OxfordAQA International A-Level English Language: Language Variation (Unit 3) — Practice Questions

These are original questions written for Marlbridge, for revision and practice on this content. They are not reproduced past-paper questions, and they do not replicate the exam’s exact structure, question count or mark tariffs — examination boards hold copyright in their own papers. Use these alongside the official past papers available free from your board.

Related: Unit 3 Language Variation revision notes · Unit 3 study guide

Unit 3 of OxfordAQA International A-level English Language (9670) has two 25-mark sections: Section A, Learning language, starts from data; Section B, International English, sets out an issue for discussion. The questions below follow that pattern. All data is invented for this resource. Answer one question from each section in two hours.

Section A: Learning language (25 marks each)

1. The data below is a conversation between a mother (M) and her child (C), aged 2 years 3 months, looking at a picture book. Analyse the ways in which the child and the mother use language, referring to relevant theories and approaches to language acquisition. [25]

M: what’s that one C: doggy M: yes it’s a horse (.) a big horse isn’t it C: big doggy horse M: big horse (.) what does the horse say C: neigh (.) horse goed neigh M: it went neigh didn’t it (.) clever girl C: more (.) more book

2. The data below is an extract from a story written by a 14-year-old student who speaks Arabic at home and English at school. Analyse the writer’s language, and discuss what it suggests about later language development and learning English as an additional language. [25]

When I arrived to the new school, everything was strange for me. The corridors were long and noisy, and nobody was looking at me. I was thinking: how I will make friends here? But in the second week, a girl called Leila asked me to sit with her at lunch. Slowly, slowly, the school stopped being a maze and became a place where I belonged.

Section B: International English (25 marks each)

3. “International learners should aim for intelligibility, not native-speaker norms.” Discuss this view, referring to ideas about English as a lingua franca and world Englishes. [25]

4. “The global spread of English benefits everyone who learns it.” Evaluate this claim. [25]

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Indicative content

These points are a guide; credit any well-supported, relevant analysis or argument.

Question 1

Child’s language

• Lexis/semantics: “doggy” for a horse is overextension based on shared features (four legs, fur); “doggy horse” shows the child adding the new word to the old category rather than replacing it.
• Grammar: “horse goed neigh” contains a virtuous error, applying the regular -ed past-tense rule to “go”, evidence of rule formation; omission of determiners (“big doggy horse”) is typical of the telegraphic stage.
• Pragmatics: “more (.) more book” makes a request with repetition; the child initiates a new turn.
• Phonology: “doggy” as a diminutive form is common in early lexis and in child-directed speech.

Mother’s language (child-directed speech)

• Questions to elicit naming (“what’s that one”, “what does the horse say”).
• Recasts/expansions: “it went neigh didn’t it” models the correct irregular form without explicit correction; “a big horse” corrects the label gently.
• Tag questions and praise (“clever girl”) maintain interaction and give positive reinforcement.
• The routine of book reading illustrates scaffolding.

Theories (AO1)

• Behaviourist: praise as reinforcement; but “goed” was not imitated, which challenges this view.
• Nativist: the overgeneralised rule suggests an internal grammar developing.
• Interactionist: the mother’s questions, recasts and routine reflect Bruner’s ideas of support; Vygotsky’s zone of proximal development.
• Cognitive: categorisation (“doggy horse”) linked to concept formation.

Levels (illustrative)

• Top: systematic analysis across levels, precise terminology, theories applied to specific features and evaluated against each other.
• Middle: accurate features with some theory, partly descriptive.
• Lower: general comments; theories described without links to the data.

Question 2

Area	Points to make
Grammar	Preposition choice “arrived to” (standard: “arrived at”), possibly reflecting first-language transfer; embedded question without standard word order (“how I will make friends”), a common developmental feature; secure past progressive (“was thinking”) and complex sentences
Lexis	Metaphor “a maze”; reduplication “Slowly, slowly”, which may reflect transfer or deliberate style
Discourse	Clear narrative structure: orientation, complication, resolution; cohesive time markers (“in the second week”)
Later development	Control of narrative and figurative language typical of teenage writing; contrast of short and long sentences
EAL	Avoid a deficit view: non-standard features co-exist with sophisticated control; interlanguage as a stage in learning
Approaches (AO1)	Interlanguage and transfer; communicative competence; the difference between errors and creative choices

Question 3

Strand	Indicative content
Concepts	Intelligibility; native-speaker norms; English as a lingua franca (ELF); world Englishes; standard and prestige
For the view	Most English users are non-native; ELF research (for example Jenkins’s Lingua Franca Core) identifies features that matter for intelligibility; native norms vary themselves (British versus American); learners’ purposes often involve non-native interlocutors
Against	Exams, employers and universities may still reward native norms; prestige and social mobility; teachers need a model; risk of fragmentation
Evaluation	It may depend on purpose and context: academic writing versus international business talk
Examples	Singapore English; Indian English in professional settings; ELF in international aviation or business

Levels: top answers define terms precisely, weigh positions with examples, and reach a qualified judgement; middle answers explain both sides with some examples; lower answers give opinions without linguistic concepts.

Question 4

Strand	Indicative content
Benefits	Access to education, science and the internet; mobility and employment; communication across cultures
Costs	Language shift and endangerment of local languages; inequality between those with and without access to English; linguistic imperialism debates (Phillipson)
Complicating factors	Local varieties and codeswitching show English being adapted, not just imposed; multilingualism rather than replacement
Evaluation	“Everyone” is too absolute: benefits depend on access, context and which variety is valued

Frequently asked questions

How much theory should a Section A answer include? Enough to explain and evaluate what the data shows. The specification asks for knowledge of different theories and approaches alongside data-analysis skills.

Do Section B answers need data? The question sets out an issue rather than giving data, but examples of real varieties and situations strengthen your argument.

What should I do if the data includes EAL speakers? Analyse what the speaker can do, consider possible first-language influence, and avoid treating every non-standard form as a simple error.

Official specification

OxfordAQA International AS and A-level English Language (9670), Version 5.2, 3.3 Language variation — oxfordaqa.com.