NATIONAL 5 PUPILENGLISH GUIDE

What do I need to know?

During the year you will take part in activities designed to develop your skills in:

LISTENING TALKINGREADING WRITING

That sounds heavy doesn't it?1

No, as this is what you have been doing in S1-3 English...you might not have noticed, but you have been!

Where do my marks come from?

External Examination paper 1: 30%

External Examination Paper 2: 40%

Portfolio of Writing: 30%

When Does All This Happen?

External Examination: May

Portfolio of Writing: Prepared in class and at home and sent away to the SQA in April. You must have your final essays completed by December so that any revisions can be made.

Is That It?

No. You also have to pass internal assessments to demonstrate that you are working at National 5 level.

That Is A Bit Of A Pain, Is It Not?

It doesn't need to be. Over the course of the year, you will take part in activities to allow you to show

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your teacher that you are at National 5 level in the key elements of the course. You do not get graded in these activities - you just pass or fail.

However, you would not be starting National 5 English if your performance in the first three years of the subject at high school had not suggested that you were capable of passing the course at this level at the end of S4.

Your S1-3 teachers have taken your year group through common activities that have allowed the English Department to decide the most suitable candidates for sitting National 5 at the end of S4 and then, ideally, Higher at the end of S5.

You will participate in various classroom activities and be given stimulating homework tasks, all of which are designed to allow you to pass the internal assessments, as well as getting a good grade in the final examination.

What Do Internal Assessments Involve?

You have to pass the following units:

English: Analysis and Evaluation (National 5)

To pass this unit, you have to provide evidence of your reading and listening skills by passing two learning outcomes (see below):

Outcome 1: understanding, analysing and evaluating at least one detailed written text (in other words, this is a test of your reading skills)

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This might involve answering questions on a newspaper column/short film/ music lyric/passage in a novel/scene from a play, etc. However, it could also involve an oral presentation in response to something you have read. You will be expected to demonstrate an understanding of content/ideas as well as techniques used.

Outcome 2: understanding, analysing and evaluating at least one detailed spoken language activity (in other words, this is a test of your listening skills)

This could involve listening to a speech/group discussion/pupil presentation/youtube clip/song/excerpt from a play/key scene from a film, etc. and demonstrating that you have understood the content of what you have heard as well as the techniques used to enhance delivery.

English: Creation and Production (National 5)

To pass this unit, you have to create materials that pass two learning outcomes (see below):

Outcome 1: at least one written text using detailed written language (in other words, this is a test of your writing skills)

This could involve writing an imaginative story/personal essay/discursive essay/newspaper article/blog/e-mail/persuasive essay, etc. You will be encouraged to be creative in your response and, if possible, have a choice of written form that suits you best. You will be expected to communicate meaning in a skilful manner, as well as paying attention to the purpose, audience and genre

Outcome 2: at least one spoken interaction using detailed language (in other words, this is a test of your talking skills)

This might involve a solo talk/individual presentation to class or a small group or participation in a debate, participation in a group discussion, producing a short film of you delivering a presentation, delivering a power-point presentation, delivering a paired or group presentation, etc. Whatever happens, you must communicate ideas clearly, as well as using techniques to enhance their oral delivery.

External ExaminationThe total mark available in the two external examination papers you will sit in May is 70. Handily enough, the external examination is worth 70% of your final mark. The other 30% comes from your writing portfolio which you complete over the year in class and at home (there is a section of this guide devoted to the portfolio).

Paper 1: Reading for understanding, analysis, and evaluation: (30 marks in total)

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This paper is one hour long.

It involves reading a non-fiction passage (e.g. newspaper article, section from a biography, magazine column, etc.), which will be approximately two A4 sides long.

You will then answer a series of questions asking you to demonstrate your understanding of the ideas in the passage as well as analysing the techniques used by the writer.

To help you to prepare for this part of the examination, your teacher will:

- look at specimen papers with your class

- give you class and homework tasks that are designed to expand your vocabulary

- encourage you to read as widely as possible in class and at home: and this will involve non-fiction, as well as fiction texts

- encourage you to watch particular types of programmes, e.g. the news, documentaries, history channels, current affairs shows, topical satirical series, etc.

- provide opportunities for you to research interesting and stimulating topics, using texts as well as the intern

External Examination (Continued)

Paper 2: Critical Reading: (40 marks in total)

This paper is 90 minutes long. It has two parts. It will test your ability to demonstrate knowledgeand understanding of the literature you have studied over the year in English.

Part A: Critical Essay: 20 marks

You will choose to answer one question from this part of the paper. The questions are divided as follows:

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SECTION A: DRAMA SECTION B: PROSESECTION C: POETRY SECTION D: FILM AND TV DRAMASECTION E: LANGUAGE STUDY

Your response to the question will be an essay - it should be a few pages long. Your essay will be based on one of the texts that have been chosen by the English Department for study at this level.

To help you to prepare for this part of the examination paper, you will study a selection of texts, from a range of films, poetry, novels, short stories, advertisements and plays that the English Department has ring-fenced for study at this level. The texts have been chosen to allow you to experience suitably challenging and stimulating themes/techniques.

Part B: Scottish Text: 20 marks

There is information in Appendix 1 about Scottish texts. In this part of the paper, you will answer questions on one of the poems you have studied or about a key passage from a novel, story or play, if that is the option your teacher has chosen to do with you. The text of the whole poem or key passage is provided to help you.The first few questions will test your knowledge of the particular poem/story or passage of the play/novel. The final question will test you on more stories/poems or the rest of the play/novel.

To help prepare you for this part of the examination paper, your teacher will ensure that your knowledge and understanding of the chosen author/texts is as detailed and in-depth as possible.English Writing Portfolio (from the official SQA guidelines for candidates)The portfolio tests candidates on the following:

skills in writing in different genres, namely creative and discursive skills writing for different purposes and audiences

Up to fifteen marks will be awarded for each writing piece chosen for the portfolio.

In the portfolio, you will have to:

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Write two essays of no more than 1,000 words each, one of which is broadly creative, the other broadly discursive.

Creative writing may include:

a personal essay/reflective essay a piece of prose fiction (eg short story, episode from a novel) a poem or set of thematically linked poems a dramatic script (eg scene, monologue, sketch)

Discursive writing may include:

a piece of transactional writing a persuasive essay an argumentative essay a report for a specified purpose

The descriptions, on the next page, of types of writing may help you in selecting your pieces. You will produce a variety of pieces over the course of the session, before narrowing your selection down to two final essays for the portfolio.

Creative writing

Personal — Personal writing (real or imagined) will focus on a specific event/s or situation and your reactions to it/them.

Reflective — Reflective writing will aim to interest or give pleasure, rather than purely convey information about an experience. It will concern itself, usually, with a single idea, insight or experience and will include some reflection on knowledge, thoughts or feelings created by this.

Imaginative — This can take a very wide range of forms such as: a short story; an episode from a novel; a drama script (scene, monologue, sketch) ; poetry; the script for a radio play, television drama or soap; a piece of description or a series of linked or contrasting descriptive literary sketches.

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Discursive writing

Transactional — Transactional writing is informative, and might include a film review or a biography. It should be written with a specific audience in mind, and seek to engage that audience.

Argumentative — Argumentative writing will present an issue or topic in such a way that a line of thought is developed dealing with two or more points of view, making clear the argument to be presented.

Persuasive — The aim of persuasive writing is to persuade the reader towards the writer’s adopted point of view or purpose. It usually focuses on a single topic or issue and it will carry a sense of conviction, commitment or belief through the conscious manipulation of language to create an appropriate tone.

Report — A report contains a number of key characteristics. It must contain information relevant to the chosen topic/issue drawn from at least two sources and the material drawn from those sources must be recast and paraphrased appropriately according to the purpose of the report. Report writing will have an appropriate sequence and structure. Diagrams, tables, charts and graphs may be included if appropriate to the chosen form. Headings, appendices, bibliographies and a lettering or numbering system to separate topics may also be used.

Appedix 1

Scottish Texts

You will study one of the Scottish authors, poets or dramatists that have been specified as suitable for National 5 level. This is to prepare you for Section B of Paper 2 of the external examination. The SQA specifies the texts that are studied for each Scottish writer on the list.

The list is as follows:

Drama(Plays)

Bold Girls by Rona MunroSailmaker by Alan SpenceTally's Blood by Anne Marie di Mambro

Prose (Novels)

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Kidnapped by Robert Louis StevensonThe Cone Gatherers by Robin JenkinsThe Testament of Gideon Mack by James Robertson

Prose (Short Stories)

Iain Crichton Smith The Red Door , The Telegram, Mother and Son, In Church, The Painter, The Crater

Anne Donovan All that Glisters, Zimmerobics, Virtual Pals, Away in a Manger, A Chitterin’ Bite , Dear Santa

Poetry

Carol Ann Duffy War Photographer, Havisham, Valentine, Originally, Anne Hathaway, Mrs Midas

Norman MacCaig Sounds of the Day, Assisi, Visiting Hour, Memorial, Aunt Julia, Basking Shark

Edwin Morgan In the Snack Bar, Trio, Hyena, Good Friday, Winter, Slate

Jackie Kay My Grandmother’s Houses, Lucozade, Gap Year, Bed, Divorce, Keeping Orchids

You will notice that the short story writers and poets have six texts specified. This means that, if your teacher uses one of these options with you, all six stories or poems will be studied individually, in some detail, with common themes and techniques identified and discussed.

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