Anyone's DC doing IGCSE English?

[JillCrewesmum]

Dd is - she has done the Winslow Boy, 10 Selected short stories and 10 poems.

Is that it? She assures me that's all she'll need to learn for her gcse English and it doesn't seem enough! I thought there was coursework (because mumsnet says it's easier because of this ) but apparently that's optional.

I have tried to Google the specification but not getting very far! I'm happy to believe her, it just doesn't seem much to learn!

What board is it? We are doing CIE (Cambridge) IGCSE, no coursework. DD has a novel, A Perfect Peace, a booklet of about 12 poems, and will be doing Macbeth this term.

It's interesting isn't it, how IGCSE's were deemed easier as they had coursework, when GCSE's also had the same (!). Never understood why one was seen as easy and the other not...... double standards. Most private schools didn't do the coursework option anyway, and now the GCSE has gone the same way, got rid of coursework, and toughened up, we should be back to a more level playing field so less differentiation between the exams. Although our IGCSE's have also been reformed, so who knows?

On Mumsnet the exams your DC are doing are always the most difficult. Anyone doing another exam/board etc has an unfair advantage and even if they get a top grade are less intelligent that those getting middling grades on another board/exam.

People doing IB and pre U are much cleverer than those doing A levels because they require a superior kind of intellect and are only done by students superior kinds of schools. Unless of course your DC are doing A levels in which case they are much harder.

Pre U was harder even when those superior kinds of schools gave the questions and answers to their students in advance of the actual exams

Shakespeare? A novel?

My son is doing cie igcse and Esther worryingly has only done the poetry so far, so both the Shakespeare and novel to do in year 11

Most schools in my circle igcses mostly and none ever took the coursework option

I think dd has done all three already so I suppose year 11 will be revision!

OlderThanAverageforMN you are so right. My older dd got into a RG uni with a Btec, that literally does not compute on most of the higher Ed threads

No novel, no Shakespeare in the exam. They studied the tempest at some point and have had to write something about a choice of novel over the summer (dd has read Nevr Let Me Go)

Which board igcse as I don't know of any that don't have a Shakespeare element?

If it’s CIE, Shakespeare isn’t compulsory.

Ooh didn't realise that. I thought everyone had to do Shakespeare of some type.

No you have to do a play and in their infinite wisdom dds school chose the Winslow Boy

I think the other options are a second drama or an 'unseen' paper which is a critical response.

Michaelah I wouldn’t worry about them only having done the poetry so far. DS had only done the novel in Y10, so did the play and poetry in Y11. There was plenty of time and the school get excellent results.

Yes, there's a drama paper or a shorter drama paper plus an unseen OR a shorter drama paper and coursework.

Yes that’s right Clavinova.

Mine is doing iGCSE lang and Lit.
There is an option of coursework for one, but i'm not sure which

www.cambridgeinternational.org/Images/203894-2017-2019-syllabus.pdf

Could this be the one/ Mine takes hers the year after so have no idea which spec she'll start this year.

Could this one be the Lit?
www.cambridgeinternational.org/Images/203894-2017-2019-syllabus.pdf

There are different specs for those outside the UK and depending on the year they will sit the exams.

Brilliant thanks. It seems deceptively easy - although I've been thinking about it and I did a play, some poetry and a short novel for o level so not much different