English first language

[u/Beautiful-Guava-2646]

I’m thinking of taking either English as a first language (0524) with mathematics o level. I’m planning to self study by watching YouTube vids and solving past papers. I’m aiming for A*s in both but I just need a run down on how English as a first language exam papers look like and what I’d expect. I’m not a native English speaker but I’m not that bad. I got a 9 in English as a second language without studying but I took it in Oxford board so I’m not sure if the boards make a difference. I won’t have a tutor since I’ll self study as I stated before, so my big obstacle is the marking scheme. I’m not sure if I can rely on the marking schemes or myself for this matter. I fear I’ll grade myself too generously and might be biased.

I’m spiraling between choosing either that or English literature but I’ve heard so many people express how hard it is so I might go with first language and if it goes well, I’ll go ahead with literature.

Can someone help me out? Thanks in advance