New syllabus guide: What's changed in English?

In a nutshell

• An emphasis on text depth study with a focus on quality literature;
• Year 11 Standard and Advanced now have a mandatory first module, Reading to Write, focussing on skill development;
• Year 11 Standard module is Contemporary Possibilities focussing on digital literacy skills;
• Year 12 common module areas of study, Journeys, Discovery, Belonging are all gone
• Year 12 Standard and Advanced have a new mandatory module: The Craft of Writing.

The basics remain unchanged – read texts and write essays but pretty much everything else has changed. The new syllabus allows for texts that give insight into a wide range of social, gender and cultural perspectives, including texts by and about Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples’. There are now two common modules for English Advanced and Standard. Both ‘The Craft of Writing’ and ‘Texts and Human Experiences’ which will be studied across both.

English Standard

• There will be a greater emphasis on literacy skills with a new module introduced: ‘The Craft of Writing,’ looking at essay and creative writing, sentence structure and grammar;
• A new module called ‘Texts and Human Experiences’ replaced the Area of Study;
• The number of prescribed texts has been reduced to three to ensure a more thorough reading, which in turn will also emphasise the teaching of writing skills through a more thorough study of the texts.

English Advanced

• English Advanced will maintain an emphasis on quality literature of past and contemporary societies including Shakespeare, Romantic Poets and Post-Modern novelists.
• The new literacy module ‘The Craft of Writing’ will be studied;
• There will still be four prescribed texts;
• Texts and Human Experiences will replace the AOS;
• A new module called Textual Conversations will be studied, which will more than likely be similar to the current module A, but there isn’t much information available just yet.

English Extension 1 & 2

• The Extension 1 English syllabus has not changed that much but there is now a common module studied across both Extension courses: ‘Literary Worlds’.
• The syllabus says there will be more of a focus on research skills.
• The syllabus for English Extension 2 implies the major work journal could be marked, but that is not definite. It says it has now put ‘requirements for monitoring the Major Work Journal’ in place.
• English Extension 2 marking will now focus on composition, reflection and independent research outcomes.

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