A Level English Literature (AQA Specification A) is a fascinating and thorough exploration of how ideas in society have shaped literature over time, foregrounding the importance of socio-historical context when reading and studying literary texts. We study love literature through the ages: a mixture of poetry, prose and drama from 1500 to the early 20th century, including The Great Gatsby and Othello. This part of the course also helps students to develop their understanding and appreciation of poetry, looking at an anthology of love poetry and unseen poetry. Students also study the ‘Modern Times’ unit, which examines the impact of changing ideas in the second half of the 20th century on literature, centring on the study of Oranges are Not the Only Fruit, Carol Ann Duffy’s Feminine Gospels, and A Streetcar Named Desire. Students also have the opportunity to complete an independent piece of coursework, comparing the impact of changing ideas over time on Frankenstein and a text of their choice.

A Level English Language (AQA) allows students to get to grips with how individuals use language in different contexts. We cover various topics such as how children learn to use language within the topic of language acquisition, how language develops and changes in the topic of language change and how we adapt of language to different contexts in the topic of language and diversity (focusing on accent, dialect, gender, age etc). This course is suited to those who have an interest in how people express their identity through language according to the various groups they belong to.

A Level Film Studies (Eduqas) is a mix of the practical (film-making) and the analytical. We study films from the earliest documentaries and the silent era, through the Studio System in Hollywood, right up to the latest releases. This course is suited to those who love watching films, who have a strong grasp of essay writing, and those of a creative bent, who enjoy making their own short films.

A Level English Language and Literature (AQA) is a new course for 2023 and allows students to explore elements of both subjects, with a focus on stylistic analysis of fiction and non-fiction texts. We study a range of multi-modal texts, exploring how stories are told and used, and how language is used to create narratives in a range of genres, including poetry, prose, drama, and non-fiction texts. This course differs from the single subject A Levels as it aims to explore connections between the two fields of study. There is also a significant creative writing component, which allows students to apply their knowledge through re-creating the ‘lost voices’ of literary texts. Students develop skills as producers and interpreters of language by creating texts themselves and critically reflecting on their own processes of production.