NEA Language Investigation Project Activity Pack

Note from the author:
It is essential that students understand not only how to approach the initial stages of establishing a focus and collecting data, but also how to analyse and evaluate that data in a systematic manner and present their findings in a clear, methodical way.

Activities guide students to produce a successful language investigation based on sample data and examples from a range of actual student investigations. Geared towards the 2015 AS and A Level AQA English Language specification and its focus on how meanings and representations are constructed.

This would be an excellent resource to give to students in advance of them completing the NEA, but also broken up into sections during the process...

...It gives manageable, logical reasoning behind each section of the investigation and organises students’ thought processes

H McCombie, Teacher, Examiner & Peer Reviewer
Designed to encourage understanding and engagement, the resource is divided into four sections:
  • Section A: Assess the successes and weaknesses of real student investigations and allow students to compare their efforts with the exemplars
  • Section B: Develop research skills and using concordance software
  • Section C: Work with sample data
  • Section D: Two high-scoring full investigations written for 2015 specifications which demonstrate different strengths

Also includes two recordings on CD to be used during transcript activities.

What do teachers say about this resource? (9198)

A really good resource for teaching the NEA in a structured way because it can be very hard to know how much support to give to students but this seemed to get the balance of preparing students and letting them work independently right! It was good how suggestions were made for adaptive teaching... I like how there is reference to how to use graphs effectively on as this is usually not done well by students! The example NEAs allow students to see what an investigation looks like... It was easy to read as the layout was clear.

N Gradwell, Teacher of English & Peer Reviewer

Brilliant! It breaks down each part of the coursework and uses models/examples really effectively... It makes quite a complex coursework process seem much easier.

E Worthington, Customer & English Teacher

Very useful and can see how it would be used as a teacher research tool as well as to inform marking and feedback to students. The teacher activities are great! Offers clear model for use within classroom - differentiated outcomes included too, which is great. All nicely organised and easy to navigate.

N Timmis, Teacher & Peer Reviewer

Incredibly thorough resource would serve any teacher of A Level language well - especially if they were teaching it for the first time... The range of different investigations was good... It talks a student through all of the different approaches to research, which is often the area that teachers find difficult to understand in the A Level course. The samples have been carefully selected to identify a range of possibilities for students... It 100% matches the NEA requirement. Each section is clearly outlined and a student has several examples of what the finished product should look like.

A Davie, Teacher & Peer Reviewer

This is an excellent resource... It is ideal for teachers and students to develop an understanding of exactly what the examiners are looking for... It makes it clear to students the depth of the material needed in their investigations... It matches the requirements of the specifications very well.

R Westwell, Teacher & Peer Reviewer

A comprehensive resource with a high level of detail. The AQA resources available to support the NEA are minimal at best, so this plugs a huge gap for first-time teachers of the non-examined assessments. Really well put together, with exceptional exemplars... The hypotheses and methodologies activities in particular give a step-by-step guide to completing what is usually a very unfamiliar section of the task. The commentaries are especially useful if giving students the exemplars to dissect themselves before discussion... My absolute favourite part of this resource is the explanation of how to generate and use KWIC lists and concordance software with their own data... This is a complex and innovative approach that will push students into the top bands of exploring patterns. Very impressive! This would be an excellent resource to give to students in advance of them completing the NEA, but also broken up into sections during the process. It gives manageable, logical reasoning behind each section of the investigation and organises students’ thought processes.

H McCombie, Teacher, Examiner & Peer Reviewer