Our Head of English – Estelle Snyders
Welcome to the English Department. As head of the department I work closely with my colleagues in both the senior school and junior school (Grade 5 onwards). This inclusive approach ensures that our syllabus is comprehensively structured, and all our students are familiarised with the rigorous requirements of our international Cambridge Curriculum.
Our English team works closely together, and we are committed to challenging students, developing their communication, thinking and reasoning skills, and entrenching an appreciation for literature – be it Shakespeare, Dickens or Barry Ronge. The other English teachers in the Senior School are Mike de Freitas, Kim Davenport, and Chelsea Brehm.
BA Honours (Geography)
Higher Diploma in Education
Diploma in Business Management
Programme in Human Resource Management
Mike de Freitas
A love of English lasts forever.
Because there are few things as rewarding as being able to express one’s thoughts, feelings, hopes and fears, we encourage our pupils to express themselves articulately and creatively.
“The newest computer can merely compound, at speed, the oldest problem in the relations between human beings, and in the end the communicator will be confronted with the old problem of what to say and how to say it” (Edward R Murrow)
The International General Certificate of Secondary Education (IGCSE) course, written in May of their Grade 11 year, on which our pupils will embark in their higher grades at our Senior School requires that they be able to read with insight and express themselves articulately and effectively in essays. Our syllabus is thus geared towards developing those skills in particular. But, because we believe in well-rounded pupils, we do not neglect oral work.
In Grade 8 pupils at our school are extended and challenged to be mature, insightful and articulate.
Therefore, they are expected to work independently and to a high standard. For pupils who find the work too demanding, we have learning support and language clinics.
Our literature syllabus has been carefully chosen to ensure age-appropriate but challenging work.
Kim Davenport
The junior phase of our Senior School culminates in Grade 9 and our English syllabus is geared towards meaningful progress: knowledge and understanding are deepened; skills and application are developed.
By presenting stimulating, challenging lessons and rewarding hard work, we strive to
create enthusiastic pupils who love learning … and humour.
Our Grade 10 pupils embark on the first year of their International General Certificate of
Secondary Education (IGCSE) course this year. The syllabus is covered over 18 months.
The course focuses on the pupils’ ability to put their language and writing knowledge into practice; all assessments are passage-based and applied. The focus of our class work is thus the writing of essay-style responses to language and literature. Formal elements of language are not neglected because essays require a thorough knowledge and sound understanding of writing styles, the manipulation of register and tone and an awareness of purpose and audience.
Our pupils write examinations twice in 2010, namely in June and November. The final
IGCSE examination is written in May 2011.
Our Grade 11 pupils conclude their International General Certificate of Secondary
Education (IGCSE) course in the Grade 11 year.
The course focuses on the pupils’ ability to put their language and writing knowledge into practice; all assessments are passage-based and applied. The focus of our class work is thus the writing of essay-style responses to language and literature. Because essays require a thorough knowledge and sound understanding of writing styles, the manipulation of register and tone, and an awareness of purpose and audience, formal elements of language are not neglected.
Our pupils write an external IGCSE examination in May 2010. Thereafter, they embark on the first semester of their AS course which is completed in November 2011.
Grade 12 pupils who have passed the International General Certificate of Education enrol for the General Certificate of Education (International) Advanced Subsidiary Level or Advanced Level. Pupils will sit for their AS or A-level examinations in November 2010. Our Grade 12 pupils follow the Language and Literature in English GCE Advanced Subsidiary Level syllabus. Once a pupil has passed the subject at AS level, they may proceed to A-level, usually as part of a post-matric year. At A-level, a pupil may take English Literature (course 9695).The Matriculation Board demands AS Language if a student chooses to sit the A-level Literature examination.
LANGUAGE AND LITERATURE IN ENGLISH (ADVANCED SUBSIDIARY) COURSE
AS-LEVEL 2009
This syllabus is provided for Advanced Subsidiary only.
It cannot be combined with Advanced Level Papers 5, 6, 7, 8.
AIMS
To encourage:
- A critical and informed response to writing in a range of forms, styles and contexts.
- The interdependent skills of reading, analysis and communication.
- Effective and appropriate communication.
- Appreciation of and an informed personal response to literature in English.
- Wider reading and an understanding of how it may contribute to personal development.
ASSESSMENT OBJECTIVES
Candidates will be required to demonstrate:
- Knowledge and understanding of features of English language.
- Ability to write clearly, accurately and effectively for a particular purpose or audience.
- Ability to respond to texts in two of the three main forms (Prose, Poetry and Drama), of different types and from different cultures.
- Understanding of the ways in which writers’ choices of form, structure and language shape meanings.
- Ability to produce informed, independent opinions and judgements on literary texts.
- Ability to communicate clearly the knowledge, understanding and insight appropriate to literary study.
