Aim

The GCSE course consists of activities that develop the four skills of listening, speaking, reading and writing. All skills are examined separately at the end of Year 11 and each skill is worth 25% of the overall GCSE grade. There is no coursework or controlled assessment as part of this new curriculum.

Topics covered

The topics they will study throughout Key Stage 4 are the following:

• Theme 1: People and lifestyle : Identity and relationships with others, healthy living and lifestyle, education and work
• Theme 2: Popular culture: Free time activities, customs, festivals and celebrations and celebrity culture
• Theme 3: Communication and the world around us: Travel and tourism, including places of interest, media and technology, the environment and where people live

Assessment

Students will take an exam paper in each of the following skills highlighted below. There are both foundation and higher papers in each skill, although students are not allowed to mix entries between skills, so they will be entered for all foundation, or all higher. There will also be mock GCSE speaking exams in Year 10 and Year 11 to prepare students for the rigours of these exams.

• Listening: 25% of final mark (by examination at the end of Year 11)
• Reading: 25% of final mark (by examination at the end of Year 11)
• Speaking: 25% of final mark (by examination at the end of Year 11)
• Writing: 25% of final mark (by examination at the end of Year 11)