OCR GCSE English Language Component 02: Exploring effects and impact overview quiz quiz

Two unseen non-fiction texts, one from the 19th century and one modern

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

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

Two unseen literary prose texts from the 20th or 21st century

2 hours, 50%

1 hour 45 minutes, 40%

1 hour 30 minutes, 50%

2 hours 30 minutes, 60%

Evaluate how successful the writer is at creating an effect in the extract

Identify explicit and implicit information from a named part of an extract

Compare the perspectives of the two writers across both of the extracts

Write an imaginative story inspired by an image or a given title

18 marks, asking you to compare the two unseen extracts in detail

40 marks, asking you to write a long, detailed description of a place or a scene of your choice

Around 6 marks, analysing how the writer uses language to create an effect in a named section

2 marks, asking you simply to list the techniques the writer uses

It focuses only on single word choices in a few named lines of the extract

It compares the two unseen extracts against each other across the whole paper

It asks you to produce a piece of imaginative creative writing of your own

It is a whole-text question about how the extract is ordered and shaped

AO4 evaluation (the larger share) and AO3 comparison

AO1 retrieval (the larger share) and AO2 language analysis

AO5 communication (the larger share) and AO6 technical accuracy

AO2 language analysis (the larger share) and AO3 comparison

A transactional letter or article written for a real-world purpose and a stated audience

One imaginative piece, narrative or descriptive, usually inspired by an image or title

A close comparison of the two unseen prose extracts from Section A

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

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

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

All 40 of the marks given to AO5, with none of them given to AO6

Writing the longest and most eventful plot that you possibly can

Packing in as many adjectives as you possibly can on every line

Avoiding any clear structure so the writing feels spontaneous

Showing rather than telling, through sensory detail and action

A reasoned judgement of how successfully the writer creates an effect, tied to the statement and supported by evidence

A straightforward retelling of what happens in the extract from the start to the finish, summarised neatly in your own words

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

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

Because long and eventful stories are simply banned under the rules of the task

Because it collapses into rushed telling and loses structure, weakening AO5

Because description is not allowed at all in the imaginative writing task

Because a sprawling plot needs no proofreading at the end of the writing

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