OCR GCSE English Language Component 01: Communicating information and ideas overview quiz quiz

Two literary fiction extracts, one from the 20th century and one from the 21st century

One unseen poem paired with an extract from a Shakespeare play set for study

Two unseen non-fiction texts, one 19th century and one 20th or 21st century

A single unseen non-fiction text studied closely on its own with no second text

1 hour 45 minutes, 40%

1 hour 30 minutes, 50%

2 hours 30 minutes, 60%

2 hours, 50%

Identify explicit and implicit information from a named part of a text

Evaluate how convincing the writer is in the way they present their ideas

Compare the perspectives of the two different writers across both texts

Write a transactional piece in a named form for a stated audience

A close analysis of one writer's language and its effects

Information combined from both texts into linked points

A personal judgement on how convincing the text is

A creative response in a chosen narrative form

AO1

AO3

AO2

AO4

AO1 retrieval (the larger share) and AO2 language analysis

AO5 communication (the larger share) and AO6 technical accuracy

AO3 comparison (the larger share) and AO2 language analysis

AO4 evaluation (the larger share) and AO3 comparison

Real-world non-fiction in a named form such as a letter, article or speech

Imaginative narrative or descriptive fiction written for a creative purpose

A close comparison of the perspectives of the two unseen source texts

A spoken presentation delivered aloud to a live audience in the room

An even split of 20 marks for AO5 and 20 marks for AO6 accuracy

24 for AO5 (content and organisation) and 16 for AO6 (technical accuracy)

16 marks for AO5 (content and organisation) and 24 marks for AO6 accuracy

All 40 of the marks awarded for AO5, with none at all for AO6

To fill up more space on the page so the answer simply looks longer to the examiner

Because one of the two texts is always much harder to understand than the other one

Because synthesis is about combining sources, so a one-text point cannot reach full marks

To make it much easier to analyse the writer's language in detail across both of the texts

A straightforward summary of what the text is mostly about, retold in your own words

A long list of all the techniques the writer has used, named one after another in turn

A detailed comparison of how writing taken from two different centuries differs in its style and language

A reasoned judgement of how convincing the writer is, tied to the statement and supported by evidence

A comparative connective (whereas, in contrast, similarly) linking both texts within one point

Including one long quotation taken from each of the two source texts in turn

Naming as many language techniques as you possibly can, drawn from both of the source texts in turn

Writing in a calm, neutral and balanced tone throughout the whole answer

Spend the whole two hours on the Section A reading questions

About an hour on Section A reading and an hour on Section B writing

Spend the whole two hours on the Section B writing task instead

Give exactly ten minutes to every single question across the whole paper

Write as much as you possibly can so there is more for the examiner to mark

Use only short, simple sentences throughout so that no mistakes can creep in

Leave time to proofread for spelling, punctuation and sentence accuracy

Avoid all ambitious vocabulary and stick only to the simplest words you know