AQA A-Level English Language: Language Discourses, Methods and Writing Skills (7702)

Paper 2 Section B of AQA A-level English Language (7702), Language Discourses, gives you two texts that express views about language and asks you to do two things: analyse how the texts use language to present ideas, attitudes and opinions (40 marks), and then write your own piece on the same issue for a non-specialist audience (30 marks). Both tasks depend on the methods of language analysis and the writing skills set out in the specification, which also shape the Section A essay.

This guide covers three parts of the Paper 2 content in the AQA AS and A-level English Language specification (7701/7702), Version 1.2, for exams from June 2016: Methods of language analysis, Language discourses and Writing skills (sections 3.2.2, 3.2.3 and 3.2.4 of the A-level subject content on aqa.org.uk, numbered 4.2.2 to 4.2.4 in the specification PDF). The Section A content on diversity and change itself is taught in the Language Diversity and Change study guide. For quick recall use the language discourses and writing revision notes, and practise with the language discourses and writing practice questions.

What does Paper 2 look like?

Section	Task	Marks
A: Diversity and Change	One evaluative essay from a choice of two: either language diversity or language change	30
B: Language Discourses	Analysis of how two texts use language to present ideas, attitudes and opinions about a language topic	40
B: Language Discourses	A directed writing task on the same topic and the ideas in the texts	30

The paper lasts 2 hours 30 minutes, is worth 100 marks and counts for 40% of the A-level. The specification’s weighting table gives Paper 2 approximately AO1 8%, AO2 16%, AO3 6%, AO4 6% and AO5 4% of the whole A-level.

AO	What it rewards
AO1	Applying methods of language analysis, with terminology and coherent written expression
AO2	Critical understanding of concepts and issues relevant to language use
AO3	Analysing and evaluating how contextual factors and language features are associated with meaning
AO4	Exploring connections across texts, informed by linguistic concepts and methods
AO5	Expertise and creativity in using English to communicate in different ways

Syllabus coverage

Section	The specification says students will
Methods of language analysis	Use methods of language analysis to identify and describe features of language diversity and change, research diversity and change, and analyse how texts present ideas about language, across phonetics, phonology and prosodics; graphology; lexis and semantics; grammar including morphology; pragmatics; discourse
Language discourses	Study a range of texts, including those for non-specialist audiences, that convey attitudes to language diversity and change; explore how texts represent language, construct an identity for the producer, position the reader and seek to influence them, and are connected to discourses about language
Writing skills	Develop skills in writing discursively about language issues in an academic essay; writing analytically about texts as parts of discourses about language; and writing about language issues in a variety of forms for a non-specialist audience

How do the methods of language analysis apply to Paper 2?

The specification lists six language levels. In Paper 2 you use them in two ways: to describe the diversity or change a text shows (Section A), and to analyse how a writer presents ideas about language (Section B).

Level	What it covers	Section B example
Phonetics, phonology and prosodics	Speech sounds and effects	A columnist mocks a pronunciation by spelling it out (“innit”, “aks”), presenting a sociolect as careless
Graphology	Visual design and layout	A headline in capitals and bold, or an image of a red pen, framing the text as a “crisis”
Lexis and semantics	Vocabulary and meaning, including social and historical variation	Loaded lexis such as “mangled”, “sloppy”, “decline” versus “vibrant”, “creative”, “evolving”
Grammar, including morphology	Sentence, clause, phrase and word structure	Imperatives (“Stop saying…”) that position the writer as an authority; declaratives presented as fact
Pragmatics	Contextual aspects of meaning	Irony, implicature, assumed shared values (“we all know…”)
Discourse	Extended communication in genres, modes and contexts	How an opinion column builds its argument from anecdote to general claim to call to action

The aim is not to label features for their own sake. Each feature should be linked to what view of language it helps construct and how it positions the reader.

What is a “discourse about language”?

A discourse is a recurring way of talking about a topic that carries particular values. Texts in Section B usually draw on, or argue against, familiar discourses about language. Being able to name them is a strong AO2 move.

Discourse	Typical claims	Typical language
Decline / deficit	Standards are falling; young people, technology or immigration are “ruining” English	Metaphors of decay, disease or invasion; nostalgia; exclamatives
Prescriptive “correctness”	There is one right way to use English	Modal verbs of obligation (“should”, “must”); lists of “errors”
Descriptive / change as natural	Language always changes; variation is normal	Hedged, evidence-based lexis; reference to history or research
Diversity as identity and value	Dialects and sociolects express identity and belonging	Inclusive pronouns; positive evaluative lexis
Discrimination / linguistic prejudice	Judging speech is a way of judging people	Lexis of fairness and injustice; anecdotes of stigma

Linguists have described these debates in well-known metaphors. Jean Aitchison’s 1996 Reith Lectures, published as The Language Web (1997), grouped popular complaints about change into the “damp spoon”, “crumbling castle” and “infectious disease” images; Deborah Cameron’s Verbal Hygiene (1995) argues that attempts to regulate language are always also about social values. Use such references briefly, to sharpen your analysis of the text in front of you.

How do you analyse the two texts in Section B?

The specification’s four bullet points are the most useful structure for this question.

1. How does the text represent language? As a living system, a set of rules, a battleground, a sign of moral decline? Look at metaphors and evaluative lexis.
2. What identity does the producer construct? An expert (specialist lexis, statistics, citation), an ordinary person (anecdote, informal register), a guardian of standards (prescriptive modals, a confident tone)?
3. How does the text position and influence the reader? Direct address, inclusive “we”, rhetorical questions, presupposition and humour can draw the reader into agreement.
4. How is it connected to wider discourses about language? Name the discourse and explain whether the text reinforces or challenges it.

Because AO4 rewards connections, compare the two texts throughout rather than writing about one and then the other. Connections can be about their views, their methods, their genre and mode, their audiences or their contexts (for example, a 19th-century letter to a newspaper and a 21st-century blog post).

Worked example: analysing a short extract

“Every time a teenager says ‘like’ three times in a sentence, a little bit of English dies. We owe it to our children to stop the rot.”

• Representation of language: English as a living thing that can “die”; variation as “rot”, a decay metaphor typical of the decline discourse.
• Producer identity: a responsible adult and guardian (“We owe it to our children”), using a confident declarative tone.
• Reader positioning: the inclusive pronoun “We” presupposes the reader shares the writer’s concern; hyperbole (“Every time… dies”) invites amused agreement.
• Discourse connection: reproduces a prescriptive, deficit view of young people’s speech. A linguist would note that discourse marker “like” has several functions (for example as a hedge or quotative) and is not random.

How do you write the directed writing piece?

The directed writing task asks you to write about the same issue in a specified form (for example an opinion article, a blog post, a speech or the script of a talk) for a non-specialist audience. It is assessed on your understanding of language concepts and issues (AO2) and on your expertise and creativity in writing (AO5).

• Use the ideas in the texts, but do not copy them. Take a position and support it with accurate linguistic knowledge.
• Translate concepts for non-specialists. Explain terms such as “sociolect” or “prescriptivism” in plain English, through examples, rather than leaving them undefined.
• Match the conventions of the form. An article needs a headline and a clear line of argument; a speech needs direct address and rhetorical patterning; a blog can be more personal.
• Shape the piece. A strong opening hook, a logical sequence of ideas, and a memorable ending.

How do writing skills apply to the Section A essay?

The writing skills section also covers “writing discursively about language issues in an academic essay”. In Section A, this means a clear argument that evaluates a view about diversity or change, uses precise terminology, refers to research and theories, and draws on examples of real language. The essay is a different register from the Section B directed writing: formal, cautious and evidence-led.

Frequently asked questions

What texts appear in Section B? Two texts on a topic linked to diversity and change, which convey attitudes to language. They are often written for non-specialist audiences, such as newspaper columns, blogs, letters or extracts from popular books.

Do I need to quote linguists in Section B? It helps AO2 to name a concept or debate briefly, but the main focus of the analysis question is how the texts use language. In the directed writing task, linguistic ideas should be explained accessibly.

Should I agree with the texts in my directed writing? You may agree, disagree or take a balanced view. What matters is that your ideas are linguistically informed and your writing suits the form and audience.

How should I compare the two texts? Integrate comparison: discuss a shared idea or method, then show how each text handles it differently, linking differences to context, genre and audience.

Common mistakes

• Feature-spotting: naming word classes or devices without explaining their effect on how language is presented.
• Writing about the topic (for example “slang”) instead of about how the texts represent it.
• Treating the two texts separately, which limits connections.
• In directed writing, using unexplained jargon, or simply repeating the source texts’ arguments.
• Presenting your own opinion about language with no linguistic evidence.
• Ignoring the form named in the task (for example writing an essay when an article is asked for).

Official syllabus

AQA AS and A-level English Language (7701/7702) specification, Version 1.2 (14 October 2021), A-level subject content 3.2 Language diversity and change: 3.2.2 Methods of language analysis, 3.2.3 Language discourses and 3.2.4 Writing skills, with the Paper 2 assessment structure in the scheme of assessment.

Section numbers. This site follows the A-level (7702) subject content on aqa.org.uk, where Paper 2 content is 3.2 and the NEA is 3.3. The combined AS and A-level specification PDF (Version 1.2, 14 October 2021) puts the AS content in section 3, so the same A-level sections are numbered 4.1, 4.2 and 4.3 there.