English Literature A Level

Sorry about another thread resulting from GCSE results, concerning A Level choices!
Basically, I was planning to take the subjects for AS Level in my sig, which include English Lit. However, after getting my GCSE results, it appears to be one of my worst subjects. I got a high A* in the cw so must have done quite bad in the exam, but I thought it had gone well. I've considered taking Geography/Further Maths instead but I think I'll stick with English.
My question is; is it a lot different at AS/A2 level than it is at GCSE? People often say English Language A level is a lot different to the English GCSE. Also, is there anything I can do to improve and give myself the best chance of getting an A/A*? People often say you drop a grade from GCSE; meaning I would get a B. I'm reading Pride&Prejudice at the moment but I don't know what half the words mean, I've got no idea how I'm going to sit an exam on it :eek:

! Should I even take Lit? Or take a subject which I'm more confident of getting an A/A* in like Geog or F.maths? ARGH!

Thanks for reading

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Reply 1

imomo16

Oh god, you got a bloody A, your so going to fail English A level.

C'mon, get a grip. An A is good. If you work next year then you're more than capable of achieving as highly at A level.
You have no idea how to sit an A level exam yet because you HAVE NOT BEEN TAUGHT HOW, for god's sake. If you enjoy it, take it. That's all there is too it.
Grrrr, you have no idea how much these threads annoy me, people stressing over an A when some people didn't even get good enough to even GO to sixth form. :mad:

Reply 2

gemmalouise

moody28028

! Should I even take Lit? Or take a subject which I'm more confident of getting an A/A* in like Geog or F.maths? ARGH!

Thanks for reading

OK, first of all, STOP PANICKING!!

An A at GCSE is nothing to be ashamed of!!

Do what you enjoy, and you're bound to do better anyway

As for dropping a grade for A-level, I've never heard that, and if you work hard, there's no reason why you shouldn't get an A/A* at A-level.

The jump from GCSE to A-Level Eng Lit is noticeable, but not more than you'd expect from any course.

You will (hopefully) be taught the texts, so you don't have to worry about knowing what all the words in P&P mean...how do you think we get through Shakespeare?! :p:

If you think you're going to enjoy Geog or F.Maths more than English, then by all means change, but if not, stick with English. I may be biased, but English is a great subject/course, so I'd recommend doing it!!

Reply 3

Gemma_08

imomo16

These threads peeve me slighlty.

Reply 4

Drummer23

imomo16

ditto.

You're obviously good at it, and you're obviously intelligent, now get some bloody common sense to go with those grades.

Reply 5

MSB

Kids nowadays...

Calm down. As long as you work hard I'm sure, with GCSE grades like yours, you could do well at A-level.

Reply 6

inksplodge

I got an A at GCSE, and an A at AS level (a high A, too). It is FINE. To be honest, I think it's more fun as AS level. I didn't like it at GCSE but love it now. :smile:

Also what the hell at thinking an A is bad. Bloody ridiculous.

Reply 7

gemmalouise

inksplodge

I think it's more fun as AS level.

Agreed

You get way more freedom with the AS course, and some of the texts are actually quite good (depending on the texts you do, of course).

I spent quite a lot of my time laughing in my English lessons...still ended up with an A though, so it proves that you can have fun and still do well!!

Reply 8

inksplodge

gemmalouise

Agreed

Totally agreed. Our english lessons were such a ball :biggrin:

Definitely my favourite lesson!

Also: you will only 'drop a grade' if you continue to work at the level you're working at. Generally, your knowledge of literature and the like will expand. So, as long as you work hard, follow assessment objectives (I think I've said that like three times already today) etc you'll do well.

Reply 9

KatieUni08

As many people have said, stop panicing, an A at GCSE is in NO WAY BAD. I got a B myself, yet at A level, I got an A.

A level is entirely different from GCSE, it's all about personal opinion and expressing it rather than regurgitating what your teacher told you in class. Take a leap of faith, put in the work, you'll be fine.

Reply 10

gemmalouise

inksplodge

So, as long as you work hard, follow assessment objectives (I think I've said that like three times already today) etc you'll do well.

Ah, assessment objectives, how we love them!

But yeah, as long as you follow them you're pretty much there for knowing how to take the exam.

Reply 11

Laura26

I was in exactly the same position as you...one of my As was in English Lit and I had A* coursework, A* mock etc. Decided to take English Lit A level anyway and it's turned out to be my best A level subject, definitely don't regret it! Finished on 581/600 and got full marks in 3 of 6 modules :smile:

So my advice is go for it!

Reply 12

em0612s

If you got an A at GCSE then AS Literature shouldnt be a huge jump for you, it wasn't for me anyway. As long as you put the work in then you'll be fine. Plus, you'll get taught how to answer questions like an A level student should anyway.

Oh and by the way, the jump from GCSE English to AS English Language is HUGE, it's nothing like GCSE. AS is based more on the study of language, such as phonology, semantics, grammar, lexis, graphology etc. There's also language and social contexts such as language and power, technology, gender and/or occupation etc. GCSE is basically nothing like AS language, well my course wasn't anyway.

Reply 13

moody28028

Thanks for the replies. And I wasn't saying an A was bad at all, just that should I take subject I got an A* in instead, as I would probably be better at it? I guess I'll work my butt off and hopefully get an A :smile:

Reply 14

OhNO!

I got an A at GCSE for English Lit (no-one in my class got an A*, in fact), and I'm about to start a degree in the subject, so, obviously it's no great hindrance.

English Lit A-Level is not different in content, but very different in terms of intensity. Basically, it's harder - but that's true of all A-Levels. By no means would you struggle, if you put in the effort, to do very well at A-Level as an A-grade candidate at GSCE.

Reply 15

hobbit_

I think the OP has a valid point. I suspect she doesn't just want to pass A-Level English, but to get the best mark she can. English A-Level is hard. No harder than History, mind. But it is, because to succeed at it one has to learn quotations, both from primary texts, and from criticism. I got an A* at English Lit GCSE, but got a C at AS. Just because you have an A at GCSE does not mean you'll get an A at AS.

Having said that, I took re-sits and got an A at A2. This was because I really worked at it. You have to read around the genres quite a bit, and making connections takes time. Having an A at GCSE cannot be a bad thing, but I think it is no indication of success at A-Level. So I think you are right to be wondering about it. So many people do A-Levels because they did well at GCSE. This is a bad mistake. You cannot feign interest in a subject at A-Level, and less still at University. You can jump through the hoops yes, but to secure that disctinctive alpha, as opposed to a regular beta, or a mediocre alpha, then you do have to set your mind to it, and you cannot do this without being interested in the subject.

One word of advice though, I managed it just (without getting frustrated), but in English the tendency these days is for the subject to be taught as if the author had no intentions about what their own text should mean (postmodernism). Teachers often imply that any answer is right because no one knows really what the author meant.

If they imply, or say this, ask them, "So if we cannot know what the author is trying to say, then how can I be sure about what you're saying right now?"

Reply 16

OhNO!

it's not an indication that one will do badly, either. the OP seems to be worried that because she has an A at GCSE, it's not worth doing it at A-Level. this just isn't the case.

your piece of advice is truly ridiculous, analysis of literature can rarely be classified as just "right or wrong", it's completely subjective, "postmodernist" or not. the skill and insight of your analysis is what's being judged.

Reply 17

oldrafiki

GCSE English Lit and AS English Lit are so different it's not really even relevant. Even if it was, your results are brilliant so there's really no need for concern. Don't worry about not feeling prepared, it's how pretty much every other person in the country going onto that course will be feeling too.

Judging by your results you're a bit of a clever bean so I would judge you as well capable of achieving an A at AS. If you enjoy it more than any other option you'd take in its place, do it. If you drop a subject out of fear, you'll regret it.

Reply 18

thanette

Yeah go for it-you got decent grades,and it's not true about 'going down a level'-your results depend on your motivation. I got a B for eng lang at GCSE but got an A at A level for it; and A in GCSE lit, and a B for it at A level. I enjoyed the subjects more in the cases that I got A grades in them and worked harder.

here is the lit syllabus (have a look at page 6/7,thats what you will be doing in lit for a level)

http://www.aqa.org.uk/qual/gce/pdf/AQA-2740-W-SP-10.PDF

Reply 19

hobbit_

OhNO!

No of course not, but the reason you set out your analysis in an essay, weighing up points of view, is to find what the author was trying to mean. But what I was really getting at, is that, on my A2 course anyway, some of the suggestions my teacher came up with about what a particular sentence might mean, was truly absurd, and she was clutching at straws for a large proportion of the course.

And I agree, it is the analysis that counts, but it is equally important to try and suss what the author actually is trying to say, rather than saying, well it could be this, but it could also be this. By all means make reference to what people have (wrongly) said in the past, but this has to be done in order to present your thesis, which says this is what I think the author does mean, and this is why everyone else is wrong.