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Critical reading and comprehension flashcards

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How are AQA GCSE English Language Papers 1 and 2 set out?: Each is 1 hour 45 minutes, 80 marks, 50% of the GCSE: Section A Reading (40 marks) and Section B Writing (40 marks).
What does Paper 1 (Explorations in creative reading and writing) use as its source?: One unseen literary fiction extract from the 20th or 21st century. The 19th century is kept for Paper 2.
What do the AQA English Language reading objectives AO1 to AO4 test?: AO1 identify and interpret explicit and implicit information and ideas, and select and synthesise evidence; AO2 analyse language and structure using terminology; AO3 compare writers' ideas and perspectives; AO4 evaluate texts critically.
What does Paper 1 Question 1 require?: 4 marks: list four things from a specified part of the source. It rewards identifying explicit information accurately (AO1).
What is the difference between explicit and implicit information?: Explicit information is stated directly in the text. Implicit information is suggested and must be inferred from clues such as word choice or behaviour.

What does Paper 2 (Writers' viewpoints and perspectives) use as its sources?: Two unseen non-fiction extracts on a shared theme: one from the 19th century and one from the 20th or 21st century.
What does Paper 2 Question 2 require?: A summary of the differences (or similarities) between the two sources on a given focus, 8 marks (AO1): inferences drawn from both texts, supported by evidence.
What does "synthesise" mean in AQA English Language?: Bring together information from more than one text into one coherent answer, rather than dealing with each separately.
Why does Paper 2 pair a 19th-century text with a modern one?: It forces comparison across real historical distance: tone, assumed audience and rhetorical conventions differ more clearly than between two contemporary texts.

What does Paper 1 Question 2 require?: 8 marks (AO2): analyse how the writer uses language in a given section, quoting precisely and explaining the effect of words, phrases, techniques and sentence forms.
What does Paper 1 Question 3 require?: 8 marks (AO2): analyse how the writer structures the whole extract, such as the opening focus, shifts, zooming in or out, and the ending.
What does Paper 1 Question 4 require?: 20 marks (AO4): evaluate a statement about part of the extract, judging how far the writer achieves an effect with textual evidence. It is worth as much as Questions 1–3 combined.
What does Paper 2 Question 3 require?: 12 marks (AO2): analyse how the writer of one source uses language to achieve effects.
What is a structural feature in a fiction extract? Give examples.: A choice about how the text is ordered and shaped: a shift in focus, a flashback, a change of perspective, a one-line paragraph, or a cyclical ending. Each shapes what the reader notices and when.
What is the effect of a one-sentence paragraph?: It isolates a moment or idea, slowing the pace and giving it emphasis, often marking a shock or turning point.
What is a semantic field, and why comment on one?: A group of words linked by meaning (such as words of war or of decay). A pattern of them builds a consistent mood or idea across the text.

What does Paper 2 Question 4 require?: 16 marks (AO3): compare how the two writers convey their different perspectives or viewpoints, and the methods they use to do so.
How do you structure a strong comparison of two sources?: Work through comparable points (an attitude, a language choice, a structural device), discussing both texts together each time and explaining why each writer chose their approach (audience, era, purpose).
Which assessment objective is tested on Paper 2 but not Paper 1?: AO3, comparing writers' ideas and perspectives. Paper 1 has a single source, so there is nothing to compare.