AS Level Literature in English

YEAR 12 and 13

ENGLISH LITERATURE  

At the Cambridge AS level, students can choose to study either Cambridge AS Literature or Cambridge AS English General Paper. The NCEA pathway has been withdrawn. All Year 12 English courses grant University Entrance literacy.

The Cambridge AS Literature course develops students’ critical analysis and interpretation of literature. Students read and engage with a broad range of texts, including poetry, prose, and drama. 

They analyse the themes, stylistic choices, and literary devices authors employ to convey their ideas, and produce well-reasoned, well-structured essays that demonstrate both their understanding and their capacity for literary analysis.

The Cambridge AS English General Paper course, by contrast, develops students’ skills in critical thinking, reading, and writing across a variety of disciplines. The course covers topics ranging from social and political issues to ethical and philosophical debates. Students are expected to engage with these topics critically and thoughtfully, to read widely, to form their own positions, and to express those positions clearly and coherently in writing.

While both courses develop language and critical thinking skills, AS Literature is more closely focused on literary analysis and interpretation, while AS English General Paper is more closely focused on engaging critically with a range of topics and issues.

AS LEVEL

LITERATURE IN ENGLISH  

Prerequisites: IGCSE Literature.

AS Literature is an opportunity for students to build the academic writing skills needed to succeed at university level.

Deep textual analysis, broad recall, and purposeful use of evidence define this course. Students hoping to progress in Engineering, Biomedical Sciences, Law, Business, or any other academic profession are expected to enrol.

Students are assessed on their ability to respond to texts in the three main forms (Prose, Poetry, and Drama) from different cultures.

Students must demonstrate their ability to: 

• Understand the ways in which writers’ choices of form, structure, and language shape meaning 

• Produce informed, independent opinions and judgements on literary texts 

• Communicate their knowledge, understanding, and insight clearly and at an appropriate level

We cover:

• Poetry and Prose

• Drama

• Unseen texts