Reconstructing the mosaic
Both texts are newly written practice sources about an invented restoration project.
Text One: An original interview with the coordinator of a project to reconstruct a broken mosaic.
Interviewer: How do you begin when there is no picture of the complete mosaic?
Coordinator: We look for repeated colours, painted lines and edges that might join, but none of those clues is automatically proof. A colour may appear in several places, and two edges can fit even when the painted design does not continue.
Interviewer: How do you test a possible arrangement?
Coordinator: We assemble small groups on separate trays and leave spaces where pieces are missing. One person proposes a position while another looks for evidence against it. A neat edge match can be less convincing than several weaker clues that support one another.
Interviewer: Does disagreement slow the work?
Coordinator: It can slow a decision, but that is not the same as preventing progress. We photograph each trial and record pieces as secure, provisional or unplaced. This allows us to develop the reconstruction without pretending that every decision is final.
Text Two: An original placement record from one session.
| Group examined | Initial reason for grouping the pieces | Check against other evidence | Recorded decision |
|---|---|---|---|
| Six blue pieces | Their edges formed a curved band. | A painted line continued across five pieces, but turned away on the sixth. | Five pieces recorded as a secure section of the border; the sixth left unplaced. |
| Four red pieces | They were the same shade as a flower near the centre. | The same red appeared in three separate motifs, and none of the four edges joined. | Recorded as a provisional colour group, with no position assigned. |
| Three cream pieces | They shared the same cream colour, although their broken edges did not touch. | Their speckled surfaces and spacing aligned with two fixed pieces from a doorway pattern. | Recorded as a provisional row with a gap for a missing piece. |
| Two green pieces | Their edges fitted closely together. | Joining them broke the painted stalk; separately, each continued a stalk on a different fixed fragment. | Separated and recorded provisionally in different areas. |
Synthesise what you learn from both texts about how the team balances progress with uncertainty when reconstructing the mosaic.
528 exam-style questions on WJEC GCSE English Language 3.1 Section A (20%) – Reading, covering 3.1.1 Understanding description, narration and exposition texts, 3.1.2 Range of continuous and non-continuous texts, 3.1.3 Short and extended response question types, and 3.1.4 Editing task at word, sentence and text level. Each one has a worked solution and a mark scheme showing where the marks go.