ESOL/GCSE: Curriculum & Syllabi
As my placement continues with BMET ESC (Erdington Skills Centre), I have been permitted the duty of teaching GCSE English to learners on Wednesday afternoons. Since it has been over a decade since I have taken GCSE English, I wasn’t surprised to find that the criteria had changed from what was traditionally an A* to C onward system to a numerical 9 to 1 system. Along with more “challenging” GCSE content, all to be introduced by the year 2019.
OFQUAL GCSE Grade Changes: YouTube
Although the content of the GCSE may have changed, the purpose of text has (and I believe will) continue(d) to remain the same. English has form and purpose and the way this is used all depends on the intentions of the writer and their intent when attempting to engage with their audience. For example, a newspaper would wish to inform the public of current affairs and international events, whereas a fictional novella might try and entice the reader to imagine themselves as far away from reality as possible. Such skills and/or traits would be considered “receptive skills” (Scrivener, p250 – Learning Teaching).
Teaching learners about how to read and utilise language is something I look forward to doing, as my undergraduate degree specialised in English language as a creative medium, rather than it just being a language structure, which I researched apart of my English language master’s degree. Having an insight into both sides of language usage makes it easier to detect the common flaws in language usage (SPaG – Spelling, Punctuation and Grammar). But it also enables me as a teacher to encourage learners to explore and use language in more ways than just question and answer.
Further study: I will need to read up on the new AQA specification of GCSE English exams and identify which areas learners will need to improve in order to be ready for May 2018s papers. Some learners will have been switched to the new paper having learnt methods from the past marking scheme, which will also require me to identify the areas that need revaluation and tweaking to achieve success.
Teaching learners about how to read and utilise language is something I look forward to doing, as my undergraduate degree specialised in English language as a creative medium, rather than it just being a language structure, which I researched apart of my English language master’s degree. Having an insight into both sides of language usage makes it easier to detect the common flaws in language usage (SPaG – Spelling, Punctuation and Grammar). But it also enables me as a teacher to encourage learners to explore and use language in more ways than just question and answer.
Further study: I will need to read up on the new AQA specification of GCSE English exams and identify which areas learners will need to improve in order to be ready for May 2018s papers. Some learners will have been switched to the new paper having learnt methods from the past marking scheme, which will also require me to identify the areas that need revaluation and tweaking to achieve success.
AQA Source: http://www.aqa.org.uk/subjects/english/gcse/
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