English - Curriculum Information
Yr 7
The Year 7 English course aims to provide a wide variety of activities and learning experiences for students so that interest in and enthusiasm for English is established and maintained. During Semester One students read and study the novel Hitler’s Daughter by Jackie French and Classic Myths to Read Aloud, edited by William F. Russell. During Semester Two they study a selected novel for Lit Circles as well as the film Shrek. In addition to studying and responding to set texts, students also examine letters, speeches, newspapers and play scripts, while reading for pleasure is encouraged through regular time spent in the Fiction Library. Students learn about language and grammar, with regular tests, including spelling tests, used to monitor student progress in this area.
Yr 8
The year 8 English course uses literature as a basis for focused work in the areas of reading, writing, and oral communication. During Semester One students read study and respond to the novels, Parvana by Deborah Ellis and Saint Joan by Lili Wilkinson. During Semester Two they study the novel Chinese Cinderella by Adeline Yen Mah and the film Edward Scissorhands. Reading for pleasure is emphasised, with students regularly visiting the Fiction Library. Students also learn to write in a variety of genres and to gain experience in speaking formally in public, while the rules of grammar are taught through the text English Skills Builder, Book 1. In addition, regular spelling tests are conducted.
Yr 9 Core
The year 9 English course uses literature as a basis for focused work in the areas of reading, writing, and oral communication. During Semester One students read, study, and respond to the novel Tomorrow When the War Began by John Marsden, as well as an anthology of short stories. During Semester Two they study and respond to the novel Saving Francesca by Melina Marchetta and the film text, The Truman Show. In addition they learn to write in a variety of genres and gain experience in speaking formally in public. Students also use the workbook English Skills Builder, Book 2, to study the mechanics of language and grammar. Regular tests, including spelling tests, are used to gauge student progress in this area.
Yr 10 Core
The Year 10 English course uses literature as a basis for focused work in the areas of reading, writing, and oral communication. Students read, study, and respond to an anthology of horror stories, as well as the novel Animal Farm by George Orwell. During Semester Two students also study the play Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare and the film Gattaca. In addition, students learn to write in a variety of genres and gain experience in speaking formally in public, while the rules of grammar, including regular spelling tests, are taught as tools to aid communication.
Middle School Electives
EN05: Her Story
‘Her Story’ examines the portrayal of girls and women in literature from times past through to the modern era. Students study the work of many well known authors by closely examining excerpts from famous novels, plays and poetry. The focus is on the role of girls and women in these stories, with special attention being paid to the cultural and social context in which the text is set. This unit allows students with a love of reading to further explore the heritage that is ours as speakers, readers and writers of English. It also provides students with a solid grounding in the classics of literature such as A Doll’s House by Henrik Ibsen.
EN06: English Power
This elective is directed at students for whom English is a second language and students who need extra assistance in developing English expression. Work in this unit is at times related to work undertaken in the core unit English classes, with a particular focus on the basics of grammar and expression.
EN07: Young Writers
This course is designed for those students who already enjoy writing in all its forms, and for whom writing is already something of a hobby. Students will be exposed to a variety of written language styles, including formal poetry, and both the extended essay and narrative forms. Among other tasks, they will be required to submit five major pieces of writing during the semester, entering at least two of them into external writing competitions.
VCE SUBJECTS
ENGLISH
The English language is central to the way in which students understand, critique and appreciate their world, and to the ways in which they participate socially, economically and culturally in Australian society. The study of English encourages the development of literate individuals capable of critical and imaginative thinking, aesthetic appreciation and creativity. The mastery of the key knowledge and skills described in this study design underpins effective functioning in the contexts of study and work as well as productive participation in a democratic society in the twenty-first century.
Unit 1
VCE English Unit One has at its core the study of two texts, The Wife of Martin Guerre by Janet Lewis and the play Stolen by Jane Harrison. Classroom activities consist of group work, both written and oral, timed tasks in class, and analysis of various non-print texts. In addition there is an expectation that students will complete homework and undertake consistent revision. Assessment is through a combination of graded tasks and the completion of course work. Students sit a formal examination at the end of Semester One.
Unit 2
VCE English Unit Two has, at its core, the study of two texts: Medea by Euripides and the film text Cabaret. Classroom activities consist of a combination of individual and group work, both written and oral, timed tasks in class and analysis of film. In addition there is an expectation that students will complete homework and undertake consistent revision. Assessment is through a combination of graded tasks and the completion of coursework. Students will sit a formal examination at the end of the year.
Unit 3
The focus of this unit is on reading and responding both orally and in writing to a range of texts. In addition, students study the play Inheritance by Hannie Rayson and the novel The Quiet American by Graham Greene. Students focus on the reading of a range of literary texts to develop critical and supported responses. They analyse, either orally or in writing, how a selected text constructs meaning, conveys ideas and values, and is open to a range of interpretations. Students analyse the use of language in texts that present a point of view on an issue currently debated in the Australian media, and construct, orally or in writing, a sustained and reasoned point of view on the selected issue.
Unit 4
The focus of this unit is on reading and responding in writing to a range of texts in order to analyse their construction and provide an interpretation. Students identify, discuss and analyse the structures, features and conventions of a range of texts, including The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Nighttime and a film text such as Look Both Ways or Lantana. On completion of this unit the student should be able to develop and justify a detailed interpretation of a selected text, as well as interpreting previously unseen material and offering a point of view.
ASSESSMENT
School-assessed coursework for Units 3& 4 will contribute 50 per cent to the study score. The level of achievement for Units 3 and 4 is also assessed by an end-of-year examination, which will contribute 50 per cent to the study score.
ENGLISH AS A SECOND LANGUAGE (ESL)
ESL status is granted to students who have studied in English for seven years or less at the commencement of Year 12. These students are assessed using ESL specific assessment criteria and tasks are modified. ESL students in units 3 and 4 study three texts only and in the exam write only one text response essay and complete a modified writing task. Details of such modifications will be provided to ESL students by College ESL Staff at the commencement of their studies.
School-assessed coursework for Units 3 & 4 will contribute 50 per cent to the study score. The level of achievement for Units 3 and 4 is also assessed by an end-of-year examination, which will contribute 50 per cent to the study score.
Literature
RATIONALE
The study of literature focuses on the enjoyment and appreciation of reading that arises from discussion, debate and the challenge of exploring the meanings of literary texts. Students reflect on their interpretations and those of others.
Unit 1
This unit focuses on the ways literary texts represent human experience and the reading practices students develop to deepen their understanding of a text. Students develop more informed responses to texts. They explore the relationship between their response and the ways texts represent human experience. They come to understand how non-print texts, like print texts, are not neutral but represent a point of view.
Unit 2
The focus of this unit is on students’ critical and creative responses to texts. Students deepen their understanding of their responses to aspects of texts such as the style of narrative, the characters, the language and structure of the text. Students extend their exploration of the ideas and concerns of the text. They understand the ways their own culture and the cultures represented in the text can influence their interpretations and shape different meanings. Students make comparisons between texts and identify some of the relationships that exist through features such as the language, characterisation and ideas. Students focus on the way two or more texts relate to each other. Students make comparisons between the ways in which different texts are constructed.
Texts Studied
- Frankenstein by Mary Shelley
- The Crucible by Arthur Miller
- The Winter’s Tale by William Shakespeare
- Dinner at the Homesick Restaurant by Anne Tyler
- Bladerunner (film study – directed by Ridley Scott)
- Selected poems of Bruce Dawe
Unit 3
This unit focuses on the ways writers construct their work and how meaning is created for and by the reader. Students consider how the form of text (such as poetry, prose, drama, non-print or combinations of these) affects meaning and generates different expectations in readers, the ways texts represent views and values and comment on human experience, and the social, historical and cultural contexts of literary works.
Unit 4
This unit focuses on students’ creative and critical responses to texts. Students consider the context of their responses to texts as well as the concerns, the style of the language and the point of view in their re-created or adapted work. In their responses, students develop an interpretation of a text and learn to synthesise the insights gained by their engagement with various aspects of a text into a cogent, substantiated response.
Assessment of levels of achievement
School-assessed coursework for Units 3 & 4 will contribute 50 per cent to the study score. The level of achievement for Units 3 and 4 is also assessed by an end-of-year examination, which will contribute 50 per cent to the study score.
End-of-year examination
The task is designed to assess students’ ability to write sustained interpretations of two different kinds of texts. Students will produce two pieces of writing in response to questions that require critical analysis and interpretation of two texts studied.
Texts Studied
- Bel Canto by Ann Patchett
- Antigone by Sophocles
- The Importance of being Earnest by Oscar Wilde
- The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald
- The Penguin Book of the Beach ed. by Robert Drewe
- Selected poems of Judith Wright
English Language
Rationale
Among the means of communication used by people, language occupies a unique and central place. This study aims to combine learning about the nature of language in human thought and communication with learning how to use English more effectively and creatively. The study is made up of four units. Only three of the four units will be offered at The Academy of Mary Immaculate.
Unit 1: Language and communication
This unit focusses on language and its use in communications. It is concerned with the nature and functions of language and the way language is organised. It provides students with an understanding of language and how it can be used in a variety of ways. It also explores what is unique about human language. Students develop the skills to identify and describe some aspects of the nature and function of language. They also focus on the development of language in children and what children need to learn as they develop from babyhood to early adolescence. They acquire the skills to analyse what children learn when they acquire language and explain a range of views on how language is acquired.
Unit 3
In these units students explore language in its social setting and how language reflects society. Texts in their contexts are studied, with the aim of describing the interrelationship between word, sentences and text to discover how they construct their message. Students focus on the relation between language and society, the importance of language in the formation and development of individual, group and national identity, and regional, social, and stylistic variation in contemporary English in Australia. They pay particular attention to differences between standard Australian English and other varieties of English in Australia. They also analyse different varieties of language and language use, and a range of attitudes towards them. In addition, they examine the ways in which language features are used in societal interaction, as well as describing how language reflects personal, social and cultural understandings and constructs a sense of identity.
Unit 4
The focus of this unit is texts in their contexts. The aim is to describe the interrelationship between words, sentences and text to discover how they construct their message. Students study how the texts of a language typically occur in a range of conventional text types or genres, each with its recognisable purpose and conventions. They investigate and describe the structures and features of a range of specific texts and identify and analyse distinctive features of spoken English texts.
Student Writing
Students are encouraged to enter the best of their writing into our yearly magazine known as The Mirror. In addition, there is a yearly competition to design the cover for this magazine.
