AO1 across the whole specification

AO1 is one of the four reading assessment objectives that runs across both written components of WJEC Eduqas English Language. It is the foundation skill on which AO2, AO3 and AO4 build. Approximately one-fifth of the total reading marks are AO1.

The two AO1 strands

1. Identify and interpret explicit and implicit information and ideas.
2. Select and synthesise evidence from different texts.

Strand 1 appears in Component 1 (one fiction extract) and Component 2 (two non-fiction extracts). Strand 2 — synthesis — only appears in Component 2 because synthesis requires more than one source.

Where AO1 is tested

• Component 1 Section A — short opening retrieval question on the prose fiction extract (around 5 marks).
• Component 2 Section A — opening "list five" question across both non-fiction extracts (around 5 marks).

Higher-level AO1: implicit information

Beyond the literal, AO1 rewards secure inference. "She placed the photograph face-down on the dresser" implies a desire to forget or avoid; "He counted the change three times" implies caution or financial anxiety. Always anchor the inference to the textual trigger that justified it.

What AO1 is not

AO1 is not analysis (AO2), not comparison (AO3) and not evaluation (AO4). Candidates lose marks when they write paragraphs of language analysis where a one-line factual answer was wanted. Read the question stem: "list", "what do we learn", "give two reasons" all signal AO1.

Examiner advice

• Number your points clearly — examiners can mark efficiently when the structure is plain.
• Stay inside the specified line range.
• Convert quotation into a stated point; do not leave the examiner to do the work for you.