AQA A-Level Classical Civilisation Past Papers & Mark Schemes

Examiner reports for AQA Classical Civilisation consistently flag three issues: students summarising plot rather than analysing, citing only the prescribed translation when comparison or counter-reading is required, and failing to address the specific terms of the question. For Paper 1 essay questions, build a comparison grid for the Iliad/Odyssey and the Aeneid covering: the hero's relationship with the divine, the depiction of warfare, attitudes to fate, and the function of the underworld. Practise paragraphs that move between texts every two or three sentences, rather than dealing with each text in turn — A* responses are integrative. For extract questions, annotate the extract before writing: identify rhetorical figures, structural features, intertextual echoes, and thematic significance. Always tie observations back to the extract's place in the wider narrative. For Paper 2, vocabulary precision matters — terms like ekklesia, populares, optimates, mos maiorum or skene must appear and be used correctly. Make a glossary per option and quiz yourself daily in the final weeks. Past papers should be done timed: 60 minutes for Section C essays, 45 minutes for B, 15 for A. Mark each response against the published mark scheme using the tiered descriptors and identify whether your response is at AO1 (knowledge), AO2 (analysis), or AO3 (assessment) — top bands need all three working together.