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Assessment criteria vi) Show an ability to communicate clearly the knowledge, understanding and insight appropriate to literary study.

OK. We've dealt with the knowledge and the understanding and the need for insight. There are two final issues here.

i) An ability to "communicate clearly". You know what this means. It's the 'good English' clause. It's the statement that emphasises how important it is to be able to use good formal English and to communicate your feelings and ideas precisely and well. So if you don't do this so well, you've got two years to learn.

ii) Note also the emphasis on the knowledge, understanding and insight "appropriate to literary study". You are reminded here that, as students of English literature, you are reading literature in an educational context, so, as we discussed earlier, rambling on about your feelings won't do. The "insight" appropriate to literary study must include: a disciplined understanding of the author's intentions; the historical background of texts; an understanding of genre and style; an understanding of literary concepts (we've discussed tragedy, for instance); an understanding of the writer's craft and the craft of fiction (see Assessment Objective i) and have developed a literary critical vocabulary in order that you can communicate in the terminology appropriate to literary study ( All subjects have a specialist terminology. You must use literary terminology just as you will need to use sociological terminology in Sociology and historical terminology in History).

In a sense you are being asked not only to respond to texts but to write with judgment and with the objectivity of a scholar. Remember: in one sense GCE 'A' Level English is a training ground for university study of the subject. You are being trained to develop skills and apply them in a manner that is agreed among scholars.

TASK: read some literary criticism on one of the texts you are studying, or on 'Tess'. In particular, note the style of the writers. Mind you, if they are published these writers will tend to be rather good. If you'd like to see some actual student writing for 'A' level, check out ESSAYS and the JOURNAL in this website.

Discouraged by the enormity of the task? Don't be. You are learning to think. It involves training the mind. You'll ENJOY it!