General English

General Subject

General Subjects

• General Subjects are suited to students who are interested in pathways beyond senior secondary schooling that lead to tertiary studies.

• Results in General subjects contribute to the awarded of a QCE and can contribute to an ATAR.

• Students will need high level underpinning skills in literacy, numeracy and 21st century skills to be successful in these subjects.

• Students must have undertaken Investigating Global Connections and English in year 10, maintaining a grade of a B to enter this subject.

Frequently Asked Questions

Why are there pre-requisites to enter this subject?

IT is important that you are working at a B achievement standard in Year 10 to go into an ATAR Pathway for English. This means that the skill set you have developed and demonstrated is working toward the standard in Year 11 and 12 General English.

It is common that someone entering General English will drop a grade point. We want to make sure you are set up for success and have the relevant skills and knowledge to be successful in General English in Year 11 and 12, ensuring you get your QCE and desired ATAR.

Frequently Asked QuestionsWhat are the Units and Topics studied in this subject?

Unit 1 (Year 11)

Be Warned

Unit 2 (Year 11)

I grew up in… (Human Experience)

Unit 3 (Year 12)

Representations of Madness

Unit 4 (Year 12)

Welcome to the EndTOPIC: Perspectives and texts

In Unit 1, students explore individual and/or collective experiences

and perspectives of the world through engaging with a variety of

texts in a range of contexts. They examine how perspectives and

representations of concepts, identities and/or groups are

constructed through textual choices such as language, medium, style

and text structures. This unit allows students to explore how

meaning is shaped through the relationships between language,

text, purpose, context and audience. Students respond to a variety

of non-literary texts and literary texts, and create texts of their own

for a variety of purposes and audiences.

In responding to texts, students analyse the perspectives and

representations of concepts, identities and/or groups in texts and

how these shape their own and others’ ideas and perspectives.

Analysis may include, for example:

- examining ways in which concepts, identities and/or groups

are reported differently in the media and how these are

represented to position readers and viewers

- exploring how writers convey perspectives and

representations through textual structures, conventions,

style and language, and how the meaning of a text is affected

by the contexts in which it is created and received

- examining ways perspectives and representations are

conveyed through argument, rhetoric, tone, register, style

and language to influence audiences.

In creating texts, students demonstrate their understanding of the

relationships between text, purpose, context and audience by

purposefully shaping perspectives and representations of concepts,

identities/and or groups. Students experiment with, and make

choices about, textual structures, medium, conventions and

language to develop voice and style and position audiences.

TOPIC: Texts and cultures

In Unit 2, students explore cultural experiences of the

world through engaging with a variety of texts, including a

focus on Australian cultures for at least half of the unit.

Building on Unit 1, students develop their understanding

of how relationships between language, text, purpose,

context and audience shape meaning and cultural

perspectives. By engaging with a variety of texts,

including Australian texts, students examine the

relationship between language and identity, the effect of

textual choices and the ways in which these choices

position audiences for particular purposes, revealing

attitudes, values and beliefs. Students respond to and

create imaginative and analytical texts of their own.

In responding to texts, students analyse the relationship

between language, representation, identity and cultural

context, uncovering cultural assumptions, attitudes,

values and beliefs that underpin texts.

In creating texts, students purposefully shape

perspectives and representations that reveal certain

cultural attitudes, values and beliefs.

TOPIC 1: Conversations about concept in texts

This topic includes the examination of two different types of text,

e.g. a novel and film, a novel and a play, a documentary and a play,

an op-ed article and a novel, a speech and a novel, a selection of

poetry and film, a film and a play, a selection of poetry and a novel.

Study in this unit will include two texts that are either:

- connected by the representation of concepts, identities,

times and places

or

- transformations or adaptations of (or interventions into)

other texts, such as reimagined literary texts or film

versions of texts or plays.

In responding to two texts, students explore and discuss the

personal, social, historical and cultural significance of

representations in different texts and the cultural assumptions,

attitudes, values and beliefs underpinning them. Students are

given opportunities to add to ongoing, informed and public

‘conversations’ about both literary texts and non-literary texts.

TOPIC 1: Creative responses to texts

By engaging with literary texts, students experiment

with innovative and imaginative use of language, style

and textual elements in order to create their own

imaginative texts that promote emotional and critical

reactions in readers. In creative responses, students

challenge ideas and conventions and reimagine

perspectives by applying their own knowledge of

literary text structures and styles to shape their own

representations. Literary texts appropriate to the focus

of this topic include: short stories, poetry, a novel or

non-fiction text, a play, multimodal texts, such as film

or television programs.

TOPIC 2: Conversations about issues in texts

Students will analyse different perspectives by examining

representations of the same issue in different texts. Students will

explore how texts position readers and viewers, and develop their

capacity to analyse and contest complex and challenging ideas and

the assumptions, attitudes, values and beliefs underpinning them.

They will focus on how the power of language and argument are

used to construct particular perspectives of similar issues in

different texts to prepare for the construction of their own

persuasive argument in relation to an issue. Students will produce

a variety of persuasive texts of their own and the unit will

culminate in a spoken persuasive text.

TOPIC 2: Critical responses to texts

Through a close, critical study of a literary text and

various interpretations of it, students strengthen their

capacity to develop their own analytical response to it.

Students independently develop and compose original,

analytical texts.

Frequently Asked Questions

What texts do we study in this subject?

Some of the texts you study are listed below.

Year 11:

• The Crucible by Arthur Miller

• We Are All Completely Beside Ourselves by Karen Joy Fowler

• Selection of Australian-Asian Poetry

Year 12:

• Collection of Sylvia Plath Poetry

• Little Miss Sunshine (film)

• Blade Runner (film)

• Nineteen Eighty-Four by George Orwell

Frequently Asked QuestionsWhat assessments do I have to complete in this subject? (Year 11)

Unit 1 (Year 11)

Be Warned

Unit 2 (Year 11)

I grew up in… (Human Experience)ASSESSMENT 1: Extended written for public audience

This assessment focuses on the analysis, interpretation and examination of concepts in texts. It is an open-

ended task responding to texts connected by the representation of a concept, identity, time or place, and

written for a public audience.

Students may support their responses with digital elements appropriate to the type of publication.

Conditions

Written: 1000–1500 words (may be accompanied by digital elements appropriate to the type of

publication)

Duration: 5 weeks notification and preparation

Open access to resources

ASSESSMENT 3: Examination imaginative written

This internal assessment focuses on the interpretation of a literary text from the prescribed text list as a springboard for

an imaginative response. It is a supervised task that assesses a range of cognitions when responding to a particular

situation, task or scenario.

Student responses must be completed individually, under supervised conditions, and in a set timeframe and students

should have one week’s notice of the task.

Conditions

Written: 800–1000 words

Time: 2 hours plus planning (15 minutes)

Other:

o students to be given the specific task one week prior to the assessment

o no access to teacher advice, guidance or feedback once the task is distributed

o clean copy of the text used as a springboard allowed

o no notes allowed

ASSESSMENT 2: Extended persuasive spoken

This assessment focuses on the creation of a perspective through reasoned argument to persuade an

audience. It is an open-ended task responding to representations of a contemporary social issue in the

media within the previous year. While students may undertake some research in the production of the

extended response, it is not the focus of this technique.

Students may support their responses with multimodal elements, such as digital, appropriate to the context

and audience.

Conditions

Spoken: 5–8 minutes; while this task is spoken, a student may use multimodal/digital components

to support the development of the response; the response may be live or pre-recorded.

Duration: 4 weeks notification and preparation

Individual response.

ASSESSMENT 4:

The examination is an analytical response to a literary text in the form of an analytical essay for an audience with a deep

understanding of the text. The purpose is to communicate an informed and critical perspective of the text in response to

an unseen question or task studied in-depth in Unit 2.

Conditions

Time: 2 hours plus planning time (15 minutes)

Length: 800–1000 words.

Frequently Asked QuestionsWhat assessments do I have to complete in this subject? (Year 12)

Unit 3 (Year 12)

Representations of Madness

Unit 4 (Year 12)

Welcome to the EndASSESSMENT 1: Extended written for public audience

This assessment focuses on the analysis, interpretation and examination of concepts in texts. It is an open-

ended task responding to two texts connected by the representation of a concept, identity, time or place, and

written for a public audience. One of the studied texts must be a literary text from the prescribed text list.

Students may support their responses with digital elements appropriate to the type of publication.

Conditions

Written: 1000–1500 words (may be accompanied by digital elements appropriate to the type of

publication)

Duration: 5 weeks notification and preparation

Open access to resources

ASSESSMENT 3: Examination imaginative written

This internal assessment focuses on the interpretation of a literary text from the prescribed text list as a springboard

for an imaginative response. It is a supervised task that assesses a range of cognitions when responding to a

particular situation, task or scenario.

Student responses must be completed individually, under supervised conditions, and in a set timeframe and students

should have one week’s notice of the task.

Conditions

Written: 800–1000 words

Time: 2 hours plus planning (15 minutes)

Other:

o students to be given the specific task one week prior to the assessment

o no access to teacher advice, guidance or feedback once the task is distributed

o clean copy of the text used as a springboard allowed

o no notes allowed

ASSESSMENT 2: Extended persuasive spoken

This assessment focuses on the creation of a perspective through reasoned argument to persuade an

audience. It is an open-ended task responding to representations of a contemporary social issue in the media

within the previous year. While students may undertake some research in the production of the extended

response, it is not the focus of this technique.

Students may support their responses with multimodal elements, such as digital, appropriate to the context

and audience.

Conditions

Spoken: 5–8 minutes; while this task is spoken, a student may use multimodal/digital components to

support the development of the response; the response may be live or pre-recorded.

Duration: 4 weeks notification and preparation

Individual response.

ASSESSMENT 4:

Summative external assessment is developed and marked by the QCAA. In English it contributes 25% to a student’s

overall subject result.

The external assessment in English is common to all schools and administered under the same conditions, at the same

time, on the same day.

The examination is an analytical response to a literary text from the prescribed text list in the form of an analytical

essay for an audience with a deep understanding of the text. The purpose is to communicate an informed and critical

perspective of the text in response to an unseen question or task studied in-depth in Unit 4.

Conditions

Time: 2 hours plus planning time (15 minutes)

Length: 800–1000 words.

Frequently Asked Questions

Does this subject have an external exam and what is it worth?

Yes, General English does have an External Exam. It is based on the novel studied in Unit 4 Topic 2. We are currently studying Nineteen Eighty-Four by George Orwell for this exam.

The external exam in English is worth 25%.

Year 11 Text Samples

Year 12 Text Samples

Contact Details

If you require any further details about this course please feel free to contact:

Subject area Teacher: Lauren Marks

lmark71@eq.edu.au

Emma Hayes

ehaye40@eq.edu.au

Head of Department: Emma Hayes

ehaye40@eq.edu.au