In partnership with the Foyle Foundation
Introduction
This page indicates where lessons in the Shakespeare Curriculum on Macbeth contain learning activities relating to each of the four GCSE English Literature assessment objectives.
The Shakespeare Curriculum has been designed as a resource for teachers and students studying Shakespeare's plays in secondary education in the UK. In England and Wales, the National Curriculum states that students must study at least two plays by Shakespeare in Key Stage 3 and one in Key Stage 4 which culminates in a GCSE English Literature examination with a specific component on Shakespeare.
The exact nature of this component and which plays are included as potential to study for these examinations is dependent on the specific exam board which a school uses. Regardless of these slight differences however, all exam boards in England and Wales base their English Literature GCSE specifications on the assessment objectives as outlined in the National Curriculum.
The Shakespeare Curriculum does not intend for teachers using it to ‘teach to the exam’, as its pedagogical approaches are more holistic pertaining to learning about Shakespeare's plays by exploring them using RSC rehearsal techniques. However, the lessons contained within the Shakespeare Curriculum do relate to developing knowledge towards achieving these assessment objectives.
The table below indicates where each of these assessment objectives can be covered in the lessons on Macbeth. Whilst learning towards all of these objectives may be inherent in every lesson facilitated by a skilled teacher, this table indicates where these assessment objectives are explicitly covered by the content of the Shakespeare Curriculum.
Assessment objectives for GCSE English Literature
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
Shakespeare Curriculum Lessons by AO (Assessment Objective)
| Module & Lesson | AO1 | AO2 | AO3 | AO4 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1.1 | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | |
| 1.2 | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | |
| 1.3 | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | |
| 2.1 | ✓ | ✓ | ||
| 2.2 | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | |
| 2.3 | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | |
| 3.1 | ✓ | ✓ | ||
| 3.2 | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| 3.3 | ✓ | ✓ | ||
| 4.1 | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | |
| 4.2 | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| 4.3 | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | |
| 5.1 | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | |
| 5.2 | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | |
| 5.3 | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | |
| 6.1 | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | |
| 6.2 | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | |
| 6.3 | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | |
| 7.1 | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | |
| 7.2 | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| 7.3 | ✓ | ✓ | ||
| 8.1 | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | |
| 8.2 | ✓ | |||
| 8.3 | ✓ | ✓ |