Here are three comprehensive examinations set for candidates who have used RG and its associated volumes. Papers A and Β were set for university students after using RG for one year, three to four hours a week for c. twenty-two weeks. Paper C was a public examination (no longer available) set for Year 11–12 students (16–18) who had studied Greek for two years, using RG in year 1 and studying the set texts (the ‘target’ passages from WoH Herodotus and Sophocles selections) in year 2.

Note: The numbers in brackets (where given) refer to the marks allotted to each part of the paper.

Discussion

All the papers, in their different ways, attempt to cater for a wide range of abilities, and demand a grasp of the language with an understanding of the culture which produced it.

All the papers offer liberal help with vocabulary for the unseens (sight passages); and Paper C offers it with the set texts as well (an important concession when the set texts are as sophisticated as these are; when the students’ time must be limited, since Greek will only be a minority subject for them in the sixth form; and when we want to discourage memorization of the translation, and encourage mature appraisal of the text).