Specifications that use this resource:

GCSE English Literature 8702

Switching to AQA: from Edexcel

Compare our GCSE English Literature (8702) to Edexcel’s offering.

Although each exam board’s specification is different, the Department for Education (DfE) and Ofqual state that they all need to include the following:

at least one Shakespeare play
at least one 19th -century novel
a number of unseen texts
a comparison of unseen texts
an assessment of students’ use of vocabulary, sentence structure, spelling and punctuation (AO4).

Key similarities

Both boards have two exams, one lasting 1hr 45min, one lasting 2hrs 15min.
Shakespeare and the 19th-century novel questions are both extract based.
Shakespeare and the 19th-century novel text choices are almost identical.
Both boards include a question which asks students to compare two unseen poems.
Both poetry questions print a poem from the anthology and require the student to choose the poem they’d like to compare.

Key differences

We offer a wider choice of modern texts, increasing your chances of finding something to inspire your students.
We recognise that skills of literature analysis are intertwined, and assesses AO1, AO2 and AO3 holistically in every question (except the unseen poetry).
We assess AO4 in the first section of each paper, when students are freshest and writing at their best.

Assessment comparison

Paper 1

AQA	Edexcel
1hr 45 mins	1hr 45 mins
64 marks	80 marks
40% of GCSE	50% of GCSE

Section A

AQA	Edexcel
Section A: Shakespeare	Section A: Shakespeare
One extract-based essay question. Students write about an extract from their chosen play, and the play as a whole - all within the same response.	One essay question, with two essay parts. Part one focuses on an extract. Part two focuses on the whole play.
AO1, AO2 and A03 are assessed holistically across Section A and Section B. AO4 is only assessed in Section A (4 marks).	Section A, Part A assesses AO2. Section A, Part B assesses AO1 and AO3.

AQA

Edexcel

Section A: Shakespeare

One extract-based essay question. Students write about an extract from their chosen play, and the play as a whole - all within the same response.

One essay question, with two essay parts. Part one focuses on an extract. Part two focuses on the whole play.

AO1, AO2 and A03 are assessed holistically across Section A and Section B.

AO4 is only assessed in Section A (4 marks).

Section A, Part A assesses AO2.

Section A, Part B assesses AO1 and AO3.

Section B

AQA	Edexcel
Section B: The 19th-century novel	Section B: Post-1914 Literature – British play or novel
One extract-based essay question. Students write about an extract from their chosen novel and the play as a whole.	One essay question from a choice of two. Each question has a statement or quotation from the text. Students write about their chosen text.
AO1, AO2 and A03 are assessed holistically across Section A and Section B.	Section B assesses AO1, AO3 and A04. AO4 is only assessed in Section B (8 marks).

AQA

Edexcel

Section B: The 19th-century novel

Section B: Post-1914 Literature – British play or novel

One extract-based essay question. Students write about an extract from their chosen novel and the play as a whole.

One essay question from a choice of two. Each question has a statement or quotation from the text. Students write about their chosen text.

AO1, AO2 and A03 are assessed holistically across Section A and Section B.

Section B assesses AO1, AO3 and A04.

AO4 is only assessed in Section B (8 marks).

Paper 2

AQA	Edexcel
2hrs 15 mins	2hrs 15 mins
96 marks	80 marks
60% of GCSE	50% of GCSE

Section A

AQA	Edexcel
Section A: Modern texts	Section A: 19th-century novel
One essay question from a choice of two. Students write about their chosen text.	One question with two essay parts. Part one focuses on an extract. Part two focuses on the whole novel.
Section A and Section B assess AO1, AO2 and AO3 holistically. AO4 is only assessed in Section A (4 marks).	Section A, Part 1 assesses AO2. Section A, Part 2 assesses AO1.

AQA

Edexcel

Section A: Modern texts

Section A: 19th-century novel

One essay question from a choice of two. Students write about their chosen text.

One question with two essay parts. Part one focuses on an extract. Part two focuses on the whole novel.

Section A and Section B assess AO1, AO2 and AO3 holistically.

AO4 is only assessed in Section A (4 marks).

Section A, Part 1 assesses AO2.

Section A, Part 2 assesses AO1.

Section B

AQA	Edexcel
Section B: Poetry	Section B: Poetry since 1789
One question comparing two poems from the AQA Anthology. One poem will be printed on the paper. Students choose the second poem from the anthology cluster.	Two parts, each with one question. Part one is one question comparing two poems from the Edexcel Anthology. One poem will be printed on the paper. Students will choose the second poem from the Anthology cluster. Part two is one question comparing two unseen poems.
Section A and Section B assess AO1, AO2 and AO3 holistically.	Section B Part 1 assesses AO2 and AO3. Section B Part 2 assesses AO1 and AO2.

Section C

AQA	Edexcel
Section C: Unseen Poetry	No Section C
Two questions: one question on an unseen poem and one question comparing this poem with a second unseen poem.	n/a
The first question assesses AO1 and AO2, the second question assesses AO2.	n/a

Text comparison

Shakespeare

AQA	Edexcel
Macbeth The Tempest Romeo and Juliet Much Ado About Nothing The Merchant of Venice Julius Caesar (AQA only)	Macbeth The Tempest Romeo and Juliet Much Ado About Nothing The Merchant of Venice Twelfth night (Edexcel only)

19th-century novel

AQA	Edexcel
Jane Eyre Great Expectations The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde A Christmas Carol Pride and Prejudice Frankenstein The Sign of Four (AQA only)	Jane Eyre Great Expectations The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde A Christmas Carol Pride and Prejudice Frankenstein Silas Marner (Edexcel only) .

Modern texts/Post-1914 British play or novel

AQA	Edexcel
Animal Farm An Inspector Calls Anita and Me Blood Brothers Lord of the Flies Pigeon English A Taste of Honey DNA The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time (play-script) The History Boys Never Let Me Go Telling Tales (AQA only) AQA short story anthology AQA past and present poetry anthology	Animal Farm An Inspector Calls Anita and Me Blood Brothers Journey’s End Hobson’s Choice Lord of the Flies The Woman in Black The Empress Refugee Boy Coram Boy Boys don't cry Belonging (collection of poems) Edexcel poetry anthology collections

Love and relationships

AQA	Edexcel
When We Two Parted – Lord Byron Love’s Philosophy – Percy Bysshe Shelley Porphyria’s Lover – Robert Browning Sonnet 29 – ‘I think of thee!’ – Elizabeth Barrett Browning Neutral Tones – Thomas Hardy Letters From Yorkshire – Maura Dooley ‘The Farmer’s Bride – Charlotte Mew Walking Away – Cecil Day-Lewis Eden Rock – Charles Causley Follower – Seamus Heaney Mother, any distance – Simon Armitage Before You Were Mine – Carol Ann Duffy Winter Swans – Owen Sheers Singh Song! – Daljit Nagra Climbing My Grandfather – Andrew Waterhouse	La Belle Dame Sans Merci – John Keats A Child to his Sick Grandfather – Joanna Baillie She Walks in Beauty – Lord Byron A Complaint – William Wordsworth Neutral Tones – Thomas Hardy Sonnet 43 – Elizabeth Barrett Browning My Last Duchess – Robert Browning 'First Date – She’ and ‘First Date – He’ – Wendy Cope Valentine – Carol Ann Duffy One Flesh – Elizabeth Jennings I wanna be yours – John Cooper Clarke Love’s Dog – Jen Hadfield Nettles – Vernon Scannell The Manhunt – Simon Armitage My Father Would Not Show Us – Ingrid de Kok

AQA

Edexcel

When We Two Parted – Lord Byron
Love’s Philosophy – Percy Bysshe Shelley
Porphyria’s Lover – Robert Browning
Sonnet 29 – ‘I think of thee!’ – Elizabeth Barrett Browning
Neutral Tones – Thomas Hardy
Letters From Yorkshire – Maura Dooley
‘The Farmer’s Bride – Charlotte Mew
Walking Away – Cecil Day-Lewis
Eden Rock – Charles Causley
Follower – Seamus Heaney
Mother, any distance – Simon Armitage
Before You Were Mine – Carol Ann Duffy
Winter Swans – Owen Sheers
Singh Song! – Daljit Nagra
Climbing My Grandfather – Andrew Waterhouse

La Belle Dame Sans Merci – John Keats
A Child to his Sick Grandfather – Joanna Baillie
She Walks in Beauty – Lord Byron
A Complaint – William Wordsworth
Neutral Tones – Thomas Hardy
Sonnet 43 – Elizabeth Barrett Browning
My Last Duchess – Robert Browning
'First Date – She’ and ‘First Date – He’ – Wendy Cope
Valentine – Carol Ann Duffy
One Flesh – Elizabeth Jennings
I wanna be yours – John Cooper Clarke
Love’s Dog – Jen Hadfield
Nettles – Vernon Scannell
The Manhunt – Simon Armitage
My Father Would Not Show Us – Ingrid de Kok

Power and conflict

AQA	Edexcel
Ozymandias – Percy Bysshe Shelley London – William Blake Extract from ‘The Prelude’ – William Wordsworth My Last Duchess – Robert Browning The Charge of the Light Brigade – Alfred Lord Tennyson Exposure – Wilfred Owen Storm on the Island – Seamus Heaney Bayonet Charge – Ted Hughes Remains – Simon Armitage Poppies – Jane Weir War Photographer – Carol Ann Duffy Tissue – Imtiaz Dharker The Emigrée – Carol Rumens Checking Out Me History – John Agard Kamikaze – Beatrice Garland	A Poison Tree – William Blake The Destruction of Sennacherib – Lord Byron Extract from ‘The Prelude’ – William Wordsworth The Man He Killed – Thomas Hardy Cousin Kate – Christina Rossetti Half-caste – John Agard Exposure – Wilfred Owen The Charge of the Light Brigade – Alfred, Lord Tennyson Catrin – Gillian Clarke War Photographer – Carole Satyamurti Belfast Confetti – Ciaran Carson The Class Game – Mary Casey Poppies – Jane Weir No Problem – Benjamin Zephaniah What Were They Like? – Denise Levertov

AQA

Edexcel

Ozymandias – Percy Bysshe Shelley
London – William Blake
Extract from ‘The Prelude’ – William Wordsworth
My Last Duchess – Robert Browning
The Charge of the Light Brigade – Alfred Lord Tennyson
Exposure – Wilfred Owen
Storm on the Island – Seamus Heaney
Bayonet Charge – Ted Hughes
Remains – Simon Armitage
Poppies – Jane Weir
War Photographer – Carol Ann Duffy
Tissue – Imtiaz Dharker
The Emigrée – Carol Rumens
Checking Out Me History – John Agard
Kamikaze – Beatrice Garland

A Poison Tree – William Blake
The Destruction of Sennacherib – Lord Byron
Extract from ‘The Prelude’ – William Wordsworth
The Man He Killed – Thomas Hardy
Cousin Kate – Christina Rossetti
Half-caste – John Agard
Exposure – Wilfred Owen
The Charge of the Light Brigade – Alfred, Lord Tennyson
Catrin – Gillian Clarke
War Photographer – Carole Satyamurti
Belfast Confetti – Ciaran Carson
The Class Game – Mary Casey
Poppies – Jane Weir
No Problem – Benjamin Zephaniah
What Were They Like? – Denise Levertov

Time and place

AQA	Edexcel
n/a	To Autumn – John Keats Composed upon Westminster Bridge, Sep 3, 1802 – William Wordsworth London – William Blake I started Early – Took my Dog – Emily Dickinson Where the Picnic was – Thomas Hardy Adlestrop – Edward Thomas Home Thoughts from Abroad – Robert Browning First Flight – U. A. Fanthorpe Stewart Island – Fleur Adcock Present from my Aunts in Pakistan – Moniza Alvi Hurricane Hits England – Grace Nichols Nothing’s Changed – Tatamkhulu Afrika Postcard from a Travel Snob – Sophie Hannah In Romney Marsh – John Davidson Absence – Elizabeth Jennings

AQA

Edexcel

n/a

To Autumn – John Keats
Composed upon Westminster Bridge, Sep 3, 1802 – William Wordsworth
London – William Blake
I started Early – Took my Dog – Emily Dickinson
Where the Picnic was – Thomas Hardy
Adlestrop – Edward Thomas
Home Thoughts from Abroad – Robert Browning
First Flight – U. A. Fanthorpe
Stewart Island – Fleur Adcock
Present from my Aunts in Pakistan – Moniza Alvi
Hurricane Hits England – Grace Nichols
Nothing’s Changed – Tatamkhulu Afrika
Postcard from a Travel Snob – Sophie Hannah
In Romney Marsh – John Davidson
Absence – Elizabeth Jennings

If you're thinking of switching to AQA, let us know you're interested.

Specifications that use this resource:

GCSE English Literature 8702