Pearson Edexcel International GCSE English Literature · specification 4ET1 · Component 2 · Free · no account needed
Using an open book without wasting the exam (4ET1 specification)
Component 2 is open book. That is a trap as often as an advantage, and this is how the specification's rules actually work.
Specification coverage
Component 2 — Modern Drama and Literary Heritage Texts
Assessment objectives: AO1, AO2, AO4. Suggested learning time: 30 minutes.
Required knowledge
- Component 2 is an open book examination: you may take a clean copy of the prescribed edition of each set text
- Copies must be completely unmarked — no annotation, no highlighting, no sticky notes with writing
- Learners or centres must buy a prescribed edition at the start of the course (Appendix 3 of the specification lists them)
- Component 1 is closed book, so this technique applies to Component 2 only
Required skills
- Locate a quotation quickly without annotation
- Judge when looking a quotation up is worth the seconds it costs
How it is examined
- Two 30-mark essays in 90 minutes
Common mistakes
- Revising less because the book will be there. Open book does not reduce the knowledge required — it raises the expectation of precision.
- Taking an annotated copy into the exam.
- Hunting for a perfect quotation instead of using a good one you already know.
- Assuming Component 1 is also open book. It is not.
This page maps the specification. To learn the content, open the set-text notes and guides — completely free.