Classics
Overview
The Latin and Classical Greek AS and A2 courses offer a rich blend of language and literature from the ancient world. You will develop your linguistic skills so that you can understand and appreciate some of the finest literature mankind has produced. This will take you inside the minds of authors who were writing two thousand years ago. Alongside this, you will gain an understanding of the events, culture, and attitudes of Rome and/or Greece at significant periods in their history. You will come to see ways in which the ancient world has shaped western civilisation, and understand the relationship between the classical and modern worlds.
AS and A2 qualifications in Latin and Greek are rightly regarded by universities and employers as indications of intellectual ability. They also demonstrate impressive breadth, as these courses offer the opportunity to use and develop skills which are at different times analytical, empathetic, logical, creative, and critical. These are skills which will equip you for a very wide range of interesting careers, such as the Foreign Office, journalism, advertising, business, finance or the law. In particular, the linguistic skills you gain will enable you to learn other languages quickly and effectively. This even applies to languages which are not related to Latin or Greek.
Approach
The main areas of study are Latin and/or Greek language, and literature written by famous Roman or Classical Greek authors.
This is an ideal course for an intellectual all-rounder, as you will need:
• an analytical approach to language
• good vocabulary-learning skills
• an enquiring mind
• an enjoyment of literature
• an appetite for the academic challenge that these languages offer!
The vast majority of the teaching focuses on textbooks or literary texts, and we use ICT where appropriate. We have a well-stocked library of Classics-related books which students are welcome to borrow, and the school library offers further classical material.
Our Classics tutors are passionate about their subject and very approachable. Class sizes are usually very small, so the atmosphere is relaxed and students are able to receive lots of individual attention.
Both AS and A2 are assessed by exams at the end of the lower sixth and upper sixth years. AS modules can be retaken the following summer if necessary (with the exception of the literature papers, which can not be retaken in every third year when the prescribed works change).
The types of tasks in the AS and A2 exams are similar to those in the GCSE exams: translations, comprehensions and analysis of the style and content of set texts.
Whenever possible, we enrich the experience of learning Latin and Greek by organising trips to classical sites at home and abroad, and to plays and films.
Course Outline
In language classes, you will concentrate on developing your knowledge of grammar and vocabulary, and will come to appreciate subtleties beyond the GCSE syllabus. Each week there will be grammatical work to complete and vocabulary to learn.
In literature lessons, we read and translate original classical works set for examination each year by the exam board. One prose text and one verse text are set for AS, and a different prose and verse text for A2. The verse text will be poetry (epic or personal) or drama, and the prose text will be drawn from history, a legal speech or philosophy. Students are encouraged to understand the content and context of the texts they study, and to appreciate their literary qualities.
The style of work for literature classes is rather different in the sixth form. Instead of having homework to complete after lessons, students are expected to look at the passage of Latin or Greek which will be studied in the next lesson. This approach supports students' language work, and helps them develop independent powers of analysis.
Further Information
The courses in Latin and Greek complement other arts subjects very well. In recent years our students have combined them very successfully with Modern Languages, History, English, Maths, and even Sciences. Whatever area you intend to specialise in, taking one classical language to AS or A2 level shows very impressive intellectual breadth and will strengthen your university application.
Students interested in studying Classics (or related courses like Ancient History or Classical Studies) at university should consider taking both Latin and Classical Greek to A2.
Recently we have welcomed students from abroad who had already studied Latin and /or Greek to the equivalent of GCSE level. These students have took Latin and Greek AS and A2 alongside native English speakers, and achieved excellent results. They also found that studying Latin and Greek through the medium of English was enormously beneficial to their progress in English. By the end of their time here, these students were not only fluent speakers of English, but were also fluent writers of high quality formal English which would be a huge asset to them in their working lives.
We usually recommend that students have at least a grade B at GCSE in the classical language(s) they wish to take in the sixth form, because of the intellectual demands of these courses. In exceptional circumstances pupils with strong enough track records in Latin or other languages may be able to learn enough Greek over the summer to begin the AS course when they join the sixth form. Please contact us if you are considering this route.
For further information, please contact Mrs Amanda Phillips, Head of Classics, by email (avp@millfieldschool.com) or by telephone (01458 444275)
Exam board specification numbers:
• OCR AS GCE Classics: Latin H039
• OCR AS GCE Classics: Classical Greek H040
• OCR A2 GCE Classics: Latin H439
• OCR A2 GCE Classics: Classical Greek H440
Full details of the specifications are available at www.ocr.org.uk