AQA GCSE English Literature Examiner Report 2023: Summary

In my nearly 15 years in education, I have worked hard to develop my understanding of exactly what examiners want from my English Literature students. 

As teachers, we all know that examiner reports are a treasure trove of useful tips and tricks, but it can be hard to know what to do with this vital information. 

This article provides a concise summary of the key points from the 2023 AQA GCSE English Literature examiner reports for Paper 1: Shakespeare and the 19th-century novel and Paper 2: Modern texts and poetry. 

I have also included some ways you can incorporate the reflections and recommendations of lead examiners from these reports into your classroom practice. This will benefit all of your students, including interactive and group activities that my students always loved.

Key takeaways

Common strengths

Paper 1: Shakespeare and the 19th-century novel

• Many students structured responses well, using thesis statements to guide their arguments

• Stronger students referenced key moments in the text rather than just memorised quotations

• Understanding of writer’s methods is improving, with more students discussing structure and characterisation

• Some excellent use of context was evident — but only when it was relevant to the task

• Students analysed Macbeth’s transformation well — successful responses compared his early bravery (“valiant Macbeth”) to his later desperation (“Give me my armour”) to explore Shakespeare’s portrayal of masculinity

• The best A Christmas Carol responses explored Scrooge’s greed through structure, starting with his early miserliness, linking to the Ghost of Christmas Present’s warnings, and concluding with his redemption

• Students responding to Romeo and Juliet often structured responses effectively, linking Juliet’s emotions in the extract to her broader arc of isolation and defiance

Paper 2: Modern texts and poetry

• Students engaged well with key themes, particularly power and responsibility in An Inspector Calls

• The best poetry comparisons were thoughtful and well-selected, rather than overly structured

• Many students excelled in unseen poetry, showing strong skills in interpretation and imagery analysis

• In An Inspector Calls, students successfully linked setting to themes, discussing how the claustrophobic dining room reflected upper-class isolation from responsibility

• For the Power and Conflict poetry question, strong responses compared tyranny in “Ozymandias” to oppression in “London”, analysing how both poems critique unchecked authority

• Students tackling unseen poetry engaged particularly well with “Scaffolding”, exploring how imagery of ladders and bridges symbolised relationships evolving over time

Common areas for improvement

Paper 1: Shakespeare and the 19th-century novel

• Pre-prepared introductions (e.g., “the eponymous hero…”) often failed to engage with the question

• Formulaic responses limited analysis — students should be encouraged to explore ideas more flexibly

• Context should support analysis, not dominate responses with unnecessary historical detail

• Some Macbeth responses misinterpreted masculinity in the extract, focusing only on his warrior status (“Give me my armour”) rather than his psychological decline

• For A Christmas Carol, many students provided unnecessary biographical details about Dickens (e.g., his own childhood poverty) instead of linking context to Scrooge’s transformation

• Weak responses to Jekyll and Hyde often explained 19th-century fears about science without linking them to Stevenson’s depiction of duality, meaning AO3 was not properly integrated

Paper 2: Modern texts and poetry

• Comparative poetry responses should be natural, not forced — the best answers analysed each poem separately before drawing meaningful links

• Structural analysis needs depth — students should avoid vague comments about rhyme schemes or enjambment.

• Overuse of generic social/historical context weakened responses — students should focus on the text’s ideas

• In An Inspector Calls, some responses fixated on class divisions in 1912, but didn’t link this clearly to the play’s characters and their development

• Some students tackling ‘My Last Duchess’ misinterpreted the poem as a love story rather than a critique of power and control, which led to inaccurate analysis

• In unseen poetry, weaker responses only identified literary techniques (e.g., alliteration or enjambment) without explaining their effects, limiting AO2 marks

Key examiner advice

For all papers

• Teach students to use a clear thesis statement—this keeps responses structured and focused

• Encourage well-selected references rather than forcing full quotations

• Help students engage critically with questions rather than applying generic analysis

• Broaden the understanding of writer’s methods — structure and characterisation are just as important as language

• Make poetry comparisons natural, not forced — separate analysis followed by meaningful links is more effective

• Remind students to manage their time effectively, particularly in poetry comparison and unseen poetry

How to use the examiner report in the classroom

Research in metacognition and self-regulated learning suggests that students perform better when they are explicitly taught how to reflect on their own thinking and learning processes (EEF, 2018). 

One powerful way to do this is to show students summaries of examiner reports (you could even show them excerpts of this article) and ask them to identify any common pitfalls, or high-scoring strategies, that they’ve shown in their own (or a peer’s) work. 

I found that this not only demystifies the assessment process, but also encourages students to take ownership of their improvement — something all teachers want of their students!

Addressing common issues

Below are targeted classroom activities that I have used to address specific areas for improvement highlighted in the examiner reports. Most of these are interactive or group activities, and my students always loved any activity that involved a competition!

By incorporating these metacognitive strategies, teachers can help students internalise examiner expectations, leading to more confident, structured, and insightful responses in the GCSE English Literature exam.

Improve student outcomes with Save My Exams

Here at Save My Exams, we are passionate about supporting students to fulfil their full potential. Over 1.5 million students use Save My Exams and, thanks to our comprehensive resources, those who do improve by two grades on average.

But we have plenty for teachers too. All of our resources have been created by teachers and examiners who know exactly what you need to support your students attain the highest grades. 

From fully annotated model answers to dozens of AQA GCSE English Literature past exam questions, to quiz-style questions to help retrieval practice, to bespoke mock exams (again, with full model answers), our tools help you to teach smarter, not harder.

Explore Save My Exams for Teachers

References

Education Endowment Fund: “Metacognition and Self-regulated Learning”

“Improving Students’ Learning With Effective Learning Techniques”, 2013, Dunlovsky et al, Association of Psychological Science