Odd question I know English specific exceptional reader year 11:kindly knowing answers only please...

If you can afford it I’d get a tutor OP. Just a few sessions might make things click.

My daughter was also very well read and got a disappointing mark in English literature due to poor exam technique. She didn’t choose it at A level. But has done very well and went to a good university.

good luck!

To be honest her reading material isn't that exceptional for a 15 year old. Also she sounds like she enjoys reading but perhaps just doesn't understand it very well. You seem very fixated on her taking it for A level especially when she has indicated she doesn't want to.

They are her A levels and should be her choice. If she is getting 9s in other subjects why are you trying to force her down a route where she is getting a lower grade for a subject she doesn't want to study?

English lang and lit are 2 very different exams and it's actually lang that's the one you 'need'. It's concerning that she doesn't seem to know what's what with the two of them or how she's doing in lang. That's what I'd be asking about.

In lang she'll be doing things like writing a descriptive/story piece, comparing writers styles and writing an opinion piece. For this one I'd really recommend Mr Salles on youtube and particularly his books on writing an opinion piece and story writing. The opinion piece book gives a lot of examples of high grade work, good layout and lots of ideas.

For the story/description piece get your daughter to write a few very descriptive stories that could be adapted to fit the sort of very general titles that might come up. For example mine wrote a descriptive piece on waiting in a hospital for results that could be adapted to fit in with a 'write a story about a happy/sad/surprising/difficult/unexpected occurrence' type title and also a description of a mythical beast that could hopefully be used in any about fantasy/magic. In his actual exam he adapted the hospital one, got an opinion piece that was similar to one Mr Salles had written so based it on that and got a 9.

Lit is very different - again I'd recommend Mr Salles but I don't think it's as useful as for lang. The CPG books are useful for laying out everything in an easy to digest way and covering the themes but aren't as good as for other subjects IMO - too simplified for 9's but still useful for info. I'd say reading the books over and over and knowing them inside out is important. Being able to pluck out quotes and the words they use and understanding all the different possible interpretations. Definitely read past papers and see how they have been marked, that can give a good insight.

Your DD loves reading, that’s great.

It sounds like you are pushing her to take A level English. She’s clearly bright, allow her to make her own choices.

@StrangeBrewlook there isn’t a combined English. They’re two separate GCSEs and different AOs for each one. It’s really important that she knows which GCSE exam and paper she is writing and revising for so she knows which AOs she needs to tick off.

GCSE English literature will include the AOs that @SudenAlia has listed. This will be where she writes about the texts she has already studied; the Shakespeare, the poetry (including unseen), the 19th Century text and a modern prose or drama.

GCSE English language will be assessed on the AOs that I listed earlier. She will sit two papers, both split into reading (section A) and writing (section B) skills. One paper will be an unseen fiction text, and the other will be unseen non fiction texts. Both papers will require a writing task in section B linked to the texts focused on in section A.

kindly, she isn't an "exceptional" reader she is an adult who is an adult reader.

Gcse English in England does not have tiers

There is not a combined GCSE English. English Language and literature are two separate subjects, each with two papers. There are higher or foundation options. A 5 is the maximum for the foundation papers. English Literature isn’t compulsory.

@StrangeBrewlook It is a tick box exercise. One of the best things as a parent to look at to understand how this all works is to look at the mark scheme on a past paper. AQA is the most popular board and will list AOs (assessment objectives) and the different levels.

AO1 Read, understand and respond to texts. Students should be able to: • maintain a critical style and develop an informed personal response • use textual references, including quotations, to support and illustrate interpretations.
AO2 Analyse the language, form and structure used by a writer to create meanings and effects, using relevant subject terminology where appropriate. AO3 Show understanding of the relationships between texts and the contexts in which they were written.

There are different levels in this so level 6 is the top level and will say AO1 • Critical, exploratory, conceptualised response to task and whole text. • Judicious use of precise references to support interpretation(s).

It basically means quote a lot to back up your point. Not whole quotes but embedded quotes, the mark scheme lists these out under the questions for each book/poetry so you can see what they want.

The write a lot about a little or the one word thing is (from memory of my sons doing it) in A Christmas Carol Scrooge says "I don't make merry myself at Christmas, and I can't afford to make idle people merry" so we focus on the word "merry" because it has more than one meaning. We say Merry Christmas, which would mean happy, but merry also means having consumed alcohol, so is Scrooge meaning both? Students explore this and reference his attitude toward the poor in other parts of the book. He refers in that quote to the poor as idle and yet has Bob working for him, if he were idle he would have sacked him. They have to acknowledge that this is all fiction, we are the reader etc. As I said the mark scheme lays it all out and past papers are a great revision resource.

@FloraClover Yes. For internal candidates. For those joining for 6th form it’s 64.

@Halfemptyhalfling I agree. Tuition can be great for students on the 3-4, 4-5 or 6-7 borders to push them through to the next threshold, but generally speaking for 7+ it’s more about practise, specific feedback and, most importantly, following up on said feedback.

I'm not convinced about tuition especially as she is already at level 7. After school time should ideally be for developing social practical skills ( through eg guides sports drama) which may be more useful in the future job market anyway.

As others have said speak to the teacher. GCSEs are largel about meeting the mark scheme requirements and i would suggest she is maybe not interested in doing that or hasn't yet honed the skills.

I was similar to your DD and my DD really fluctuates with English Lit and Lang at GCSE despite being a good writer and being able to discuss books well.

The breadth of reading is almost irrelevant and I am going to say something a bit iffy - but i have many friends who are academics in Eng Lit and they read considerably less than me and less widely and were like this even at school. What they did/do have is particular ways of writing and thinking about literature and languages that addresses the disciplinary requirements and is an entirely different skill set. Obv not all are like this.

Tuition which is basically about writing to the exam may help, but school should be able to direct her. Guessing you have all the appropriate exam guides and Colins/York notes?

1. Speak to her teacher.
2. Let her decide if she wants to improve her grade
3. if she does, let her speak to her teacher and
4. get a tutor - depending on where you live, this could cost up to £50 an hour.

@StrangeBrewlook The AOs you have listed - are they for GCSE English Literature or English Language? You have mentioned that she’s an avid reader which is definitely half of the work done, particularly for English literature, but not enough alone to obtain higher than a 7. It’s all about how well you can analyse language and structure as well as how well you can structure an essay.

It’s likely that her level of analysis isn’t yet pushing her upwards from a 7. For English Language, she’ll need to go into detail about how both language and structure impact the overall meaning of the text as well as how they will influence the reader (this is AO2). For example, for a non-fiction text (paper 2), she’ll need to explain in detail how each writer presents their own thoughts and opinions whilst influencing the reader to agree with their perspective, thinking about persuasive devices.

For higher levels, she’ll need to master the art of writing ‘a lot about a little’. Select a small, powerful quote from the texts to analyse and write in great depth about what it shows about the writers’ perspective as well as the impact this will have on reader - how does it influence them?

Just another post to say that prolific reading doesn’t equal being good at English . My son is the same but his English prediction is 6 . I know that his school will want the best grade from him that’s possible ( Grammar) so I’m not concerned . He works hard and has been in charge of his own destiny for some time academically because I know that he wants to succeed and is naturally very clever . Vast majority of his other predictions are higher.

OP I think you need to stop fixating on this. She is clearly doing amazingly well in her schooling. If she doesn't enjoy English chances are it is because she is such a great reader - so enjoys getting lost in the story and the characters but she doesn't want to then have to pull it apart and discuss why the author used that specific word at that point etc.

Let her be.

I loved reading, was reading all the classics as a teen. I grew up around authors, I loved writing. My goal was to be a writer.

I loathed English. I should have done well. I loathed the analysis. I loathed the discussions about why the author chose one word over another. It ruined books for me. All pretentious nonsense. I just wanted to enjoy the worlds and cultures I was reading, not analyse them to death. I did well, but I hated it.

Don't force it. There are many great books I despise because of my English classes, even when I felt I had good teachers.

A 7 without a tutor is good. See what she does with a tutor. I would say she likes other subjects more. Being a reader just means she enjoys the books. Not that she likes to pick them apart to get a 9.

OP I loved reading and English and everyone told me it was my subject and I went on to study it at university. Interestingly, English lit was the only exam I got a in at gcse (all others were a star) and b in at a level (all others were a). I think it’s because it’s the only subject where I really wanted to learn, not just study to pass the exam.

anyway, the English degree was a bore and put me and most of my cohort off reading for pleasure. Took us about 20 years to return to the kind of joy your daughter finds in reading right now.

I think that if you have a genuine love for something the strictures of exam boards etc can be detrimental to that feeling and experience. My advice would be to let your dd nurture her lifetime love of reading but pursue other subjects academically.

What was in your daughter’s feedback, other than grades?

If you let us know what the teacher said, we can help you interpret it.