Cambridge IGCSE First Language English
Mapped from the board's own specification and signed off on 23 August 2026 by Lee Woods. June and November, with a March series in India for 0500 only. Graded A* to G, with Speaking and Listening reported separately on a scale of 1 high to 5 low.
- Full scheme of work, lesson by lesson
- Lesson decks in the house template
- Knowledge organiser
- Retrieval grids
- Assessment pack with mark schemes
This specification offers alternative routes, marked route above, and a candidate is entered for one of them. The full curriculum price follows the route you pick: 7 topics on this one. Change the route and the price changes with it.
Structure
| Component | Time | Marks | Weighting | Assessed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Paper 1: Reading0500/01 | 2h 00 | 80 | 50% | |
| Paper 2: Directed Writing and Composition | 2h 00 | 80 | 50% | Externally assessed |
| Component 3: Coursework Portfolio | coursework | 80 | 50% | Internally assessed and externally moderated |
| Component 4: Speaking and Listening Test | 0h 12 | 40 | endorsement | Internally assessed and externally moderated |
160 raw marks, no scaling: every component is exactly proportional to its weighting. Alternative routes are shown indented; a candidate takes one of them, not both.
Assessment objectives
| Objective | Paper 1 | Paper 2 or Component 3 | Component 4 | Overall |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| AO1 ReadingReading: understand explicit and implicit meaning, analyse and evaluate ideas, judge how writers achieve effects, and select information for a purpose | 40 | 10 | 0 | 50 |
| AO2 WritingWriting: express what is thought and felt, structure ideas for effect, control vocabulary and sentence forms, suit language to purpose, write accurately | 10 | 40 | 0 | 50 |
| AO3 Speaking and ListeningSpeaking and listening: express ideas, present opinions for effect, speak clearly and fluently, judge register, and respond appropriately in conversation | 0 | 0 | endorsement | 0 |
Component by component
Paper 1: Reading
Question 1: Comprehension20 marks
Sub-questions on the first text, testing explicit and implicit meaning, writers' effects and selection of information
Question 2: Summary task20 marks
A selective summary of no more than 120 words, plus a short question on attitudes and opinions
Board stated mark split: AO1 15, AO2 5
Question 3: Short answers and language task20 marks
Short answer questions on the third text, then a language task of about 200 to 250 words
Board stated mark split: AO1 20
Question 4: Extended response to reading20 marks
About 250 to 300 words in a named text type: letter, report, journal, speech, interview or article
Board stated mark split: AO1 10, AO2 10
Paper 2 or Component 3: the candidate's second component
Every candidate takes Paper 1 and then one of Paper 2 or the Coursework Portfolio
Paper 2: Directed Writing and Composition2h 00 · 80 marks · Externally assessed
Section A: Directed Writing40 marks
A two part question on texts of 550 to 650 words, then a directed piece of 250 to 350 words
Board stated mark split: AO1 15, AO2 25
Section B: Composition40 marks
One composition of about 350 to 450 words from four titles, two descriptive and two narrative
Board stated mark split: AO2 40
Component 3: Coursework Portfolio80 marks · Internally assessed and externally moderated
Assignment 130 marks
Writing to discuss, argue or persuade in response to a text, about 500 to 800 words
Board stated mark split: AO1 15, AO2 15
Assignment 225 marks
Writing to describe, about 500 to 800 words
Assignment 325 marks
Writing to narrate, about 500 to 800 words
Component 4: Speaking and Listening Test
Individual Talk and Conversation40 marks
An individual talk followed by a conversation, assessed on speaking and listening only
What this specification changes about the package
- Every candidate takes Paper 1 plus either Paper 2 or the Coursework Portfolio. Two product routes per package: an examination route and a coursework route, sharing the Paper 1 material
- A coursework route to the grade is available, unlike GCSE English in England since 2015. Coursework support is a product category this market still buys and the domestic catalogue has no equivalent for
- There are no set texts; every examination text is unseen and printed in the paper. Schemes are skills led and teacher chosen, so the KS3 and skills material transfers directly
- Exams run in June and November, and in March for schools in India entering 0500. Assessment and revision products need two live windows a year, not one
- Speaking and Listening is optional, separately endorsed, and adds nothing to the grade. Speaking products are sold as an add on and never inside the grade bearing package
- The portfolio carries one unmarked first draft and the text used for Assignment 1. Coursework packages must model drafting and redrafting, not only the finished assignment
- Dictionaries are not allowed in either written paper, but may be used for coursework. Vocabulary work belongs in the taught sequence, not in exam technique
How we know
- Specification read
- Version 1, for exams in 2027, 2028 and 2029, read from the cover of the board's own PDF. Retrieved 23 August 2026.
- Sign-off
- Lee Woods, 23 August 2026. Map cie-0500-v1.
- Grading variant
- 0500 grades A* to G; 0990 grades 9 to 1. Tested by sentence level diff at 99.37 per cent identical. Assessment structure, marks, weightings and objectives are identical across the two codes.
What this map does not hold
- entry codes. NOT BOARD STATED beyond 0500/01, which was read from the specimen paper cover; the rest sit in the Guide to Making Entries
- ao mark split. DERIVED tension recorded, not resolved: the board calls its AO weightings approximate, and the published question marks give Paper 1 as 65 reading and 15 writing against a stated 80 and 20 per cent
Decisions taken
- Its own catalogue entry, pointing at this map. 0990 gets its own storefront listing and its own order path. The mapping is unchanged: the two codes were proved near identical by sentence level diff and remain one map with two grading variants
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