a spectacular old building that perfectly sets the scene for lessons rich in discussion and debate.
After a solid introduction to working with screenplays and characterisation you’ll be invited to write the opening of a new TV show using action, dialogue, setting and contrast to expose the uniqueness of your lead character, a doctor, to the audience.
This course will test your creativity to the limits and you’ll emerge acclimatised to thinking on your feet, producing exemplary and detailed written work strengthened further by the style and alternative perspectives of your peers, teachers and literary legends.
Voices in Speech and Writing
Varieties in Language and Literature
Investigating and Creating Texts
You will examine the way in which speech works, the structure of conversation and the ways we choose words based on the context and the purpose. You will study a variety of texts structured around a theme such as Love and Loss or Society and the Individual. In your coursework unit you will choose two texts yourself and use these as a basis for your own writing that are designed to work for a variety of audiences and purposes.
Six good passes at GCSE including two at grade 6 or above
Grade 5 from English Language or Literature
2 years
2 exams and coursework
Linear A-level
Edexcel
You will have to read a variety of texts and analyse how these texts create meaning. You will discuss a great deal with your tutors and your classmates in small groups. You may even do things such as role plays and presentations. You will need to work independently to craft your own writing and read and engage with the texts we have studied.
