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Northern IrelandEnglish Language

Unit 1: Reading non-fiction and media texts

6 dot points across 6 inquiry questions. Click any dot point for a focused answer with worked past exam questions where available.

How do you compare two non-fiction or media texts, weighing their ideas, viewpoints and methods together?

Comparing and cross-referencing two non-fiction or media texts on Unit 1 (AO2), weighing their ideas, viewpoints and methods and writing an integrated comparison rather than two separate accounts.
How to compare two unseen non-fiction or media texts on CCEA GCSE English Language Unit 1: collating and cross-referencing material, weighing ideas, viewpoints and methods, and writing an integrated comparison rather than two separate summaries.
9 min answer →

How do you find both the stated information and the implied meaning in an unseen non-fiction or media text?

Retrieving explicit information and inferring implicit meaning from unseen non-fiction and media texts on Unit 1 (AO2), matching the number of points to the marks and supporting inference with evidence.
How to answer the retrieval and inference questions on CCEA GCSE English Language Unit 1: locating explicit information from a named part of a non-fiction text and inferring implicit meaning, supporting each point with brief evidence and matching points to marks.
9 min answer →

How do you tell fact from opinion in a non-fiction text, and explain how a writer uses both to create bias?

Distinguishing fact from opinion in non-fiction and media texts on Unit 1 (AO2), and evaluating how a writer blends fact, opinion and bias to influence the reader.
How to distinguish fact from opinion in an unseen non-fiction or media text on CCEA GCSE English Language Unit 1, and how to evaluate the way a writer uses both, and creates bias, to influence the reader.
9 min answer →

How do you analyse the language a non-fiction writer uses to influence the reader, moving from method to effect?

Analysing how non-fiction and media writers use language devices on Unit 1 (AO2), naming methods with subject terminology and explaining their effect on the reader rather than spotting features.
How to answer the language-analysis question on CCEA GCSE English Language Unit 1: selecting precise evidence, naming the device with subject terminology, and explaining how a non-fiction or media writer's language influences the reader.
9 min answer →

How do you analyse presentational and structural features of a media text and explain their effect on the reader?

Identifying and analysing presentational features of non-fiction and media texts on Unit 1 (AO2), such as headlines, images, layout, colour, fonts and captions, and explaining how they engage and influence the reader.
How to analyse the presentational features of a media text on CCEA GCSE English Language Unit 1: headlines, images, layout, colour, fonts, captions and subheadings, and how to explain their effect on the reader rather than just listing them.
9 min answer →

How do you identify the purpose and audience of an unseen non-fiction or media text, and prove it from the page?

Identifying the purpose and intended audience of unseen non-fiction and media texts on Unit 1 (AO2), and explaining how language and presentation reveal who the text is for and what it sets out to do.
How to identify the purpose and intended audience of an unseen non-fiction or media text on CCEA GCSE English Language Unit 1, and how to prove your reading from the text's language, content and presentation rather than guessing.
9 min answer →