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The six levels in AQA’s Literature mark scheme
AQA marks every Literature essay by placing it in one of six levels, then choosing a mark inside that level. The level headings, what each level means in practice, and how to use them in feedback.
AQA marks a 30-mark Literature essay as a whole. The examiner reads the answer, decides which of six levels describes it best, then chooses a mark within that level. AQA’s mark scheme gives each level a heading and a band of five marks:
- Level 6, 26 to 30 marks: “Convincing, critical analysis and exploration”
- Level 5, 21 to 25: “Thoughtful, developed consideration”
- Level 4, 16 to 20: “Clear understanding”
- Level 3, 11 to 15: “Explained, structured comments”
- Level 2, 6 to 10: “Supported, relevant comments”
- Level 1, 1 to 5: “Simple, explicit comments”
An answer with nothing creditable gets 0. On Paper 2, the mark scheme uses six levels of four marks each for the 24-mark unseen poetry question, and four levels for the 8-mark unseen comparison.
Placing an answer in a level
Examiners start at Level 1 and work upwards, checking the answer against each level in turn, like rungs on a ladder. Few answers match every part of a level’s description, so the mark scheme asks for best fit: strength in one area can make up for weakness in another, and the judgement is about the answer as a whole.
The indicative content printed with each question is a guide. Examiners must credit other valid points, and an essay does not have to cover every point on the list to reach Level 6.
One rule overrides best fit. If an answer leaves out a defining part of the task, such as the extract or the whole text on Paper 1, or one of the two poems in the anthology question on Paper 2, the mark scheme treats it as a rubric infringement. A senior examiner reviews it, and it can be capped at the top of Level 2.
Choosing the mark
With the level settled, the examiner places the answer within its five marks. An answer that only just shows the qualities of the level sits at the bottom. One that sits in a level with some qualities of the level above goes near the top: the mark scheme’s own example is an answer that is mainly Level 3 with a little Level 4, which stays in Level 3 with a mark near the top of the band. Examiners also compare the answer with example answers to judge whether it is the same standard, better or worse.
What each level means in practice
Our plain-English reading, for talking about essays in a department or with a class:
- Level 1: the answer retells or describes, with simple comments. It may notice that the writer chose something, and it states context simply if at all.
- Level 2: the comments are relevant and backed by references. Methods are named, sometimes with the right terms, and there is some awareness of context. The typical shape is a quotation followed by a comment on it.
- Level 3: explanation begins. The answer covers the whole task, explains the effects of the methods it names and explains some context.
- Level 4: clear and focused. The answer keeps to the whole task from start to finish, chooses its references well, explains effects clearly and links context to the text and the task.
- Level 5: thoughtful and developed. References are built into the argument, methods are examined in detail, and the answer may weigh other interpretations or deeper meanings.
- Level 6: a convincing, critical argument with one governing idea across the whole text, precise references, fine-grained analysis and context that is part of the argument.
From Level 4 up, the mark scheme expects a focused response to the whole task, and a thesis is the simplest way to set one up: see Teaching thesis statements.
AO4 is marked on its own
On the Shakespeare question and the modern text question, spelling, punctuation and grammar (AO4) earn up to 4 more marks, judged separately from the level of the essay. The mark scheme sets out three bands, worth 4, 2 to 3 and 1 mark, and gives 0 to an answer below them. The AO4 marks in Literature describes each band and the habits that cost students marks.
Using the levels with students
- Place work in a level and leave off the mark. A level tells a student what to do next, because the description of the level above is the target. Whole-class feedback without raw marks shows how our Feedback Loop kits run this.
- Teach the six headings as words students can use. A student who can say why a paragraph is “Explained, structured comments” and what would make it “Clear understanding” knows what to change.
- Show the difference on one paragraph. Take a paragraph that sits at Level 3 and rewrite it at Level 4 in front of the class, saying aloud what changes.
- Keep the levels apart from grades. A level describes one essay. A grade belongs to the whole qualification, and the two do not map neatly.
- Keep the vocabulary separate from our three levels of support. Securing, Strengthening and Soaring describe how much support a student has for a task and the grade they are aiming for. They are not mark scheme levels.
When a department marks mocks to levels, the same rules apply: best fit, then the mark. Marking mocks as a department covers standardising before you start.