“I chose to study A-levels at CWA as I found it was the closest college to where I lived, but it was also because the college had a positive reputation. My brother had also attended the college and had a good experience there. Prior to starting my A-levels, I knew I wanted to be an author and go into a career involving History to support it.
Each of the three subject has a varying number of modules to them, some of which I found more interesting than others.
English Language and Literature: For this subject, there were four components: Component 01 focused on an anthology of non-fictional written and spoken texts, Component 02 on poetry and plays (in which we studied William Blake and ‘Othello’, respectively), Component 03 on one prose fiction text (for us, it was ‘Jane Eyre’) and creative writing, and Component 04 was coursework. For me, I most enjoyed studying ‘Othello’ and engaging in creative writing, but I was also quite interested in studying William Blake’s poetry too.
History: This subject was split into three modules, two of which were covered in the first year and focused on Britain and the USA in the 20th century. The third module, which was covered in the second year, was about the Witch Craze in the years 1580-1750; I enjoyed this module the most, partly because I found the topic of the witch trials an interesting – though harrowing – subject, and partly because much of my interest in history tends to be on the earlier time periods. There was also a coursework element to this subject, in which we were required to research about the Holocaust and then answer an essay question on it. This was a good opportunity for us to present our skills in researching and critical analysis that we had learned over the course of teaching.
Sociology: For this one, there were four modules, two of which (Education and The Family) were covered in the first year; the second year had Beliefs in Society and Crime and Deviance. For me, I found the Education and Crime and Deviance modules the easiest – it was fascinating to learn about why there are differences in achievement in particular. Unlike the other two subject, Sociology did not have coursework.
My time at CWA has prepared me for higher education and provided me with the necessary skills that I needed to reach HE level, as well as allowing me to develop my knowledge in the areas that I had interest in.
Overall, my memories at CWA are positive. It took a little while for me to settle in at the beginning but soon enough, I got used to things and was able to enjoy my experience.
I am now studying an undergraduate degree in History and Social Sciences at University Centre West Anglia.