January 2023 Drama update
Dear colleagues,
I hope that this new term has started brightly and things are going well for you and your students so far. Here is your January 2023 update with all the latest news on our GCSE Drama and A level Drama and Theatre qualifications.
In this update you will find:
Component 2 update
If you have students completing Component 2 this academic year, please note that the examination window for Component 2 will be 30 January to 31st March 2023.
We are unable to allocate an examiner to your centre until you have made exam entries.
Exam entries for Component 2 can be made from 14th November 2022.
The closing date for exam entries for UK centres is 21st February 2023.
The closing date for exam entries for international centres is 21st March 2023.
Examiners will begin to contact centres (who have made entries) from 23rd January to make arrangements to either visit your centre or to arrange when the recorded performances will be completed.
For further information on Component 2 and the administration of the qualification, please refer to the Administrative Support Guides below
Admin Support Guides and forms (updated)
The Administrative Support Guides for GCSE Drama and A level Drama and Theatre are now available for this academic year, including information on:
- key dates
- administrative guidance for all three Components
- guidance on using Learner Work Transfer (LWT) platform for Components 1 and 2
- support on how to contact us
We have also provided new, clearer (and fewer) forms for Components 1 and 2 for this year to cut back on admin burden.
All the links in the ASGs are now working.
We have also updated the Component 1 Centre Candidate Information Sheets for both qualifications too.
Component 3 live theatre evaluation update
In order to retain comparability and fairness, and to keep the 500 words of notes in the exam, we are not making any changes to Component 3. This decision has been made based on feedback from the survey we shared. The response to the survey was huge, and the majority of Drama teachers voted in favour of keeping the live theatre and notes, rather than allowing streamed or recorded performances and removing the notes.
Experiencing live theatre is embedded in the subject criteria and therefore this requirement cannot be removed from the qualification. At the end of the course, and by 15 May, centres need to confirm that students have been given the opportunity to see live theatre.
In April 2023, we will send an electronic declaration form to all centres with entries for the summer 2023 exam series, in order for you to confirm that all students have been given the opportunity to see live theatre. The deadline for the declaration to be completed is 15 May 2023.
We understand that due to the current cost of living crisis, and other factors such as location, some centres face huge difficulty in trying to take students to see live theatre. If you are in this situation and it is not possible for your students to write about a live theatre production for component 3, please do get in touch with us at drama.assessment@pearson.com to ask permission to use a streamed or recorded production. We will treat each request on an individual basis. If you have already contacted us this academic year and been given permission to use a streamed or recorded live performance for the 2023 exam, you do not need to contact us again.
A Level Drama and Theatre guidance
As you prepare for A Level Drama and Theatre in the 2023 series, we offer you some bullet point reminders to help to guide you.
The following information from the Senior team should be read in conjunction with the specification, the 2023 ASG (Administrative Support Guide) and material on the website, including the Principal Moderator and Examiner reports from 2022.
Subject advisor
Paul Webster
Drama, Theatre and Performing Arts
