AQA GCSE ENGLISH LITERATURE QUESTIONS JUNE 2025

Copyright information AQA retains the copyright on all its publications. However, registered schools/colleges for AQA are permitted to copy material from this booklet for their own internal use, with the following important exception: AQA cannot give permission to schools/colleges to photocopy any material that is acknowledged to a third party even for internal use within the centre. Copyright © 2025 AQA and its licensors. All rights reserved. Statement of importance GCSE English Literature is the study of how writers communicate their ideas about the world, and how readers might respond to these ideas. It aims to develop a critical understanding of the ways in which literary texts are a reflection of, and exploration of, the human condition, the study of which develops empathic understanding of human nature. High-quality English literature is writing which displays recognisable literary qualities and, although shaped by particular contexts, transcends them and speaks about the universality of the human condition. GCSE English Literature aims to enable students to appreciate these qualities, developing and presenting informed, critical responses to the ideas in literary texts and the ways writers present these ideas. It aims to enable students to make links between a variety of written texts and between the text and the context within which it was shaped. Principles of mark scheme construction Each mark scheme is driven by the task and by the statement of importance about GCSE English Literature. It aims to do two things: • to describe typical features of response in order to decide on a mark • to identify typical features of proficiency in order to aid discrimination between levels of performance. Each long form answer mark scheme is constructed using six levels. This is to reflect the ability level of the whole cohort. There are four or five marks within each level to allow for levels of proficiency and to allow for discrimination between levels of cognitive ability across the whole cohort. Each mark scheme places assessment objectives AO1 and AO2 as the key skills. This is driven by the statement of importance of the subject, in that the study of great literary texts is the study of the interrelationship between the reader and the writer of the text and that the communication and reception of these ideas is an inherent feature of English literature. It is also driven by the acknowledgement that GCSE English Literature assesses cognitive levels of ability; the level of response to ideas will have parity with the level of response to the methods of communicating those ideas. How to apply the mark scheme The mark scheme is constructed using six levels of attainment that span the whole range of ability at GCSE. The descriptors of attainment reference the assessment objectives for that particular question. Examiners are required to use the mark scheme to consider the whole response and decide upon the most appropriate level. The mark scheme provides two descriptors: a description of typical features of a response in each level, and a description of the kinds of skills candidates in that level will be proficient in. This is in order to support examiners in making their judgement of the extent to which the qualities and skills being demonstrated merit a particular level of attainment. As each response being marked is a response to a particular task, examiners are assessing the extent to which the candidate has responded to the task, and also the level of skill that the candidate has demonstrated. Each level has four or five marks available and four or five skills descriptors. Fair application of the mark scheme to all candidates is driven by the descriptors in the mark scheme, and therefore examiners are required to make a judgement about the extent to which a candidate achieves every descriptor in that particular level in order to warrant a mark at the top of that level. If a candidate achieves everything in a level, they should be awarded the mark at the top of that level. Since answers will rarely match a descriptor in all respects, examiners must allow good performance in some aspects to compensate for shortcomings in other respects. Consequently, the level is determined by the ‘best fit’ rather than requiring every element of the descriptor to be matched. Examiners should aim to use the full range of levels and marks, taking into account the standard that can reasonably be expected of candidates after one or two years of study on the GCSE course and in the time available in the examination. If a candidate does not address a particular defining feature of a task, examiners are required to make a judgement about the extent to which other skills can place the response in a particular level, and where the response should be placed. Step 1 Determine a level Start at the lowest level of the mark scheme and use it as a ladder to see whether the answer meets the descriptor for that level. The descriptor for the level indicates the different qualities that might be seen in the student’s answer for that level. If it meets the lowest level then go to the next one and decide if it meets this level, and so on, until you have a match between the level descriptor and the answer. With practice and familiarity you will find that for better answers you will be able to quickly skip through the lower levels of the mark scheme. When assigning a level you should look at the overall quality of the answer and not look to pick holes in small and specific parts of the answer where the student has not performed quite as well as the rest. If the answer covers different aspects of different levels of the mark scheme you should use a best fit approach for defining the level and then use the variability of the response to help decide the mark within the level; ie if the response is predominantly Level 3 with a small amount of Level 4 material it would be placed in Level 3 but be awarded a mark near the top of the level because of the Level 4 content. Step 2 Determine a mark Once you have assigned a level you need to decide on the mark. The descriptors on how to allocate marks can help with this. The exemplar materials used during standardisation will also help. There will be an answer in the standardising materials which will correspond with each level of the mark scheme. This answer will have been awarded a mark by the Lead Examiner. You can compare the student’s answer with the example to determine if it is of the same standard, better or worse than the example. You can then use this to allocate a mark for the answer based on the Lead Examiner’s mark on the example. You may well need to read back through the answer as you apply the mark scheme to clarify points and assure yourself that the level and the mark are appropriate. Indicative content in the mark scheme is provided as a guide for examiners. It is not intended to be exhaustive and you must credit other valid points. Students do not have to cover all of the points mentioned in the indicative content to reach the highest level of the mark scheme. An answer which contains nothing of relevance to the question must be awarded no marks. Rubric infringements GCSE English Literature is a skills-based subject and, as such, best-fit is the most appropriate means by which the candidature can be fairly and equitably rewarded for their achievements at the end of their course of study. However, a mark scheme also has the function of assessing the extent to which each response meets the requirements of the relevant elements of the particular specification. Therefore, where a response is judged not to have addressed a defining feature of a particular task, such as: Paper 1 Section A response to extract and whole text Paper 1 Section B response to extract and whole text Paper 2 Section B response to named poem and one other from the named cluster then this would be classed as a rubric infringement and could, as referenced in the mark scheme, be ‘capped’ at the top of Level 2. Cases of rubric infringement will always be referred to a senior associate who will review the response in order to make a judgement about the totality of the response and therefore the validity of cap application. Supporting documentation Standardising scripts would provide exemplification of attainment in order to guide examiners towards the process of discerning between levels of attainment and to aid judgement about the positioning of each response in terms of a final mark. Exemplification documents, including indicative content, definitions of key descriptors in the mark scheme and exemplification of these descriptors, provide more detailed guidance to examiners on how to judge the relative qualities and skills being demonstrated by each candidate. Defining context (AO3) AO3 is the understanding of the relationship between the ideas in the text and the contexts of the text. The range of contexts and relationships that is most relevant as part of AO3 will depend on the text, the author and the task. In teaching and assessing AO3, teachers and students can consider context in a flexible way, depending on the text itself and whichever contexts are the most relevant for that particular text. These contexts may relate to the relationship between the text and the context in which it was written. However, the contexts may also relate to the context within which the text is set: location, social structures and features, cultural contexts, and periods in time. Context, where relevant, may also apply to literary contexts such as genres, and also the contexts in which texts are engaged with by different audiences, taking the reader outside the text in order to inform understanding of the meanings being conveyed. Acknowledgement of the universality of a literary text is an integral part of relating to it contextually. Context is assessed throughout the paper. The strand in the mark scheme related to AO3 references ‘ideas/perspectives/contextual factors’. However, if a question requires a student to think about the text in its context, this is also reflected inherently through the response to task. Assessment objectives (AOs) AO1 Read, understand and respond to texts. Students should be able to: • maintain a critical style and develop an informed personal response • use textual references, including quotations, to support and illustrate interpretations. AO2 Analyse the language, form and structure used by a writer to create meanings and effects, using relevant subject terminology where appropriate. AO3 Show understanding of the relationships between texts and the contexts in which they were written. AO4 Use a range of vocabulary and sentence structures for clarity, purpose and effect, with accurate spelling and punctuation.   Assessment of AO4 AO4 will be assessed on Section A only. The performance descriptors are provided below.