EMC recently produced an early ‘first impressions’ blog on the new draft GCSE specifications for 2015. In some ways, that was a rather easier task than for the new A Level specifications because the truth is that with GCSE, the specification writers’ hands have been well and truly tied by the rigidity of the requirements…
As you will know by now, GCSE specifications will change next year, for first teaching in September 2015. The English and Media Centre will be running courses in the autumn term to support you in choosing a specification (further information at the bottom of the page), as well as publishing resources. In the meantime, in…
There’s been a lot of good sense talked in the media in recent days, in response to the DfE’s changes to the Literature requirements for GCSE…and a lot of nonsense too! In our usual style, EMC is keen to set out some of the facts and arguments and set the record straight on some of…
Some of the media coverage this week has suggested that the draft OCR/EMC Language and Literature specification is dumbing down, pandering to students’ interests and putting celebrities like Russell Brand in the same category as Shakespeare. In response we thought it important to set the record straight and provide some basic, factual information to help…
With Easter looming, we thought this might be a good moment to offer you some revision activities. These all require minimal preparation from you and can be adapted to almost any aspect of the exam. Perfect! 1. Team paragraphs Good for: improving writing under pressure, meta-level discussion about paragraph structure; thinking like an examiner. Students…
Starting with a look at ‘knowledge’ in relation to Great Expectations, Barbara Bleiman, co-director at The English and Media Centre, explores the debates around knowledge versus skills. Great Expectations 1. Dickens was writing in the 19th century. 2. Pip’s sister was called Mrs Joe Gargery. 3. Dickens wrote his novels in instalments as weekly serials.…
Kate Oliver, consultant at The English and Media Centre, suggests books for reluctant readers of all abilities Most teachers, especially English teachers, are passionate about promoting reading, and would support the current emphasis on reading for pleasure, its inclusion in the National Curriculum from 2014, and the fact that it is a focus for Ofsted…
Andrew McCallum, co-director of the English and Media Centre, discusses the draft National Curriculum for KS4. The draft National Curriculum English KS4 programme of study, currently under consultation, is seductive in its brevity and the unexceptional nature of what it proposes. In some ways this makes it hard to argue against. Much in it is…
Kate Oliver, EMC’s KS3&4 consultant, discusses whether schools should ban slang in the classroom. A school in London has recently banned slang from the classroom. Signs have been put up listing banned words, such as ‘coz’ and ‘bare’. The aims are worthy. London MP David Lammy said: ‘I think this is a very good idea. Speaking slang is fine in…
It is currently rumoured that the criteria are about to change again; if they do, then we will update our response. The consultation comes in two parts, one from OFQUAL, giving the overarching structure for all A Levels, with specific sections on each subject. The focus is assessment and its implications. The key element…
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