Eduqas A-Level English Language and Literature (A710): complete guide to the components and the exams

WJEC Eduqas A-Level English Language and Literature (specification A710) is a two-year linear course for England, assessed by three written papers at the end of Year 13 plus a non-exam assessment. It promotes the integrated study of English language and English literature: every text, whether a poem, a play, a prose narrative or a non-literary or spoken text, is read with the tools of both subjects at once. This page is the index: below is a map of the four components, the five objectives, the integrated method, the exam structure, and how to study each part.

The four components of English Language and Literature

The specification is built around four components, all assessed on the five assessment objectives through the integrated method.

Component 1: Poetry and Prose

A written paper worth 30 percent, 2 hours. One part sets a comparative question linking a poem from the WJEC pre-1914 Poetry Anthology with an unseen post-1914 text, analysed together for language, form, structure, context and connection. A second part is an essay on a studied prose fiction text, read with the integrated method. The anthology and the prose text are prepared in advance; the unseen comparison is written under timed conditions.

Component 2: Drama

A written paper worth 30 percent, 2 hours. One question is on a studied Shakespeare play and one is on a studied post-1900 drama text, both read as drama with linguistic precision: dramatic method (soliloquy, staging, register, structure) analysed alongside the language levels and illuminated by context and interpretation.

Component 3: Non-Literary Texts

A written paper worth 20 percent, 2 hours. The paper sets comparative analysis of unseen non-literary and spoken texts (analysing how meaning is shaped across modes, audiences and purposes) and applies the integrated method to a studied non-literary text. Comparison (AO4) and the analysis of spoken and multimodal language are central.

Component 4: Critical and Creative Genre Study (NEA)

The non-exam assessment, worth 20 percent. It combines a critical study (a critical essay of around 1500 words on a genre or set of texts, using the integrated method) with two pieces of creative writing in that genre (each around 850 to 1000 words), informed by research and supported by reflection on the writer's own choices. Marked by the school and moderated by Eduqas.

The five assessment objectives

Every component is assessed against the same five objectives, so mastering them as transferable, integrated skills matters more than memorising notes on a single text.

• AO1 - apply concepts and methods from integrated linguistic and literary study, using associated terminology and coherent, accurate written expression.
• AO2 - analyse the ways in which meanings are shaped in texts through language, form and structure.
• AO3 - demonstrate understanding of the significance and influence of the contexts in which texts are produced and received.
• AO4 - explore connections across texts, informed by linguistic and literary concepts and methods.
• AO5 - explore texts informed by different interpretations (and, in the NEA creative writing, produce your own texts with expertise).

AO1 and AO2 run through every analytical task and carry the most weight overall. AO3 is significant across all components. AO4 is rewarded wherever texts are compared (the Component 1 anthology and unseen pairing, the Component 3 unseen comparison, and the NEA critical study). AO5 is the exploration of texts through different interpretations across the analytical work, and the creative production of your own texts in the NEA.

The integrated linguistic-literary method

What distinguishes this qualification is that you do not switch between a "language hat" and a "literature hat": you wear both at once. A single analytical point can begin from a precise language observation and arrive at a literary and contextual effect.

• Language levels - lexis and semantics, grammar (morphology and syntax), phonetics, phonology and prosody, pragmatics, discourse, graphology.
• Literary methods - form, structure, voice and persona, imagery and figurative language, genre and convention, narrative technique, dramatic and poetic method.
• Context (AO3) - audience, purpose, mode, period, the conditions of production and reception.

The decisive habit across every component is to integrate these: name a feature with the precise term (AO1), read how it shapes meaning through language, form and structure (AO2), illuminate it through context (AO3) and, where the task invites it, through interpretation (AO5). An answer that keeps language analysis and literary analysis in separate paragraphs has not integrated; the marks reward fusion.

Exam structure

The qualification is assessed by three written papers and one non-exam assessment.

• Component 1, Poetry and Prose - 30 percent, 2 hours. A comparative question on a pre-1914 anthology poem and an unseen post-1914 text (AO1, AO2, AO3, AO4; AO4 prominent because the task is comparative), plus an essay on a studied prose fiction text (AO1, AO2, AO3, AO5).
• Component 2, Drama - 30 percent, 2 hours. A question on a studied Shakespeare play and a question on a studied post-1900 drama text, analysing dramatic method (AO1, AO2, AO3, AO5).
• Component 3, Non-Literary Texts - 20 percent, 2 hours. Comparative analysis of unseen non-literary and spoken texts (AO1, AO2, AO3, AO4) and analysis of a studied non-literary text.
• Component 4, Critical and Creative Genre Study (NEA) - 20 percent, non-exam assessment. A critical study (around 1500 words, AO1 to AO4) and two creative pieces in the genre (around 850 to 1000 words each, AO5 and AO2) with reflection. Marked by the school and moderated by Eduqas.

How to study English Language and Literature

This subject rewards one integrated analytical method, applied across very different text types.

1. Master the integrated move. Build fluency in naming a language-level or literary-method feature precisely and reading its meaning and context in one move (AO1, AO2, AO3). This is the engine of every analytical task.
2. Know your set texts from memory. The prose fiction text, the Shakespeare play and the post-1900 drama text are examined under timed conditions, so command quotations, structure and method, tagged by theme.
3. Command the anthology and its contexts. For Component 1, study each pre-1914 anthology poem's form, language and period, ready to compare it with an unseen post-1914 text.
4. Drill idea-led comparison. Structure the Component 1 pairing, the Component 3 unseen comparison and the NEA critical study around shared ideas with both texts live, weaving them together (AO4).
5. Analyse spoken and multimodal language. For Component 3, learn the features of speech (turn-taking, deixis, prosody, discourse markers) and read non-literary texts by mode, audience and purpose.
6. Read through interpretations (AO5) and write your own texts. Test your reading against different interpretations, and for the NEA craft your own genre writing and explain the choices.
7. Practise under timed, integrated conditions. The papers reward fluency: drill integrated essays and unseen analysis against the clock, and plan the NEA early.

The components, dot point by dot point

Each component has specification-level answer pages with practice questions and cross-links, plus deep-dive overview guides. Browse the full set at /a-level-eduqas/english-language-and-literature/syllabus.

For the official specification

WJEC Eduqas publishes the full specification (A710), the pre-1914 Poetry Anthology, the set-text list, sample assessment materials, past papers, mark schemes and the NEA guidance at eduqas.co.uk. Always revise from the current specification and Eduqas's own past papers, because question styles, set texts and the NEA requirements are board-specific.