S3 BGE English

Why do this course?

This course is an entitlement in Scottish Education and therefore, compulsory for S3 pupils. Pupils will develop a balance of skills in all four language modes. Pupils will be given the opportunities to:

communicate, collaborate and build relationships
reflect on and explain their learning
engage with and create a wide range of texts in different media and develop an appreciation of the richness and breadth of Scotland’s literary and linguistic heritage
develop an understanding of what is special, vibrant and valuable about their own and other cultures and languages
explore the richness and diversity of language
extend and enrich their vocabulary through listening, talking, watching and reading.
enjoy exploring and discussing word patterns and text structures.
develop a positive attitude to work.
develop their thinking skills (remembering, identifying, understanding, applying, analysing, evaluating and creating)

What will you experience?

A wide range of teaching approaches, reflecting the ways different learners progress, will be used in English. These approaches are aimed at being engaging, active, challenging, collaborative and enjoyable with clear learning intentions and success criteria. Expectations and standards will be shared and feedback will be timely and related to the agreed success criteria. Pupils will be involved in the planning and progress of their learning as well as being expected to take a responsibility for their learning.

What will you learn?

Pupils will study a range of literature including plays, novels, poetry and short stories. They will also study various media texts including film and a variety of non-fiction texts such as newspaper articles, websites, leaflets, holiday brochures, recipes, instruction manuals etc. As well as reading and studying the writing of other people, pupils will also be able to create their own writing and talking in a variety of forms and genre. Audio and audio-visual texts are becoming an important medium for gaining information which we will increasingly be using.

Key Facts

Everything you need to know before selecting this course

It is advisable to have access to a dictionary and thesaurus.

Homework

Homework activities encompass all elements of English: talking, listening, reading and writing. Personal reading plays a fundamental and central role in our homework policy. All pupils will be expected to have a personal reading book on the go which we expect them to read regularly at home as well as in their English lessons. This book can be borrowed from the library or can be brought in from home. Pupils will be asked to complete their Reading Record Sheet each time they finish a book; this enables the pupil and their teacher to monitor and support the development of their personal reading.

Homework enhances and is complementary to classroom teaching and learning and will be given on the basis of need from the following list, with pupils becoming increasingly more independent in their home studying as they progress through the school.

Personal reading (minimum of 30 minutes)
Finding out and collecting information on specific topics
Preparing solo and group talks
Writing creative or personal experience pieces/adding to writing journal
Spelling
Learning new vocabulary
Preparing for work in class
Completing reading, writing and talking assignments

Assessment

All pupils will be assessed according to Curriculum for Excellence outcomes and experiences in the skills of reading, writing, listening and talking. As well as teacher assessment pupils will be encouraged to examine and reflect on their own progress and that of their peers using our assessment tools which identify an individual’s strengths and achievements as well as targets and next steps for improvement. Reports on the attainment, effort and progress of pupils will be issued to parents during the session. Pupils will also have their best achievements in English recognised in their S3 profile.

Progression and Employment

Everything you need to know about future pathways from this course

Progression

In S4 pupils will be able to follow the National 3, 4 or 5 qualifications. In S5 pupils will be able to follow the National 4, 5 or Higher courses and in S6 pupils will be able to follow National 5, Higher or Advanced Higher English.

Employment

English is regarded as a core skill for many career options. In particular: engineering, sports coaching, web developing, media, journalism, publishing, teaching, advertising, marketing, PR, civil service, medicine, designing, government, policing, law, business, accounting, finance, tourism, events management, social work, youth work, probation work, human resources, retail, banking, therapy, psychology, theatre arts, armed forces, freelance writing…

Learner Experiences

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