English

BGE

In S1–S3, English is part of the Broad General Education and focuses on developing pupils’ core literacy, communication, and critical thinking skills. Learners explore a wide range of texts, including novels, short stories, poetry, drama, and media, helping them to build confidence as readers, writers, and speakers.

Pupils develop skills across four key areas:

Reading: Understanding and analysing fiction, non-fiction, and media texts
Writing: Creating imaginative, personal, and factual pieces for different purposes and audiences. The teaching of some formal grammar helps pupils to make sense of language.
Listening and Talking: Participating in discussions, group work, presentations, and debates
Critical Literacy: Exploring how language is used to inform, persuade, and entertain

Through a variety of engaging learning experiences, pupils learn to express ideas clearly, think independently, and respond thoughtfully to the world around them. The course provides a strong foundation for National Qualifications in English in the senior phase.

How learning progresses into National Qualifications

Progression in English from the Broad General Education (BGE) to SQA qualifications in Scotland involves a transition from covering experiences and outcomes in S1-S3 to specialized, certified National Courses in the Senior Phase (S4-S6). This progression is designed to move learners from developing foundational literacy skills to achieving qualifications that facilitate further education or employment.

Here is the structure of progression in English:

1. Broad General Education (BGE): S1–S3

Focus: In S1 to S3, English departments focus on the third and fourth levels of Curriculum for Excellence (CfE) experiences and outcomes.
Skills Development: Learners develop core skills in reading, writing, talking, and listening through engagement with literature, media, and creative or argumentative writing.
Transition to S3: S3 is used to bridge the gap, with many schools starting to align their curriculum directly with the requirements of National 4 or National 5 English.

2. Senior Phase (S4-S6): SQA Qualifications

The Senior Phase, beginning in S4, moves away from general education to specific certification.

National 4 (SCQF Level 4): This course is assessed internally by schools and has no final exam. It focuses on functional literacy and communication skills.
National 5 (SCQF Level 5): Often the first course taken in S4 or sometimes in S5, this is a graded qualification (A-D) involving a final SQA exam and a writing portfolio. It requires a high level of critical analysis and technical skill.
Higher (SCQF Level 6): Usually taken in S5 or S6, Higher English is a key entry requirement for university and college courses. It builds directly on the analytical skills developed at National 5.
Advanced Higher (SCQF Level 7): Taken in S6, this level offers specialization, often requiring a dissertation and in-depth textual analysis.

Key Aspects of Progression

Skill Alignment: Key aspects of learning at the BGE third and fourth levels are directly relevant to, and build toward, the skills required for National 4 and 5.
Literacy Focus: Early, sustained focus on literacy in S1/S2 helps build the necessary skills for senior, more rigorous assessments.
Gradual Challenge: The curriculum is designed to make the transition from BGE to the Senior Phase a natural, incremental step rather than a sudden leap.
Alternative Paths: Schools offer varied paths, such as Skills for Work courses, for learners who might not take the traditional academic route, ensuring inclusivity.

Links to career pathways and skills development

SQA qualifications in English provide a structured progression from foundational literacy to advanced literary analysis, equipping learners with essential communication skills for a wide range of careers. These qualifications are mapped to the Scottish Credit and Qualifications Framework (SCQF), which helps illustrate their equivalence to other UK standards (e.g., Highers are roughly equivalent to A-levels).
1. English Qualification Progression
The core pathway develops four key skills: Reading, Writing, Talking, and Listening.
National 3 & 4: Focus on basic literacy and communication in everyday contexts. There are no external exams; assessment is continuous.
National 5: Introduces formal external assessment, including a writing portfolio and exams. This is a critical gateway for most entry-level jobs and further college study.
Higher: Develops complex analysis of literature and language. It is the standard entry requirement for most UK university courses.
Advanced Higher: Equivalent to first-year university level (SCQF Level 7). It involves independent research and a dissertation, preparing students for high-level academic study.

Career Pathways & Skills

English qualifications are rarely a "stand-alone" career path but serve as the foundation for various sectors.

Career Sector Key Skills Developed Relevant SQA English Focus

Media & Journalism Critical analysis, creative writing, research Advanced Higher (Dissertation)

Business & Admin Professional communication, reporting Workplace Communication Units, SCQF Core Skills

Education & Law Analytical thinking, persuasive talking Higher/Advanced Higher Literary Study

Marketing & PR Audience awareness, technical accuracy National 5/Higher Writing Portfolio

Vocational & Professional Alternatives

For those focused on immediate employment or specific industries, the SQA offers targeted awards:

Core Skills (Communication): Specifically designed to prove "soft skills" to employers.
Professional Development Awards (PDAs): Used by those already in a career to broaden their specialist skills, often linked to National Occupational Standards.
SQA Advanced Certificates/Diplomas: While often in subjects like Business or IT, these include mandatory communication units to ensure graduates meet employer expectations for workplace literacy.

META-SKILLS (Transferable Skills)

The meta-skills pupils develop through the subject (e.g. communication, problem solving, teamwork, critical thinking / reasoning, creative thinking, leadership, digital skills)

English is a primary vehicle for developing meta-skills—higher-order, transferable abilities that help learners adapt to a rapidly changing world. These are categorised by Skills Development Scotland (SDS) into three core themes:

1. Social Intelligence (Connecting with the World)

English education heavily emphasises these skills through collaborative activities and literary analysis.
Communicating: Beyond basic grammar, students learn to adapt language for different audiences and purposes, a key requirement in SQA English portfolios.
Feeling (Empathy): Studying literature allows students to experience diverse perspectives, fostering empathy and an understanding of the impact of actions on others.
Collaborating & Leading: Group discussions and "talking" assessments require students to negotiate, reach agreements, and sometimes take responsibility for directing a team's task.

2. Innovation (Creating Change)

The analytical nature of English encourages students to move beyond surface-level understanding.
Critical Thinking: Essential for evaluating texts, identifying bias, and questioning the world as represented in literature.
Sense-making: Students group and compare complex information from multiple sources to form coherent arguments or opinions.
Creativity & Curiosity: Creative writing tasks spark idea generation and "storytelling," helping students develop a unique voice and explore new concepts.

3. Self-Management (Managing the Now)

The progression from National 5 to Advanced Higher requires increasing levels of independence.
Focusing: The ability to filter and sort through research for dissertations or extended essays requires sustained attention.
Integrity: Students participate in discussions about values and must demonstrate honesty and personal ethics in their research and reporting.
Adapting: Learning to respond positively to constructive feedback on drafts is a core part of the writing process.
Visibility of Skills: The SQA Meta-skills Development Log is often used to help students explicitly record and reflect on how their coursework—such as a group debate or a literary essay—has improved these specific meta-skills.

AIMS & OBJECTIVES

The world is a story - some of which we tell ourselves and some of which is told to us.

A study of language and literature helps us to realise the ways in which our story is told - how words and grammar influence the way that we interpret the world around us and how narrative does too. To learn to decode the signs which determine our world view is to learn to understand the world.

Above all, language is a vastly powerful tool, which opens up possibilities in the lives of those who learn to manipulate it with skill and assurance.

There is an analogy which runs like this: if pupils were challenged to run a mile in four and a half minutes, none of them would be able to do it. However, if they were given a year to train many of them could achieve this target. They would not achieve it by last-minute swotting and cramming or by only studying books on how to run: they would achieve their target by constant, regular, rigorous practice supplemented by hints from more experienced runners, along with some knowledge of and some analysis of tactics. Language skills should be seen in the same light; pupils need constant practice, all the time scaling obstacles which seemed insurmountable three or four months previously. This puts us in the position of trainers rather than teachers – directing, nudging, encouraging; all the time analysing weaknesses in technique and devising ways in which to remedy the weaknesses.

Work rate is a crucial component in language teaching – children and young people should be producing written work on a regular basis. Nothing works as well as the weekly essay with prompt feedback. There is a continuity and dialogue between teacher and pupil which focuses on progress and improvement of technique. Although there is value in redrafting - it allows for reflection and a focus on quality that can lead to real breakthroughs for individuals - redrafting can be a waste of time when the initial essay is trite or poorly conceived. Pupils should thoroughly redraft only their best ideas, perhaps no more than once or twice a term. The regularity that holds for writing also holds for reading. Nothing improves reading skills as much as the act of reading.

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