AQA AS/ A Level English Language from September 2015

Course Description

Students study two units for AS Level: Language and the Individual (worth 50% of AS); and Language

Varieties (worth 50% of AS), both assessed by exam.

For A Level, students study the following units: Language, the Individual and Society (worth 40% of A

Level and assessed by exam); Language Diversity and Change (worth 40% of A Level and assessed by

exam); Language in Action (worth 20% of A Level and assessed via coursework portfolio).

Course Content

AS English Language

Paper 1: Language and the Individual

Students will learn the key concepts and main methods of language analysis and will apply these to a

range of texts. Skills of text analysis and comparison are tested in the exam, worth 50%.

Paper 2: Language Varieties

Students will investigate and discuss examples of and issues concerning language diversity, and will

also investigate attitudes to language. Discursive essay and directed writing skills are tested in the

exam, worth 50%.

A Level English Language

Paper 1: Language, the Individual and Society

In addition to a deeper study of the course content for AS Unit 1, students will learn about children’s

language development from 0-11years. Skills of analysis, comparison and discursive essay writing

about these topics are tested in the exam.

Paper 2: Language Diversity and Change

This unit builds on the learning for AS Paper 2 and, in addition, students will learn about the process

of language change. Skills of analysis, evaluation and directed writing about these topics are tested

in the exam.

Non-Exam Assessment: Language in Action

Students produce a portfolio of two pieces of work: a language investigation (2000 words) and a

piece of original writing with commentary (1500 words).

Entry Requirements

Entrants to the course must have achieved at least 5x A*-C at GCSE subjects, including English

Language and English Literature. GCSE English Language grade B is preferred.

Assessment

At AS Level, assessment is via two external, written exams of one hour and thirty minutes each.

At A Level, assessment is via two external, written exams of two hours and thirty minutes each, and

one portfolio of coursework of up to 3.500 words.

Future Opportunities

Students can go on to study a wide variety of academic and vocational courses in HE with this

qualification, and/ or go into a wide variety of careers in which communication skills are important,

for example business, management, media, law and education.

Further Information

For further information on this course, speak with a member of the English Department at school, or

check the AS and A Level specification on the AQA website:

http://www.aqa.org.uk/subjects/english/as-and-a-level/english-language-a-2700

SMS: A textbook case

Part of an essay written by a Scottish 13-year-old secondary school pupil - and its translation

My smmr hols wr CWOT. B4, we used 2 go 2 NY 2C my bro, his GF & thr 3 :-@ kds FTF. ILNY, its gr8.

Bt my Ps wr so {:-/ BC o 9/11 tht thay dcdd 2 stay in SCO & spnd 2 wks up N.

Up N, WUCIWUG -- 0. I ws vvv brd in MON. 0 bt baas & .

Vanessa’s Texts

1. Hi have u gt footie 2nite coz Mandy want to meet me at bluewater & thought u could do cinema? Txt b quickly coz shes waitin x

2. Wat doz:-p mean? And lol dw im really confused anyway now lol okay wuu2 this wknd cumin? tb x

3. Yer I cn understand that bt i am a lot busyer than i usd 2 b

so its nt i dnt wana txt u its smetimes i cnt txt u x x x

GCE English Language AS Unit 1: Categorising Texts

Language and Technology: Texting

Textspeak: Some Characteristics

Characteristic Explanation Examples

Vowel omission Leaving out key letters from words: a, e, I ,o, u, (y)

Pls (please); ppl (people); hv (have)

Homophonic representation

Using the sounds of letters and numbers to represent syllables/ sections of words

2L8 (too late); M8 (mate); 2Day (today); CR8 (create); qt (cutie)

Phonetic spelling Spelling words the way they sound rather than according to established rules

Omigod (oh my god); iluvu (I love you); cos (because)

Initialism Using the first letter of each word of a familiar phrase/ clause to represent the whole phrase

Lmk (let me know); ptmm (please tell me more); dwb (don’t write back)

Acronymy Making a new word out of the initial letters of a familiar phrase/ clause

Lol (laugh out loud); sal (such a laugh);

Variant spelling Spelling which does not accord to the established spelling rules

Wot (what); wen (when); cuz (because)

A History of Texting: Quiz

1. When was the first ever text sent?

a) 14th May 1952

b) 7th November 1973

c) 3rd December 1992

d) 8th September 2001

2. Which company produced the first mobile phones which could send texts?

a) Siemens

b) Nokia

c) Vodafone

d) Samsung

3. When did the first predictive text systems come onto the market?

a) 1955

b) 1976

c) 1995

d) 2004

4. Name the first phone to come equipped with a QWERTY keyboard.

a) The Nokia 9001 Communicator

b) Vodafone’s Messenger 501

c) The Siemens Workmate 3

d) The Samsung Bilberry

5. In which year did texting across networks become possible?

a) 1961

b) 1983

c) 1999

d) 2008

6. In which year was Twitter, based on SMS messages, launched?

a) 1964

b) 1989

c) 1996

d) 2006

7. How many texts were sent worldwide in 2010?

a) 6.1 trillion

b) 7.3 billion

c) 4.9 million

d) 2.3 trillion

e) TXT BAD 4 UR BRAIN? Text

messaging can dent your reading

abilities, say scientists f) By Rob Waugh

Updated: 12:03, 17 February 2012

g) Frequent text messaging may stunt reading skills, according to new

research comparing text users with people who preferred to read

newspapers and books.

h) Researchers found that heavy texters were less able to understand

new words - and less willing to accept them.

i) People who read 'traditional' printed language such as books,

magazines and newspapers are much more comfortable with

accepting and understanding new words.

j) k) The study found that readers of 'traditional' media such as newspapers and books

were much more able and willing to accept new words - texters, using a small

group of words, were less able to accept new ones

l) 'Our assumption about text messaging is that it encourages

unconstrained language. But the study found this to be a myth,' says

Joan Lee of Calgary University.

m) Lee suggests that reading print media exposes people to variety and

creativity in language that is not found in the slangy communication

of text messaging, which tends to be confined to small groups of

peers.

n) Previous studies had suggested that texting allowed people to be

more creative with language.

o) The UK's poet laureate, Carole Ann Duffy, claimed that texting was

similar to poetry, saying, 'The poem is a form of texting.'

p) But while text-messaging seems 'creative' in the way it shortens

words, it's actually subject to rigid rules.

q) The number of actual words used by texters is also more limited.

r) People who text heavily could be less able and willing to learn new

words - one of the most crucial skills for reading.

s) 'The people who accepted more words did so because they were

better able to interpret the meaning of the word, or tolerate the

word, even if they didn't recognize the word,' says Lee. 'Students

who reported texting more rejected more words instead of

acknowledging them as possible words.'

t) u) +1

v) Text messaging: While text-speak may seem 'creative' in the way it shortens

words, users are actually restricted to a small, rigidly defined vocabulary

w)

x) 'Texting is associated with rigid linguistic constraints which caused

students to reject many of the words in the study,' says Lee.

y) 'This was surprising because there are many unusual spellings or

textisms such as LOL.'

z) 'Textisms represent real words which are commonly known among

people who text,' she says. 'Many of the words presented in the

study are not commonly known and were not acceptable to the

participants in the study who texted more or read less traditional

print media.'

13 June 2014 Last updated at 01:15

Texting 'can boost children's spelling and grammar'

By Judith Burns Education reporter, BBC News

Digital devices are a "pervasive aspect of children's daily lives". They offer opportunities as well as

risks say the researchers

Children's unorthodox spelling and grammar while texting does not stop them learning the

rules of formal English, suggests research.

Just over 160 children, aged between eight and 16, from the West Midlands, took part in the

snapshot study.

The researchers compared spelling and grammar in formal tests and in text messages, at

the start of the project and again after a year.

The results showed the most creative texters were among the best spellers.

The children were asked to copy out all their text messages over a two-day period.

'Creative violations'

They were also asked to do a range of spelling, grammar and cognitive tests.

The process was repeated after 12 months.

Word reduction while

texting was associated with better spelling-test scores, according to the study

The researchers analysed the numbers and types of grammar and spelling "violations" in the

texts and compared them with the same children's results in the written tests.

They found that for the primary age children in the sample, use of ungrammatical word forms

and unconventional spelling in texts was linked to better spelling ability 12 months later.

For secondary students, the use of word reduction when texting, was also associated with

better spelling.

For primary children, unorthodox punctuation and capital letters were linked with worse

performance in the second set of tests but the reverse was true of secondary age pupils.

Primary phonics

Clare Wood, professor of psychology in education at Coventry University, said the results

could be put down to the fact that text abbreviation was largely phonetically based.

"So when children are playing with these creative representations of language they have to

use and rehearse their understanding of letter-sound correspondences: a skill which is

taught formally as phonics in primary classrooms. Texting can offer children the chance to

practise their understanding of how sounds and print relate to each other. So texting can

offer children the chance to practise their understanding of how sounds and print relate to

each other."

Prof Wood said the work showed that concerns adults have about the pervasive use of

digital devices among children, who are now more likely to read on them than on traditional

print sources, "are not supported by current evidence".

The researchers urge schools to continue to teach children the conventional rules of formal

written grammar, making them aware of contexts where they are essential and when they

can be relaxed.

The work, published in the British Journal of Developmental Psychology, was carried out by

researchers at Coventry University and the University of Tasmania.

Texting 'is no bar to literacy'

Lucy Ward, social affairs correspondent

The Guardian, Thursday 23 December 2004

It's gr8 news 4 skools. Claims that the explosion in text messaging among children is eroding

youngsters' literacy skills appear to be unfounded, according to research.

A study comparing the punctuation and spelling of 11- and 12-year-olds who use mobile

phone text messaging with another group of non-texters conducting the same written tests

found no significant differences between the two.

Both groups made some grammatical and spelling errors, and "text-speak" abbreviations and

symbols did not find their way into the written English of youngsters used to texting.

According to the author of the research, the speech and language therapist Veenal Raval, the

findings reflect children's ability to "code switch", or move between modes of

communication - a trend familiar to parents whose offspring slip effortlessly between

playground slang and visit-the-grandparents politeness.

But the study did find that the pupils familiar with text messaging wrote significantly less

when asked to describe a picture or an event than those who did not use mobiles, potentially

fuelling concerns that the quality and expressiveness of children's writing could be at risk

even if their spelling is not.

The study, conducted at the the department of communication and science at City University

in London, comes amid growing concern in some quarters over the potentially damaging

effects of new technologies on children's ability to communicate effectively using

conventional means.

According to the mobile telecoms consultancy Mobile Youth, 700,000 (20%) of primary

school children own mobile phones and the under-10s are the fastest-growing section of

Britain's mobile phone market.

The leap in the popularity of mobiles and text messaging among children and teenagers over

the past five years has prompted concern that pupils' literacy skills could suffer.

Texting puts a premium on speed and concision, leading to the creation of a host of

abbreviations and acronyms incomprehensible to the untrained reader, together with symbols

or "emoticons", such as smiley faces, to express emotions.

Chief examiners' reports on trends in public examinations have begun to note instances of

texting language in exam scripts. Some cases - includ ing a 13-year-old Scottish pupil who

wrote an entire description of her summer holidays in text-speak - have provoked concern

among some teachers.

But despite widespread speculation there is little research into the potential influence of

texting on children's writing.

According to Mr Raval's small-scale study, which focused on 20 youngsters, children have

developed an ability to switch between two forms of language when texting or writing

standard English.

Pupils were given a spelling test and conducted two writing exercises designed to replicate

situations where they might normally text, such as describing something they had done the

previous day, held in formal classroom conditions.

Mr Raval said: "The fear that has been put across in the media is that children don't

understand the need to code switch - that is, switch between standard English grammar for an

exam or essay and what is acceptable when you are communicating on a social level. In fact,

they are capable of that switch, just as bi- or tri-lingual children might speak English at

school and a mother or father tongue at home."

While the text-experienced children wrote much less than those without mobiles, concision

was not necessarily a bad thing, he argued. "Whether that is a positive or negative effect is up

for debate. It depends on the situation or the subject studied. A science exam might require

brief answers which might not be appropriate in a literature exam."

A spokesman for the Qualifications and Curriculum Authority, which oversees public

examinations, said the authority was interested in the research, and believed more

investigation was necessary into the effect of texting on written communication.

It was important that children could communicate in a range of ways "depending on the

communication channel they were using", he said.

A National Union of Teachers spokeswoman welcomed the research, saying abbreviation

used in texting could even boost literacy skills by helping children to learn about how words

divide into syllables.

SMS: A textbook case

Part of an essay written by a Scottish 13-year-old secondary school pupil - and its translation

My smmr hols wr CWOT. B4, we used 2 go 2 NY 2C my bro, his GF & thr 3 :-@ kds FTF.

ILNY, its gr8.

Bt my Ps wr so {:-/ BC o 9/11 tht thay dcdd 2 stay in SCO & spnd 2 wks up N.

Up N, WUCIWUG -- 0. I ws vvv brd in MON. 0 bt baas & .

My summer holidays were a complete waste of time. Before, we used to go to New York to

see my brother, his girlfriend and their three screaming kids face to face. I love New York,

it's a great place.

But my parents were so worried because of the terrorism attack on September 11 that they

decided we would stay in Scotland and spend two weeks up north.

Up north, what you see is what you get - nothing.

I was extremely bored in the middle of nowhere. Nothing but sheep and mountains.

English Language AS

Holiday Task

TASK Create a scrap book of different examples of language use:

• Include 15 different texts • For each one, annotate to show one thing you find interesting

about the way the text uses language

TIPS

Anything with writing on will do! Try among others: • Leaflets • Vouchers • Adverts • Notes and letters • Web pages • Poems • Extracts from novels or plays • Information sheets eg from your old school planner

Bring your scrap book to your first English Language lesson next term