This exam seems different from the style of A-level English, how best should I prepare for this exam?

Everyone learns differently, but for the ELAT I would suggest a few things as key to anyone's preparation. First and foremost it is important to make sure you are comfortable with unseen passages, and analysing them closely and quickly. The key to this is practice; going through past exam papers, much as you do for GCSE and A-Level revision, allows you to get a feel for the exam. Planning essays you would write in response to 2/3 extracts in the paper is an effective way to become as at ease as possible with this particular format. That said, close analysis is a skill that can be practised on any text be it one you are studying in class or a text you are reading for pleasure. The more widely read you are the better, and the more familiar with literary techniques, the faster you will recognise and identify them in the exam texts.

Familiarity with literary techniques and how they work is evidently important, but all of the above preparation is intended to make the exam as comfortable and enjoyable as possible. It is important to remember that the exam is designed for an immediate response to the texts - you are not supposed to have formed ideas about them before you engage with them in the exam. The texts are not provided before the exam for a reason. Oxford are looking for your pure close analysis of the texts in timed conditions. Read each extract before choosing and then stick with it, everyone is in the same boat, enjoy it. The essential thing is to go in calmly and confidently with a keen eye for close analysis and parallels between extracts.