Compulsory Subjects

Assessment

You will be assessed on the basis of two exams, taken at the end of Year 11.

The first exam (worth 40% of the GCSE) lasts 1 hour and 45 minutes, and requires that you answer a series of questions on a previously unseen 19th century fictional text; you will then be asked to produce your own piece of imaginative writing.

The second exam (worth 60% of the GCSE) lasts 2 hour and 5 minutes, and requires that you answer a series of questions on 2 previously unseen 20th century nonfiction texts; you will then be asked to produce your own piece of nonfiction writing.

Future Options

GCSE English Language equips students for further study at sixth form and university. It is also provides vital skills for life and work by developing students’ ability to understand the written word with clarity and communicate their own views with precision. These skills are relevant in all career paths and essential in many. Indeed, English Language is the most commonly-quoted qualification for jobs, courses and promoted posts across the country.

Additional Information

GCSE English Language require a well-honed set of exam skills, developed through lots of in-class reading and extensive exam practise. If you work hard, ask lots of questions and listen attentively, you will achieve!

Assessment

You will be assessed on the basis of two exams, taken either at the end of Year 10 or Year 11.

The first exam (worth 50% of the GCSE) lasts 1 hour and 45 minutes, and requires that you study a Shakespeare play and a post-1914 British play or novel. It is a closed book exam which means texts are not allowed in the examination.

Section A of the exam will be based on a Shakespeare play and will comprise a two-part question, with the first task focused on an extract of approximately 30 lines. The second task is focused on how a theme reflected in the extract is explored elsewhere in the play.

Section B of the exam will be based on a post-1914 British play or novel and require you to answer one essay question.

The second exam (worth 50% of the GCSE) lasts 2 hour and 15 minutes, and requires that you study a 19th century novel and a poetry collection from the Pearson Poetry Anthology. It is a closed book exam which means texts are not allowed in the examination.

Section A of the exam will be based on your study of a 19th century novel comprising a two part question, with the first part focused on an extract of approximately 400 words. The second part is an essay question exploring the whole text.

Section B of the exam will be split into two parts. Part 1 requires that you answer one question comparing a named poem from the Pearson Poetry Anthology collection to another poem from that collection. The named poem will be shown in the question paper. Part 2 requires that you answer one question comparing two unseen contemporary poems.

Future Options

GCSE English Literature equips students for further study at sixth form and university. It also provides vital skills for life and work by developing students’ ability to understand the written word with clarity and to challenge the world around them. With exposure to a wide range of classic literature students, with a good understanding, will be able to make connections across their reading. The course enables students to read in depth, critically and evaluatively, which are skills necessary for any job. It also encourages students to acquire and use a wide vocabulary.

Additional Information

GCSE English Literature is a joyous subject; English lessons so far have been leading you up to this very point. You will continue to develop the habit of reading widely and often and develop an appreciation of the depth and power of the English literary heritage. This qualification allows you to make sense of the world around you!

Assessment

You will be entered for either Foundation or Higher Tier and assessed on the basis of three exams, taken at the end of year 11.

Regardless of the tier, the three equally weighted papers carry the same format:

• Paper 1 – Non-calculator, 90 minutes, 80 marks
• Paper 2 & 3 – Calculator, 90 minutes each, 80 marks each

Any of the papers can contain any topic, although some topics to be assessed fully require a calculator and will only appear in a certain format on Paper 2 & 3. Foundation Tier is graded 1 – 5, Higher Tier is graded 4 – 9 (although a grade 3 is allowed).

Future Options

GCSE Maths is useful regardless of the job, career or further study you pursue. Indeed the vast majority of jobs and educational courses expect you to be numerate and competent with basic mathematical skills.

Careers that specifically require maths range from medicine and forecasting the weather (meteorologist), to working in fashion design and finance.

Subjects that require a lot of mathematical knowledge include business, economics, all the sciences, geography, psychology and sociology.

Additional Information

Students that excel in mathematics could be entered for an additional GCSE in mathematics called Further Maths that acts as additional preparation for Key Stage 5 Mathematics.

All students are required to have a scientific calculator for their lessons and final exams.

Assessment

There are six papers: two biology, two chemistry and two physics.

Each of the papers will assess knowledge and understanding from distinct topic areas, asking multiple choice, structured, closed short answer, and open response questions.

40% of marks will be based on demonstrating knowledge and understanding; 40% of marks will be based on applying that knowledge and understanding and 20% on analysing given information and ideas.

There is also a significant maths/numeracy component to the examinations,. (Overall 20% of marks will be derived from numeracy based questions (10% from Biology, 20% from Chemistry and 30% from Physics).

Future Options

GCSE Combined Science equips students for further study at sixth form and university. It is not necessary to study Separate Sciences in order to take a Science at A-Level or University. It is much more important to have higher quality grades rather than a higher quantity of grades.

KS4 Science provides students with a wide array of scientific knowledge about the world and universe around us. It enables students to identify, describe, explain, link, analyse and evaluate evidence and experience working with the scientific method to promote scientific study and instill these skills, necessary in all evidence based disciplines. Science promotes the use of numeracy and literacy to enable students to articulate, comment on and to prove evidence/data. It also requires students to consider the social, economic, environmental and ethical implications surrounding relevant aspects of science and to promote responsible and critical thinkers.

Pupils also need to discuss and evaluate different viewpoints with their peers whilst considering their own views and those of others with regards to key philosophical questions. Finally, Science builds pupils’ communication, teamwork and leadership skills through group work and discussion exercises throughout the curriculum.

Additional Information

GCSE Sciences requires an extensive set of practical skills. There is therefore a required practical element that is not explicitly assessed but compulsory, and will be met repeatedly throughout the course.

Assessment

You will be assessed on the basis of four exams, taken at the end of Year 11. GCSE Spanish/French has a Foundation Tier (grades 1–5) and a Higher Tier (grades 4–9). Students must take all four question papers at the same tier.

Future Options

French/Spanish GCSE offers students the opportunity to develop their listening, speaking, reading and writing skills to their full potential, while equipping them with the knowledge of the Francophone/Hispanic world. It will be a key course to help you stand out in applications for Sixth Form, University and future jobs. Some UK universities ask for a modern foreign language at GCSE as part of their entrance requirements, even if the student is not planning to study a language. This is because they believe it to be proof of great aptitude and flexibility. If you wish to continue language study at University, it is advantageous to study French/Spanish in conjunction with another degree, such as Business management, English Literature, Law, Politics, Film, Mathematics, etc.

If you would like more information about what degrees you can do, please visit the WhatUni website. You can also find careers information here. 

At LAB we are passionate about the benefits of learning a language and the opportunities it can afford our students. We strongly believe that learning a language is a skill for life and will help to prepare young people for a globalised workplace, where collaboration across cultures is of great benefit to a variety of industries. We believe languages are something students can find rewarding, contributing to the development of fully rounded individuals with a holistic view of the world in which we live.

Additional Information

To be successful in French/Spanish GCSE you need to revise vocabulary little and often, have awareness on how to improve your spoken and written language and be willing to make mistakes in order to progress further.

Assessment

You will be assessed on the basis of three exams, taken at the end of Year 11.

The first exam (worth 30% of the GCSE) lasts 1 hour and 15 minutes, and requires that you answer a series of questions on a thematic study; you will also be asked to answer source questions on a related historic environment.

The second exam (worth 40% of the GCSE) lasts 1 hour and 45 minutes, and requires that you answer a series of questions on a British Depth Study; you will then be asked to answer a series of questions on a modern Period Study.

The third exam (worth 30% of the GCSE) lasts 1 hour and 20 minutes, and requires that you answer a series of questions on a non-British modern depth study.

Future Options

GCSE History can be useful in many job families including those linked with law, journalism and publishing, marketing, sales and advertising, arts, crafts and design, broadcast media and performing arts, leisure, sport and tourism, as well as education and training.

Related subjects include geography, archaeology, history of art, law, sociology, philosophy, psychology, government and politics, global studies, social biology, economics and religious studies.

Additional Information

GCSE History requires considerable reading and extended writing, especially in exams.

Assessment

You will be assessed on the basis of three exams, taken at the end of year 11.

The first exam (worth 37.5% of the GCSE) lasts 1 hour and 30 minutes. In Paper 1 all questions are compulsory. There are three 30-mark sections. Of the 94 raw marks available, up to 4 marks are awarded for SPaG. 

The second exam (worth 37.5% of the GCSE) lasts 1 hour and 30 minutes. In Paper 2, there are two compulsory sections, each worth 27 marks followed by a third section comprising two ‘mirror image’ fieldwork subsections worth 18 marks each with students selecting either coastal or river fieldwork topics in one section and either urban or rural fieldwork in the other.

The third exam (worth 25% of the GCSE) lasts 1 hour and 30 minutes. Paper 3 is a decision-making exercise; all questions are compulsory but the number of marks allocated to the first three of its four sections will vary depending on the chosen theme. Up to 4 marks are awarded for SPaG.

Future Options

GCSE Geography enables students to develop and extend their knowledge of locations, places, environments and processes, and of different scales including global; and of social, political and cultural contexts. Students will be able to apply geographical knowledge, understanding, skills and approaches appropriately and creatively to real world contexts and to contemporary situations and issues. They will also be able to develop well-evidenced arguments drawing on their geographical knowledge and understanding.

Geography can be useful in many different job families such as environmental science, engineering and manufacturing, animals, agriculture, plants and land, construction, leisure, sport and tourism, transport and logistics.