AQA GCSE Drama: Reviewing the 2025 Exams

Course Code: T0359 £249.00

ABOUT THIS COURSE

This in-depth course is designed to help educators transform common mistakes from the 2025 AQA GCSE Drama exams into opportunities for growth and improvement. The course will provide valuable insights into student performance, highlight key areas of concern, and offer practical strategies to refine your teaching approach. Through expert-led sessions, you will explore ways to better prepare students for future exams, improve their written responses, and ensure they meet the demands of AQA GCSE Drama assessments.

BENEFITS OF ATTENDING

  • Gain a detailed understanding of key lessons from the 2025 exams
  • Identify patterns in student performance and areas for improvement across different exam components
  • Improve student responses to both practical and theoretical elements of the course
  • Enhance students' ability to analyse and evaluate performances effectively
  • Develop strategies for engaging and supporting mixed-ability students

PROGRAMME

10.00am: Understanding the 2025 Exam Performance

  • Key takeaways from the 2025 exams – what worked well and what didn’t
  • Identifying patterns in student performance across the practical and written elements of the exam
  • Understanding common errors and misconceptions in written and practical responses
  • Developing a plan of action for improving student outcomes and refining teaching practices

10.45am: Break

11.00am: Mastering the Written Exam – Extended Responses

  • How student responses compared to examiner expectations in the written exam
  • Structuring high-quality answers that meet AO1, AO2, and AO3 requirements
  • Teaching students how to analyse and evaluate texts, performances, and practitioners effectively
  • Strategies to improve depth, clarity, and focus in extended written responses

11.45am: Overcoming Challenges in Practical Performance and Devising

  • Common challenges faced by students in practical and devised work
  • Understanding how to strengthen students’ performance skills and their ability to reflect on and evaluate their own work
  • Improving students’ ability to respond to the requirements of different exam tasks
  • Developing strategies to help students approach performance with greater confidence and creativity

12.30pm: Lunch

1.30pm: NEA Spotlight – Improving Written Coursework and Performance Analysis

  • Understanding the grade boundaries for practical work and written coursework
  • Why students miss out on marks and how to address these issues
  • Supporting students to develop clear, structured, and insightful analysis of their work
  • Teaching students how to reflect on their performance and apply feedback effectively

2.30pm: Break

2.40pm: Moving Forward – Maximising Success in 2026 and Beyond

  • Embedding assessment objectives in lesson delivery to improve focus and prepare students for future exams
  • Skill-based teaching approaches to enhance student performance, analysis, and evaluation in drama
  • Developing engaging activities that support mixed-ability students in both practical and written aspects of the course
  • Action planning for continued success in future GCSE Drama exams

3.30pm: Depart

GCSE - Code: T0359

AQA GCSE Drama: Reviewing the 2025 Exams

COURSE LEADER

Megan Cambridge trained at Rose Bruford Drama School and, after spending time as a professional actor, transitioned into teaching in 2011. She has gained a wealth of experience in state schools and has held a Subject Leader role since 2018, driving improvements in student performance across all ability levels and leading curriculum development.

Megan is also an experienced examiner for AQA, assessing both the GCSE written and practical examinations. Her experience in examining has deepened her understanding of assessment criteria and student success.

Alongside her leadership and examining roles, Megan is passionate about performing arts education. She owns and runs her own performing arts school, delivering weekend classes to inspire and develop young performers, sharing her passion and love for the arts beyond the classroom.

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