Pupils will study one of the allocated Scottish Set Texts set by the SQA for Higher English and will be assessed in timed conditions in the final exam. The set text can range from the poetry of Carol Ann Duffy and Don Patterson to the works of fiction by Iain Crichton Smith and Robert Louis Stevenson and more. 

Pupils will develop their skills of textual analysis through their ability to identify literary techniques and comment on their impact and effectiveness. Pupils will also be required to make relevant observations about character, theme and language across a whole text or series of texts as part of this component. 

The Critical Essay component is an opportunity for pupils to study a text from a different genre to the one selected for the Textual Analysis component. The choice of text is selected by the classroom teacher and can be anything from Film to Prose Fiction to Drama and Non Fiction texts. In the past pupils have studied ground-breaking films such as 'The Godfather', 'Fargo' and 'The Shawshank Redemption', influential works of fiction such as 'The Great Gatsby', 'The Road' and '1984' and works by seminal playwrights such as Arthur Miller, Tennessee Williams and the great bard himself, William Shakespeare. 

Pupils will be assessed in timed conditions in a final exam. Over the course of the year, they will develop their critical analysis skills through exploration of characterisation, theme, symbolism and literary techniques as part of their in-depth study of the chosen text. Pupils will focus on critical essay writing skills making sure they have the strategies to construct essays that are detailed and insightful.

Pupils will be required to respond to a series of unseen non-fiction texts as part of the Reading for Understanding, Analysis and Evaluation part of the course. In the exam they will have 90 minutes to read two passages and answer questions that test their ability to comment on writer's use of language as well as being able to show their understanding of writer's meaning. 

All pupils have to submit one piece of written coursework which counts for 30% of the overall mark. At Higher level pupils are encouraged to produce a piece that is broadly creative such as a short story or a monologue.