Tutopiya AI
Start free

AQA GCSE English Language (8700)

AQA English Language, question by question.

Practise each reading question and both writing tasks, and get feedback on your own answers. Your tutor helps you improve your writing without writing it for you.

Practise GCSE English Log in

Free plan. Use your Tutopiya account or Google.

How do I answer the 20-mark evaluation question in Paper 1?

Here’s what examiners look for:

  • Say how far you agree with the statement you’re given
  • Back up your view with evidence from the extract, using short quotations
  • Comment on the writer’s methods and the effect they have on the reader

Examiner tip: Evaluate, don’t retell. Every paragraph should come back to the statement.

See how it works

Watch a tutor work through a question.

Say what you're studying, choose a tutor, then work through your homework step by step, take a quick quiz or call your tutor. This one is IGCSE Maths, and every subject works the same way.

Assessment

How AQA GCSE English Language is assessed

Two papers, each worth half the grade, with no tiers. Each paper has a reading section and a writing section, worth 40 marks each. Spoken Language is a separate endorsement.

Specification 8700, first examined in 2017.

All students

  • Paper 1: Explorations in Creative Reading and Writing

    Reading questions on a fiction extract, then descriptive or narrative writing

    Time
    1 h 45 min
    Marks
    80
    Weight
    50%

  • Paper 2: Writers’ Viewpoints and Perspectives

    Reading questions on two non-fiction texts, then writing to present a viewpoint

    Time
    1 h 45 min
    Marks
    80
    Weight
    50%

Separate endorsement

  • Spoken Language

    A presentation, responding to questions and using Standard English, assessed by your teacher

    Time
    During the course
    Weight
    Reported separately

Spoken Language is assessed by your teacher and reported separately. It doesn’t count towards the 9–1 grade.

From the official AQA syllabus, checked October 2026. Read the syllabus

Syllabus content

What’s on the AQA GCSE English Language syllabus

Paper 1

  • Reading a literary fiction extract
  • Descriptive or narrative writing

Paper 2

  • Reading non-fiction and literary non-fiction
  • Writing to present a viewpoint

Where marks are lost

Common AQA GCSE English Language mistakes

  • Writing about structure in Paper 1 Question 2.

    Question 2 is about language: words, phrases and techniques. Structure comes in Question 3.

  • Choosing more than four statements in Paper 2 Question 1.

    Shade exactly four true statements. Choosing more than four loses marks.

  • Losing the form in Paper 2 Question 5.

    Write in the form and for the audience the task sets, and argue a clear viewpoint from start to finish.

Six english tutors, six ways to learn

Practise past-paper style questions with the exam coach, drill facts before a test with quick revision, or slow down with a step-by-step tutor. Switch any time.

See how each one teaches How the AI tutor works
  • OliverConcept explainer
  • RuthStep by step
  • HugoExam coach
  • TessaQuick revision
  • MalikChallenger
  • EllaConfidence builder

Recorded your English Language lesson?

Upload the recording and get notes, a quiz and flashcards made from what your teacher said, ready to revise for AQA GCSE English Language.

See the Lesson Analyser

FAQ

AQA GCSE English Language questions, answered.

Tutors are set up to help you plan, draft and improve your own writing. Paste an answer and ask what to change, and your tutor explains why.

Yes. Call your tutor to rehearse your presentation and practise answering questions about it.

AQA offers GCSE English Language in November as well as the summer, for students aged 16 or over. Check entry with your school.

Yes. The free plan includes 5 tutor messages and 15 minutes of calls a day. Pro and Max give you more when exams get close.

Bring your English Language questions.

Pick your subject and tutor, make a free account and ask your first question in about a minute.

Meet your tutor

More AQA GCSE subjects

English Language in other curricula