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VCE Literature Units 1 and 2: 2016–2022; Units 3 and 4: 2017–2022

VCE Literature Units 1 and 2: 2016–2022; Units 3 and 4: 2017–2022 ADVICE FOR TEACHERS

The accreditation period has been extended until 31 December 2022.


Updated June 2018

Authorised and published by the Victorian Curriculum and Assessment AuthorityLevel 1, 2 Lonsdale StreetMelbourne VIC 3000

ISBN: 978-1-925264-05-0

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ContentsIntroduction1Administration1Curriculum1Developing a course1Text selection1Units 1 and 21Units 3 and 43Employability skills3Resources4Assessment4Scope of tasks5Units 1 and 26Units 3 and 46Authentication8Learning activities9Unit 1: Approaches to literature9Unit 2: Context and connections13Learning activities and School-assessed Coursework (SAC)17Unit 3: Form and transformation17Unit 4: Interpreting texts21Performance Descriptors25Appendix: Employability skills29

VCE Literature Units 1 and 2: 2016–2022; Units 3 and 4: 2017–2022ADVICE FOR TEACHERS

Updated June 2018

Introduction

The VCE Literature Advice for teachers handbook provides curriculum and assessment advice for Units 1 to 4. It contains advice for developing a course with examples of teaching and learning activities and resources for each unit.

Assessment information is provided for school based assessment in Units 3 and 4 and advice for teachers on how to construct assessment tasks with suggested performance descriptors and rubrics.

The course developed and delivered to students must be in accordance with the VCE Literature Study Design Units 1 and 2: 2016-2022, Units 3 and 4: 2017–2022.

Administration

Advice on matters related to the administration of Victorian Certificate of Education (VCE) assessment is published annually in the VCE and VCAL Administrative Handbook. Updates to matters related to the administration of VCE assessment are published in the VCAA Bulletin.

VCE Literature Study Design examination specifications, past examination papers and corresponding examination reports can be accessed at: https://vcaa.edugate-cms.eduweb.vic.gov.au/assessment/vce-assessment/past-examinations/Pages/Literature.aspx

Graded Distributions for Graded Assessment can be accessed at www.vcaa.vic.edu.au/administration/research-and-statistics/performance-senior-secondary/Pages/Index.aspx

Curriculum

Developing a course

A course outlines the nature and sequence of teaching and learning necessary for students to demonstrate achievement of the set of outcomes for a unit. The areas of study describe the learning context and the knowledge and skills required for the demonstration of each outcome.

Teachers must develop courses that include appropriate learning activities to enable students to develop the knowledge and skills identified in the outcomes in each unit.

Text selection

Units 1 and 2

The requirements for text selection for Units 1 and 2 are provided on page 8 of the VCE Literature Study Design.

Students are encouraged to read widely in Units 1 and 2 to support the achievement of all outcomes.

A range of texts that could be considered are provided below.

Unit 1 Area of Study 1

Brittain, Vera, Testament of Youth (non-fiction)

Drewe, Robert, Stories of the Beach (short stories)

Fitzgerald, F. Scott, The Great Gatsby (novel)

Frame, Janet, An Angel at my Table (non-fiction)

Funder, Anna, All That I Am (novel)

Garner, Helen, Postcards from Surfers (short stories)

Kinsella, John, Peripheral Light (poetry)

Lanagan, Mango, Black Juice (short stories)

Levi, Primo, If This Is A Man (non-fiction)

Miller, Arthur, A View From the Bridge (play)

O'Brien, Tim, The Lake of the Woods (novel)

Pierre, DBC, Vernon God Little (novel)

Poetry of TS Eliot

Poetry of Dorothy Porter

Poetry of Glen Harwood

Rayson, Hannie, Glass Soldiers (play)

Salinger, JD, Catcher in the Rye (novel)

Winton, Tim, Scission (short stories)

Zusak, Markus, The Book Thief (novel)

Unit 1. Area of Study 2

Altmann, Robert, The Player (film)

Austen, Jane, Pride and Prejudice (novel)

Bennett, Alan, The History Boys (play)

Bolt, Robert, A Man For All Seasons (play)

Camus, Albert, The Outsider (novel)

Capote, Truman, Breakfast at Tiffany's (novella)

Dickens, Charles, A Christmas Carol (novel)

Hamid, Mohsin, The Reluctant Fundamentalist (novel)

Heiss, Anita, I'm Not Ugly (poems)

Jolley, Elizabeth, The Newspaper of Claremont Street (play)

Sophocles, King Oedipus (play)

Shakespeare, William, Much Ado about Nothing (play)

Tan, Shaun, Tales from Outer Suburbia (graphic text)

Torday, Paul, Salmon Fishing in the Yemen (novel)

Walker, Alice, The Colour Purple (novel)

Williams, Tennessee, A Streetcar Named Desire (play)

Unit 2, Area of Study 1

Abouet, Marguerite, Aya of Yop City (graphic text)

Akutagawa, Ryunosuke, Rashomon and Other Stories (short stories)

Allende, Isabelle, Of Love and Shadows (novel)

Becket, Samuel, Endgame (play)

Conrad, Joseph, The Secret Agent (novel)

Durrenmatt, Friedrich, The Visit (play)

Eliot, George, Silas Marner (novel)

Fo, Dario, Accidental Death of an Anarchist (play)

Fugard, Athol, Master Harold and the Boys (play)

Huong, Duong Thu, Paradise of the Blind (novel)

Ibsen, Henrik, A Doll's House (play)

Kafka, Franz, Metamorphosis (short story)

Lahiri, Jhumpa, Interpreter of Maladies (short stories)

O'Brien, Tim, The Things They a Carried (novel)

Poetry of Emily Dickinson

Poetry of William Blake

Poetry of William Wordsworth

Rostand, E., Cyrano de Bergerac (play)Satrapi, Marjane, Persepolis (graphic text)

Sophocles, Antigone (play)

Takahata, Isao, Grave of the Fireflies (film)

The Best Stories of Edgar Allen Poe (short stories)

Wharton, Edith, Ethan Frome (novel)

Yoshimoto, Banana, Kitchen (novella)


Austen, Jane, Emma and McCall-Smith, Alexander, Emma

Austen, Jane, Pride and Prejudice and Fielding, Helen, Bridget Jones' Diary

Barker, Pat, Regeneration and the poetry of Wilfred Owen

Bradbury, Ray, Fahrenheit 451 and Orwell, George, Nineteen Eighty-Four

Bronte, Charlotte, Jane Eyre and Rhys, Jean, Wide Sargasso Sea

Capote, Truman, In Cold Blood and Garner, Helen, Joe Cinque's Consolation

Forster, EM, A Passage To India and Jhabvala, Ruth Prawer, Heat and Dust

Lawrence, Ray, Jindabyne and Carver, Raymond, So Much Water So Close to Home

Malouf, David, Ransom and Atwood, Margaret, The Penelopiad or Homer, The Iliad or Carey, Peter, The Greek Tyrant

Milestone, Lewis, All Quiet on the Western Front and Malouf, David, Fly Away Peter

Russell, Willy, Educating Rita and Ibsen, Henrik, Peer Gynt

Shakespeare, William, Hamlet and Stoppard, Tom, Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead

Shakespeare, William, Richard III and Tey, Josephine, The Daughter of Time or Loncraine, Richard, Looking For Richard or Willimon, Beau, House of Cards

The poetry of Yeats and The Waterboys, An Appointment With Mr Yeats

Units 3 and 4

The requirements for text selection for Units 3 and 4 are provided on page 15 of the VCE Literature Study Design. The prescribed lists of texts for each year are published on the study page on the VCAA website.

Students are expected to read widely in Units 3 and 4 to support the achievement of all outcomes.

Employability skills

The VCE Literature study provides students with the opportunity to engage in a range of learning activities. In addition to demonstrating their understanding and mastery of the content and skills specific to the study, students may also develop employability skills through their learning activities.

The nationally agreed employability skills are: Communication; Planning and organising; Teamwork; Problem solving; Self-management; Initiative and enterprise; Technology; and Learning.

The table links those facets that may be understood and applied in a school or non-employment related setting, to the types of assessment commonly undertaken within the VCE study.

Resources

A list of resources is published online on the VCAA website and is updated annually. The list includes teaching, learning and assessment resources, contact details for subject associations and professional organisations.

Assessment

Assessment is an integral part of teaching and learning. At the senior secondary level it:

identifies opportunities for further learning

describes student achievement

articulates and maintains standards

provides the basis for the award of a certificate.

As part of VCE studies, assessment tasks enable:

the demonstration of the achievement of an outcome or set of outcomes for satisfactory completion of a unit

judgment and reporting of a level of achievement for school-based assessments at Units 3 and 4.

The following are the principles that underpin all VCE assessment practices. These are extracted from the VCAA Principles and procedures for the development and review of VCE Studies published on the VCAA website.

VCE assessment will be valid

This means that it will enable judgments to be made about demonstration of the outcomes and levels of achievement on assessment tasks fairly, in a balanced way and without adverse effects on the curriculum or for the education system. The overarching concept of validity is elaborated as follows.

VCE assessment should be fair and reasonable

Assessment should be acceptable to stakeholders including students, schools, government and the community. The system for assessing the progress and achievement of students must be accessible, effective, equitable, reasonable and transparent.

The curriculum content to be assessed must be explicitly described to teachers in each study design and related VCAA documents. Assessment instruments should not assess learning that is outside the scope of a study design.

Each assessment instrument (for example, examination, assignment, test, project, practical, oral, performance, portfolio, presentation or observational schedule) should give students clear instructions. It should be administered under conditions (degree of supervision, access to resources, notice and duration) that are substantially the same for all students undertaking that assessment.

Authentication and school moderation of assessment and the processes of external review and statistical moderation are to ensure that assessment results are fair and comparable across the student cohort for that study.

VCE assessment should be equitable

Assessment instruments should neither privilege nor disadvantage certain groups of students or exclude others on the basis of gender, culture, linguistic background, physical disability, socioeconomic status and geographical location.

Assessment instruments should be designed so that, under the same or similar conditions, they provide consistent information about student performance. This may be the case when, for example, alternatives are offered at the same time for assessment of an outcome (which could be based on a choice of context) or at a different time due to a student’s absence.

VCE assessment will be balanced

The set of assessment instruments used in a VCE study will be designed to provide a range of opportunities for a student to demonstrate in different contexts and modes the knowledge, skills, understanding and capacities set out in the curriculum. This assessment will also provide the opportunity for students to demonstrate different levels of achievement specified by suitable criteria, descriptors, rubrics or marking schemes.

Judgment about student level of achievement should be based on the results from a variety of practical and theoretical situations and contexts relevant to a study. Students may be required to respond in written, oral, performance, product, folio, multimedia or other suitable modes as applicable to the distinctive nature of a study or group of related studies.

VCE assessment will be efficient

The minimum number of assessments for teachers and assessors to make a robust judgment about each student’s progress and learning will be set out in the study design. Each assessment instrument must balance the demands of precision with those of efficiency. Assessment should not generate workload and/or stress that unduly diminish the performance of students under fair and reasonable circumstances.

Scope of tasks

For Units 1–4 in all VCE studies assessment tasks must be a part of the regular teaching and learning program and must not unduly add to the workload associated with that program. They must be completed mainly in class and within a limited timeframe.

Points to consider in developing an assessment task:

List the key knowledge and key skills.

Choose the assessment task where there is a range of options listed in the study design. It is possible for students in the same class to undertake different options; however, teachers must ensure that the tasks are comparable in scope and demand.

Identify the qualities and characteristics that you are looking for in a student response and design the criteria and a marking scheme

Identify the nature and sequence of teaching and learning activities to cover the key knowledge and key skills outlined in the study design and provide for different learning styles.

Decide the most appropriate time to set the task. This decision is the result of several considerations including:

the estimated time it will take to cover the key knowledge and key skills for the outcome

the possible need to provide a practice, indicative task

the likely length of time required for students to complete the task

when tasks are being conducted in other studies and the workload implications for students.

Units 1 and 2

The student’s level of achievement in Units 1 and 2 is a matter for school decision. Assessments of levels of achievement for these units will not be reported to the VCAA. Schools may choose to report levels of achievement using grades, descriptive statements or other indicators.

In each VCE study at Units 1 and 2, teachers determine the assessment tasks to be used for each outcome in accordance with the study design.

Teachers should select a variety of assessment tasks for their program to reflect the key knowledge and key skills being assessed and to provide for different learning styles. Tasks do not have to be lengthy to make a decision about student demonstration of achievement of an outcome. Note that for Unit 2, Outcome 2 students must complete an extended piece of writing of 1000–1500 words.

A number of options are provided in each study design to encourage use of a broad range of assessment activities. Teachers can exercise great flexibility when devising assessment tasks at this level, within the parameters of the study design.

Note that more than one assessment task can be used to assess satisfactory completion of each outcome in the units.

Units 3 and 4

The VCAA supervises the assessment for levels of achievement of all students undertaking Units 3 and 4.

There are two main forms of school based assessment: School-assessed Coursework (SAC) and in some studies, the School-assessed Task (SAT).

School–assessed Coursework

A SAC is selected from the prescribed list of assessment tasks designated for that outcome in the study design. A mark allocation is prescribed for each SAC. Teachers may develop their own marking schemes and rubrics or may use the performance descriptors

The VCE and VCAL Administrative Handbook provides more detailed information about School-assessed Coursework.

School-assessed Task

A SAT is a mandated task prescribed in the study design. The SAT is assessed using prescribed assessment criteria and accompanying performance descriptors published annually on the relevant study page on the VCAA website. Notification of their publication is given in the February VCAA Bulletin. Teachers will provide to the VCAA a score against each criterion that represents an assessment of the student’s level of performance. Details of authentication requirements and administrative arrangements for School-assessed Tasks are published annually in the current year’s VCE and VCAL Administrative Handbook.

In VCE Literature the student’s level of achievement will be determined by School-assessed Coursework and an end-of-year examination. The VCAA will report the student’s level of performance as a grade from A+ to E or UG (ungraded) for each of three Graded Assessment components: Unit 3 School-assessed Coursework, Unit 4 School-assessed Coursework and the end-of-year examination.

In Units 3 and 4 school-based assessment provides the VCAA with two judgements:

S (satisfactory) or N (not satisfactory) for each outcome and for the unit; and levels of achievement determined through specified assessment tasks prescribed for each outcome.

School-assessed Coursework provides teachers with the opportunity to:

select from the designated assessment task/s in the study design

develop and administer their own assessment program for their students

monitor the progress and work of their students

provide important feedback to the student

gather information about the teaching program.

Teachers should design an assessment task that is representative of the content (key knowledge and key skills underpinning the outcome) and allows students the opportunity to demonstrate the highest level of performance. It is important that students know what is expected of them in an assessment task. This means providing students with advice about the outcome’s key knowledge and key skills to be assessed. Students should know in advance how and when they are going to be assessed and the conditions under which they will be assessed.

Assessment tasks should be part of the teaching and learning program. For each assessment task students should be provided with the:

type of assessment task as listed in the study design and approximate date for completion

time allowed for the task

allocation of marks

nature of any materials they can utilise when completing the task

information about the relationship between the task and learning activities should also be provided as appropriate

Following an assessment task:

teachers can use the performance of their students to evaluate the teaching and learning program

a topic may need to be carefully revised prior to the end of the unit to ensure students fully understand the key knowledge and key skills required in preparation for the examination

feedback provides students with important advice about which aspect or aspects of the key knowledge they need to learn and in which key skills they need more practice.

Authentication

Teachers should have in place strategies for ensuring that work submitted for assessment is the student’s own. Where aspects of tasks for school-based assessment are completed outside class time teachers must monitor and record each student’s progress through to completion. This requires regular sightings of the work by the teacher and the keeping of records. The teacher may consider it appropriate to ask the student to demonstrate his/her understanding of the task at the time of submission of the work.

If any part of the work cannot be authenticated, then the matter should be dealt with as a breach of rules. To reduce the possibility of authentication problems arising, or being difficult to resolve, the following strategies are useful:

Ensure that tasks are kept secure prior to administration, to avoid unauthorised release to students and compromising the assessment. They should not be sent by mail or electronically without due care.

Ensure that a significant amount of classroom time is spent on the task so that the teacher is familiar with each student’s work and can regularly monitor and discuss aspects of the work with the student.

Ensure that students document the specific development stages of work, starting with an early part of the task such as topic choice, list of resources and/or preliminary research.

Filing of copies of each student’s work at given stages in its development.

Regular rotation of topics from year to year to ensure that students are unable to use student work from the previous year.

Where there is more than one class of a particular study in the school, the VCAA expects the school to apply internal moderation/cross-marking procedures to ensure consistency of assessment between teachers. Teachers are advised to apply the same approach to authentication and record-keeping, as cross-marking sometimes reveals possible breaches of authentication. Early liaison on topics, and sharing of draft student work between teachers, enables earlier identification of possible authentication problems and the implementation of appropriate action.

Encourage students to acknowledge tutors, if they have them, and to discuss and show the work done with tutors. Ideally, liaison between the class teacher and the tutor can provide the maximum benefit for the student and ensure that the tutor is aware of the authentication requirements. Similar advice applies if students receive regular help from a family member.

Learning activities

Unit 1: Approaches to literature

Area of Study 1: Reading practices

Outcome 1:

Examples of learning activities

Respond to a range of texts and reflect on influences shaping these responses.

create a grid listing similarities and differences between genres after studying an array of different texts or text extracts; the texts should represent a variety of cultural and historical contexts, and different stylistic and structural techniques

keep a reading journal that documents responses to ideas, character, setting and events in text/s; select one text and examine and discuss how ideas, characters, settings and events are developed through:

the structural, linguistic and literary choices of the author

the patterns of language created by the author, for example through speech, punctuation, assonance, rhyme.

the features and conventions of the text and the impact on the shaping and creating of meaning

select a text and distribute examples of different viewpoints about the text (for example extracts from review articles, academic journals or blogs); place these viewpoints on a continuum that makes clear the degree to which they either agree or disagree about aspects of the text; individually, explain and justify the perspective of each viewpoint; write a short comment about the text that can be displayed in the classroom

listen to interviews with the author about the text or to critics reviewing the work; reflect upon and explore the ways in which the views presented coincide with or differ from the views held within the classroom

conduct a book forum and share responses to a text; the moderator would need to be prepared and able to move the participants (class members) beyond an examination of the characters; through discussion and questioning, encourage participants to question and examine where their responses to the text come from; that is, what beliefs, values and understandings of the world influence the way they respond to the text

create a class blog or electronic discussion board for a selected text; individually, initiate and respond to a prescribed number of discussion points

respond to a text by reconstructing part of the text in a different genre; for example, reconstruct part of a narrative as a script, or a play as a poem; reflect on what was endorsed or left unquestioned in the selection of the narrative, and consider the values and ideas revealed in the interpretation of the original text

take notes on initial impressions formed from reading a text; reconstruct these impressions in either an interview or letter to the author, which challenges and/or endorses aspects of the text and assumptions made about the writer’s intentions

offer an interpretation orally or in writing of a text or section of a text and explicitly identify the personal influences that have shaped this response to the text

undertake a close reading experience of key passages/scenes/aspects of a text; identify the features of the text, including the way the text is presented, that influence this perspective of the text’s ideas and concerns

Detailed example

CLOSE READING EXPERIENCE

1.Provide students with key passages or scenes from a text or texts studied.

2.Develop a range of guiding questions that support students to identify and analyse the linguistic, tonal, structural and contextual features of the text/s. Possible questions include:

What are the concerns of the text? Are these concerns presented as turning points in the narrative? How does the writer serve to identify their importance over other events in the narrative? What are the characteristics of these concerns that separate them from other concerns in the text? How has the writer’s focus influenced your perception of the text?

What does the text reveal about the characters and character relationships? Select particular lines and phrases to illustrate your ideas.

How would you describe the mood of the passage? What particular words and lines help to convey this mood? Is this similar or different to other parts of the text? How has the mood of the text influenced your reading of the text?

What, if any, images are used? How do you interpret them? Are they repeated or developed elsewhere in the text? How do these images influence your reading of the text?

From whose point of view is the text narrated? What is the narrator’s attitude to the subject? How can you tell? Is this the same as the author’s/ how can you tell? How has this method influenced your reading?

What other features or qualities of the language are apparent in this passage? Think: nouns, verbs, adjectives, adverbs, punctuation, structure, length of sentences etc.

Does this extract/s remind you of, or have some parallels with, other moments or aspects in other texts, such as images, character development, plot or language? What conclusions can you draw from these parallels?

3.Construct a worksheet using the guiding questions. Students initially work on this sheet in small groups of two or three people.

4.Students then use the ideas developed through discussion to respond individually in writing. The written outcome can take the form of answers to the questions listed or one question can form the basis of an extended written response.

Optional preparatory work:

Give students a series of different extracts from a single or multiple texts to read. In small groups, the students use the questions above to annotate these extracts. They then share their observations with the class.

OR

Give students an extract or series of extracts to annotate according to the questions above and then work through the extract/s on screen as a whole class.

OR

An extract is reproduced on A3 paper and students complete their observations and annotations in groups for presentation to the class. From this annotated copy, groups or pairs of students produce analytical paragraphs. Students then work as individuals and identify their personal responses in written form.

Area of Study 2: Ideas and concerns in texts

Outcome 2:


Analyse the ways in which texts reflect or comment on the ideas and concerns of individuals and particular groups in society.

research the historical, social, cultural, economic, political contexts of the text; present findings in a linear timeline, which establishes links between certain real events and the narrative of the text, for example the events/ personalities in the French Revolution and the events in Dickens’ A Tale of Two Cities

research the author of a text and identify biographical factors (historical, social, economic, political) that might have had an impact on the context of the text

identify possible links between the author’s personal and/or contextual experiences and those narrated in the text, using evidence from the text to support these links, for example the ways in which Harper Lee’s childhood experiences may be reflected in To Kill a Mockingbird

research the writer’s background and the contextual events relevant to the time of their writing; using the research, construct an extended piece of writing adopting the role of the author, speculating about the writer’s ideas and concerns; this could take the form of a monologue/speech, a letter to a publisher, an interview or diary entry

develop a character chart that explores the ways an author has created and used character/s to explore particular ideas and concerns

create a chart of the cultural or social institutions that can be identified in a narrative either directly or indirectly; identify the author’s ideas and concerns about these institutions both through their representation and their influence on the narrative, for example the different ways in which the church and the clergy are represented in Brontë’s Jane Eyre

in groups, work with chapters/scenes from a text or with poetry; each group develops a chronological chart of the ideas and concerns of the text, inferred by examples of the language, in a Google doc or other electronic format so that members of each group can contribute to the chart

examine a text for the dominant and silent voices and how these influence the text; explore the interaction or possible lack of interaction between the two voices; the dominant voices most often dictate the events and narrative of the text in a direct manner while the silent voices are those whose actions or cameos in the text often reveal the wider ideas and concerns of the text, for example the three philanthropic gentlemen (silent voice) who visit Ebeneezer Scrooge (dominant voice) in Dickens’ A Christmas Carol requesting money for the poor, or the influential nature of ‘Tiny Tim’ (silent voice) on Scrooge’s reformation

Detailed example

CHARACTER CHART

In this activity, students will complete a character chart that explores the ways that an author has created and used characters to raise ideas or concerns in a text. As part of this exploration, students should consider the journey and the fate of the characters.

1.Divide students into small groups of two or three.

2.Allocate each student a character from the text. Ensure that characters from the text are spread across all groups, as this activity, once complete, is an ideal learning experience to share within a class discussion framework.

3.Complete the table provided (see below).

4.Once the table has been completed, students should demonstrate their findings and ensure that other students are able to share in their knowledge by preparing a multimodal presentation of the work.

Sample

Develop a character chart that explores the ways that Tennessee Williams has created and used the characters to raise ideas or concerns in A Streetcar Named Desire.

Character

Represents

Outcome for the character

Authorial use (What could the author be reflecting or commenting on through this character?)

Blanche

The damage done by self-delusion

Loss of identity

Destruction of emotional wellbeing – the blurring of reality versus fantasy

Male versus female perceptions of self. The way in which power struggles can be a form of self-destruction.

Sexuality

Societal expectations of women at the time of writing

Stella

…

…

…

Stanley

…

…

…

Mitch

…

…

…

Extension activity

Students can use their responses to develop a written analysis of characters in the text. A sample essay topic is:

Write an extended analysis in response to the following question: How does Stanley’s view of life influence his relationship with Stella and Blanche?

Unit 2: Context and connections

Area of Study 1: The text, the reader and their contexts

Outcome 1:


Analyse and respond critically and creatively to the ways a text from a past era and/or a different culture reflect or comment on the ideas and concerns of individuals and groups in that context.

in small groups, construct a visual timeline of the historical events relevant to the text; where possible, research the details of the particular events on the timeline, for example the Western Front in Remarque’s All Quiet on the Western Front

research the biographical background and cultural/social context of a writer’s life and consider the influence of the writer’s personal experiences on a text’s views and values

identify words and sentence constructions from a text that are particular to the time in which the text is written; research the selected language, identify its meaning and function within the context of the text and then find its modern or cultural equivalent

analyse the ways in which language can define characters and relationships in the text, considering how the author’s choice of structure and form reveal idiosyncrasies of character and dialogue; this can be achieved creatively by rewriting or reconstructing a particular section or event in the text and using the language of the text to create interior monologues or dialogue between characters

imagine and construct an interview with a character from a text; create the character’s answers using the views and values on particular ideas and concerns that are evident in the text

allocate characters from a text to individual class members and create a panel made up of these characters (in a forum setting); other class members question the characters about their views on certain social, cultural and historical concerns; the characters/class members answer and debate the questions ‘in character’, according to how they are portrayed in the text

research a text from a past era and/or a different culture looking at the way it reflects or comments on the ideas and concerns of individuals and groups from that era or culture

discuss particular moments in a historical novel that might be considered contentious in the light of the contemporary views

Detailed example

PRIDE AND PREJUDICE

Students discuss particular moments in Jane Austen’s novel Pride and Prejudice that might provide a contentious social concern in the light of contemporary views.

1.Divide students into small groups.

2.Provide each group of students with a specific passage; for example, the opening passage of the novel, the conversation between Elizabeth and Charlotte Lucas about Charlotte’s marriage to Mr Collins, Lady Catherine’s visit to Longbourn, Lydia’s elopement and subsequent marriage to Wickham and Elizabeth and Jane’s conversation about her love for Darcy.

3.Each group should:

a.Identify the ideas and concerns expressed in the given passage and why they might be considered contentious by today’s reader.

b.Research the relevant social mores of the time to establish why the views and values expressed in the text might have been of concern to Jane Austen.

c.Consider how Jane Austen’s selection of language and form reveal her attitude to the issue under examination. Findings should be presented in dot point form with the use of evidence from the given passage to support viewpoints.

4.Findings can be shared with the class using a multimodal approach such as a PowerPoint or electronic mind map, which can be added to during the class presentation.

Area of Study 2: Exploring connections between texts

Outcome 2:


Compare texts considering the dialogic nature of texts and how they influence each other.

examine texts that explore similar concerns and list the common features and differences between these texts; identify whether texts have been influenced by one another and whether particular forms of texts are more successful than others in conveying certain concerns

explore the connections between Arthur Miller’s plays The Crucible and A View From the Bridge, and On the Waterfront, directed by Elia Kazan. Consider how the political context in which the texts were created creates a relationship between the texts.

read a short version of the story of King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table, for example on the website www.kingarthursknights.com/, and discuss the issues and problems raised in the narrative; decide on the most important messages or morals and consider how they could reverberate with a modern readership or audience; using brief outlines of one or more of the original Star Wars films, JR Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings trilogy or JK Rowlings’ Harry Potter series, discuss which aspects of the King Arthur story can be identified in these other texts: look at shared views and values about good and evil, characters constructed similarly to represent particular values, patterns of plot structures and similarities in uses of tone and language; having established patterns of similarity, identify the differences in approaches between the texts

list written or film texts that rely on similar ideas; demonstrate how key human behaviours and values are explored in different historical, social and cultural contexts and highlight how texts can reach both forwards and backwards in time

examine the ways in which texts have been appropriated into popular culture, for example in ‘The Simpsons’; research which texts have been referenced in ‘The Simpsons’ and reflect on why the show’s writers chose to integrate such references

read and complete the exercises in ‘It’s All an Allusion: Identifying Allusions, in Literature and in Life’ from The New York Times (February 9, 2012). http://learning.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/02/09/its-all-an-allusion-identifying-allusions-in-literature-and-in-life/?_r=0

read and discuss a fractured fairytale such as Roald Dahl’s poem ‘Little Red Riding Hood and The Wolf’ (in the collection Revolting Rhymes) and construct a comparative analysis of the original narrative

research the basic theories behind dialogism (e.g. Mikhail Bakhtin’s and Julia Kristeva’s theories) and identify why dialogism is considered relevant to exploring connections between texts

using the texts listed below, consider the various links between each to reveal the value of intertextuality to interpretation; look comparatively at language, ideas, tone, structure and characterisation:

Shakespeare’s Hamlet, Act 5, Scene 2, Lines 18–47

An excerpt from TS Eliot’s ‘The Lovesong of J. Alfred Prufrock’ commencing from ‘No! I am not Prince Hamlet…Almost, at times, the Fool’

An excerpt from Beckett’s Waiting For Godot commencing ‘Let us not waste our time…We are waiting for Godot to come –‘ [Act 2]

An excerpt from Stoppard’s Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead commencing ‘Player: We’re actors …We pledged our identities [through to] …on the road to Elsinore’ [ACT II]

identify the common historical, social and cultural contexts of set texts by creating a mindmap of shared features and points of difference; analyse the ideas and attitudes shared between the texts to establish the main concerns of both texts

select a particular scene or event from each set text that explores a common concern and present a visual analysis, such as a mind map or table, outlining points of difference in terms of form, voice and language used

use two excerpts from two different texts which share a recognisable dialogic relationship, for example:

Pride and Prejudice (Jane Austen) and Bridget Jones’ Diary (Helen Fielding)

A Passage to India (EM Forster) and Heat and Dust (Ruth Prawer Jhabvala)

Catcher in the Rye (JD Salinger) and Vernon God Little (DBC Pierre)

identify the common ideas or concerns across the texts and also the differences between the two excerpts’ treatment of the ideas; explain in what ways these ideas have evolved over time and what aspects of the ideas remain timeless

identify common historical, social and cultural contexts of set texts in a table of shared features and points of difference

Detailed example

For teachers who want to refresh their knowledge of intertextuality see Charles Bazerman’s article ‘Intertextuality: How Texts Rely on Other Texts’ at: http://cdh.sc.edu/~hawkb/readings/bazerman_intertextuality.pdf

AN ANALYSIS OF THE NATURE OF THE DERIVED TEXT

Texts: The Story of Pygmalion by Ovid (from Book X in Metamorphoses) AND Pygmalion by George Bernard Shaw AND My Fair Lady directed by George Cukor AND Pretty Woman directed by Garry Marshall

Students identify the common historical, social and cultural contexts of the set texts by completing a table of shared features and points of difference (see sample table below). Students should then analyse what is achieved by the derived texts that either enhances or detracts from the qualities of the original text.

Sample

The Story of Pygmalion

Pygmalion

My Fair Lady

Pretty Woman

Form of texts

Myth

Play

Musical

Film

Similarities

Contrasts

Nature of human condition

Setting/Place

Greece

London

London

USA

Time

43 BC – 17 AD

1913

1964

1990

Protagonists’ relationships with self

Protagonists’ relationships with other characters

Representation of gender

Social conventions

Life experiences of characters

Interactions with external world

Interior/exterior settings

Way in which characters communicate

Literary devices and features particular to each text

Subtext

Cultural contexts

Ideas and attitudes expressed in each text

Narrative voice

Point of view

Symbolism, imagery, motifs

Language choices

Extension activity

Students can use their responses to develop a written analysis of the relationship between the texts. A sample essay topic is:

Write an essay of 1000–1500 words in response to the following:

Discuss the similarities and differences in the ways Ovid, Bernard Shaw and George Cukor portray the relationships between men and women..

Learning activities and School-assessed Coursework (SAC)

Unit 3: Form and transformation

Note: In Units 3 and 4 students must study at least six texts, five of which must be selected from the VCAA Text List. The text used for Unit 3 Area of Study 1 must be an adaptation of one of the five texts selected from the VCAA Text List.

Area of Study 1: Adaptations and transformations

Outcome 1:


Analyse the extent to which meaning changes when a text is adapted to a different form.

present or perform an aspect of the adapted text for peers; present an analysis and explanation of the choices made for the performance; alternatively, present this as a story board rather than a live performance

select a small section of the original text such as Opening Scene/First Chapter and Closing Scene/Final Chapter, and compare the section with its counterpart in the adapted text focusing on how each is constructed

using tables, explore the way in which meaning has been created in the original text and in the adaptation; compare the tables looking for similarities, differences, omissions and additions; write two to three paragraphs analysing the effect on meaning through the transformation and adaptation

research reviews and/or performances of the adapted text and discuss these in class

prepare a selection of poems and/or extracts of a play or novel and present them to convey their meaning in different format/s. Consider how the differences in form and construction impact on the meaning.

individually select a particular passage or scene from a text which has been adapted to another form; use ‘snip’ or ‘grab’ to embed the scene in a PowerPoint or Key Note presentation; present as part of an oral analysis on the differences between the adaptation and the original, evaluating what is achieved or omitted through the transformation of the text

Detailed example

ANALYSIS OF HOW THE TEXT’S FORM INFLUENCES MEANING

1.Individually, each student creates two tables (see examples below), which identify the main features of the selected texts (the original and the adaptation).

2.Next, the student fills in the information according to the original text and the adaptation. If the adaptation is a visual and/or aural text, then the student should complete the table while viewing the text.

3.After the two tables have been completed, the student should then note the differences and similarities between the original text and its adapted version.

4.These observations form the basis of their analytical response.

TEXT: Do Androids dream of Electric Sheep? by Philip K. Dick

How are the following used to create meaning?

Character

Setting

Plot

Narrative Voice

Style/Structure

Language

TEXT: Blade Runner directed by Ridley Scott

How are the following used to create meaning?

Character

Setting

Plot

Narrative Voice

Style/Structure

Language

Sample assessment task

Written comparative response where the student must examine what meaning is gained and/or lost in the process of adaptation (800–1000 words).

Director Ridley Scott in the film Blade Runner places more significance on physical landscapes and settings than on character. Does this alter the focus of the original text’s message?

Note: In Units 3 and 4 students must study at least six texts, five of which must be selected from the VCAA Text List.

Area of Study 2: Creative responses to texts

Outcome 2:


Respond creatively to a text and comment on the connections between the text and the response.

reconstruct the ideas and concerns presented in the selected text to convey to a different audience; the reconstruction should consider the possible audience/s of the original text and how the ideas and concerns in this text could effectively be translated to a different audience

construct an imaginary interview with the author of the selected text to attempt to establish the purpose and intentions of the text; in the process of creating the interview, students should try and emulate the author’s style and tone

construct a reflective commentary which explains the purpose behind an imagined adaptation of the whole or part of the selected text; the commentary should identify the best medium for the adaptation and explain why the selected approach is the most appropriate; the commentary should include specific reference to the ideas and concerns represented in the original text; this is a useful task for creating an adaptation of a whole or part of a text

adapt a part of the selected text to a script to be used for either radio, stage performance or television; the ideas and concerns of the original text should be made apparent in the adaptation

insert a new scene/chapter into, or reconstruct a scene/chapter in, the selected text, which will provide a unique perspective on an aspect of the narrative

select a character from the set text and create a perspective from that character based on the relationships already presented in the narrative

reconstruct in a new format such as a short story or dialogue, a selected poem or scene from a set text; present the main ideas and concerns of the original text

reflect on an aspect of the selected text by writing a diary or journal which reveals the ideas and concerns of the text

manipulate the context and time setting of a set text to provide a more contemporary perspective of the narrative

examine and discuss samples of creative responses and reflective commentaries to a set text, noting the approaches taken; highlight specific features explored in the samples such as audience, purpose, tone and style to gain an understanding of the required components of this task (if need be, gain permission from authors of the sample pieces before using their work as exemplars)

Detailed example

CHARACTER ANALYSIS AND CREATIVE RESPONSE

1.Identify the characters that reveal and reflect the views and values examined in the text.

2.In small groups, examine a character’s construction, function in the text, tone and language. Each group should create a list of what their character reveals about the text’s ideas and concerns and evidence from the text to support their list.

3.Individually, use the character analysis to develop a creative response that expands on the character’s perspective and demonstrates an understanding of ideas or concerns explored in the text. Students should be encouraged to consider how different forms allow them to explore the character’s perspective in different ways. Possible forms include interview, journal, diary, letter, script etc.

4.In small groups, discuss the decisions made in the creative process and how these impacted on the meaning.


Develop a creative interpretation of In Cold Blood by Truman Capote. Your writing should focusing on a particular character’s perspective, and you should consider how the form you select impacts on the meaning.

Write a reflective commentary which explains your rationale for your creative decisions include the selection of form.

Sample response

Barbara’s appeal

Dear Mr Nye,

It was very good of you to attend my home this morning to inform me of your concerns over my little brother Perry and his whereabouts. I again want to stress that I HAVE NO IDEA OF MY BROTHER’S MOVEMENTS IN THE LAST FEW YEARS. I want to make this very clear Mr Nye as my husband and I have worked hard to give our kids a good home and a clean life away from bad influences. It is not that I do not have a ‘family love’ for Perry as he is my little brother but Perry and I are very different people and he does not respect the same things I do. We want different things in life so WE DO NOT maintain contact no more. I am ashamed of my brother’s behaviour and my husband and I do not believe that Perry would bring any good to our lives anymore as we have moved on to a different life to Perry’s. We love our children and we want to bring them up right to respect the law and to take responsibility for their behaviour. I tell my kids every day that there will be times when they will make mistakes and ‘dirty their faces’ with shame but that shame will be removed if they are brave and admit to their mistakes. I do not believe you can blame others for what has happened to you in life as you must look after yourself and be responsible. Perry does not hold this view and he cannot get over his bad relationship with his father so I am concerned that his anger will affect all of us…

Reflective commentary:

I chose to focus my creative response to the text on Perry’s only surviving sister, Barbara. I was taken by the way Capote constructs Barbara as someone who seems to have fled successfully a traumatic past and yet is unable to completely absolve herself of her fear of it returning to find her. In many ways she feels quite haunted by Perry; a mixture of guilt and fear where her ‘love for the little boy weakened until it went quite away’. Capote presents her as someone who seems quite exhausted by the effort required to hold on to normality and what she feels is a happy family life. Barbara, like Perry, creates these ‘rules’ for her life; however, their viewpoints are diametrically opposed. Barbara focuses on conformity and contrition as the ingredients to a successful life as she reveals in her response to Perry’s letter ‘IT IS NO SHAME TO HAVE A DIRTY FACE – THE SHAME COMES WHEN YOU KEEP IT DIRTY’. I constructed my response in the form of a letter as I felt it made a good parallel to the letters written between Barbara and Perry earlier in the text. This letter, however, is not addressed to Perry but to Nye who had visited Barbara’s home earlier that day to enquire if she had received any contact from Perry. The interview with the detectives resurrects an anxiety and fear in Barbara that seem to bubble quietly beneath her existence made seemingly perfect by a home with ‘a white picket fence, and inside it a house for a family dog, and a sand-box and swings for the children’. Barbara’s letter to Nye has a pleading tone to it as she reveals her ever-present concern that Perry will indeed find her new abode and invade it with the same destructive qualities he has applied to what he perceives as the happiness of others. Capote’s ominous reflection of ‘When Mrs Johnson bolted the door, she had in mind the dead as well as the living’ provided the stimulus for the idea of a letter to Nye begging for his assurance to maintain her anonymity. Barbara is genuinely afraid of her little brother and this manifests itself in the tone of the letter which reveals a mixture of attempted sophistication compromised by child-like fear. I have adopted Capote’s use of capitalised statements and included them in the letter as they form a useful highlighting of Barbara’s anxiety and simplistic management code.

Unit 4: Interpreting texts

Area of Study 1: Literary perspectives

Outcome 1:


Produce an interpretation of a text using different literary perspectives to inform their view.

in small groups discuss the following questions:

What do we gain from a first relaxed reading of a text?

What do we add to our knowledge and understanding when we read the text for a second time?

Imagine you are writing a review of this text. What would you choose to identify and ignore?

consider the question: ‘Why are some books acclaimed and others vilified?’; research a list of banned books, both past and present, and discover what criteria are applied when critics decide that a text is unsuitable for public consumption. Consider how those criteria represent particular perspectives, views and values.

consider how the internet has changed the nature of literary criticism, for example through the proliferation of different perspectives or the democratisation of literary criticism

using a selection of critical reviews about one selected text, search for vocabulary or metalanguage within the literary criticisms that reveal the critics’ perspectives, for example directed focus on gender, class structure or social mores; identify the cultural, historical, social and ideological contexts of each critical review; and examine what assumptions and ideas about aspects of culture and society are present in each review

introduce the idea of personal perspectives on a text; write a response to a text identifying observations of the text’s views and values and how these concerns are articulated; evaluate what assumptions might lie behind the perceptions and opinions in the response to the text, for example what did the response endorse, challenge or leave unquestioned?; introduce the idea of evaluating another person’s viewpoint on a text by sharing the written response to the text with other class members who could then apply an independent analysis of this response; divide the class into small groups to discuss the similarities and differences in their evaluations of each other’s writings

distribute a range of critical perspectives on the text to the class; in small groups read and evaluate one perspective; use a grid or table to guide reading of the critical view; present findings to a second representative group; combine the findings into one grid/table and discuss how the perspectives might influence a construction of a personal perspective on the same text

research a critical perspective on the set text using a range of sources; summarise findings and present in small groups to discuss

Detailed example

A CRITICAL EVALUATION OF PERSPECTIVE OF A TEXT

1.The teacher compiles a range of critical perspectives on the text for class distribution. (These extracts may be sourced from published articles or teacher prepared.)

2.In small groups read and evaluate one perspective. Each group can respond to the grid/table below to guide reading of the critical review.

3.Present the evaluations on the grid/table to a second representative group. Combine the evaluations into a single grid or table. Discuss how this range of perspectives might influence their construction of a personal perspective on the text.

4.Expand the grid/table according to how many critiques are presented. Make these responses available for distribution to everyone in the class.

The grid below is a useful model for the features students might identify from the critical articles.

Criteria that can be considered by literary criticism of a text

Literary criticism 1

Literary criticism 2

Personal perspective on the text

Author’s life and times

Central ideas

Recurring images

Connections made with other texts

Characters

Setting

Plot

Structure

Language choices

Assumptions and ideas about the text’s views and values

Challenges raised by literary criticism

Endorsements made by literary criticism

Overall perspective of text


An assessment task for this activity could take one of the following formats:

Model 1 – The teacher selects a short extract from the set text and two different critical perspectives to prompt the student’s written interpretation of the set text.

Model 2 – A specific essay topic on the set text that invites a written interpretation requiring the use of two different critical perspectives.

Model 3 – A single or series of short statements that reveal particular perspectives on the set text. The student is invited to use one or all of these statements as the basis for a written interpretation using two different literary perspectives.

Model 4 – Use two short critical perspectives (articles of approx. 300 words each) and invite the student to develop a written interpretation in response to the perspectives presented in each article and the set text.

Sample task using Model 3

‘The clarity and strength of Charlotte Brontë’s perception of her heroine’s struggle for love is extraordinary. Yet of all the great novels in the world, Jane Eyre veers the closest towards trash.’ Angela Carter Expletives Deleted 1992.

‘Altogether the autobiography of Jane Eyre is preeminently an anti-Christian composition.’ Elizabeth Rigby, Quarterly Review, Massachusetts, March 1848.

In the light of both or either of these views, develop a written interpretation of Jane Eyre. Make reference to at least two pieces of literary criticism in your response.

Area of Study 2: Close analysis

Outcome 2:


Analyse features of texts and develop and justify interpretations of texts.

read a passage from the selected text which contains a range of structural and language features employed by the author that reveal the views and values, and/or creating tone and style; in small groups, identify examples from the passages/poems using highlighters; use one colour to identify those features revealing views and values, and another colour to identify those features which contribute to tone or style

consider how the writer uses particular language or techniques to communicate the text’s messages in a particular passage from the text

analyse three passages that are constructed in a similar manner to focus on either characters or events in the text; the commonality of the selected passages should make it easier for students to identify the features of a writer’s style

use a grid to identify common and/or different features regarding character and/or events in a selection of passages; establish patterns across the passages and use these to construct a written response identifying how these features contribute to an interpretation of the text

using three significant passages from a selected text that reveal particular features of characters or turning points in the text, explain the consistencies and differences in the passages; identify other moments in the text where similar features are used by the author and construct an interpretation of how these features contribute to an understanding of the text as a whole

in small groups select three passages from one selected text; justify the selection of these passages by identifying particular features (views and values, language and tone of the text) and how they contribute to an understanding of the whole text

in small groups, work with three passages to construct a concept map to establish common features of the passages and identify particular aspects of the writer’s style; these concept maps should then be presented for display to the whole class group where they can be further explored through an oral presentation by each group

Detailed example

CONSTRUCTION OF AN ANALYTICAL RESPONSE

1.Commence this task by demonstrating how to select passages from the text based on identifying the features of the passages. Using sample passages, explain why the particular passages were selected and how they contribute to an understanding of the whole text.

2.Students should then be divided into small groups of two or three and asked to select three passages from across the text. The students should justify the selection of these passages by identifying particular features (views and values, language and tone of the text) and how they contribute to an understanding of the whole text

3.Students should compare their passages with another groups’ selection, discussing how each set of passages represent different features of the text.


Respond individually in writing to a set of three passages from the text. Your response should:

develop an interpretation of the text

include close reading of the passages provided.

Teachers may consider conducting this assessment under conditions similar to the examination.



© VCAA 2015

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Updated June 2018

© VCAA 2015

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Updated June 2018

Performance Descriptors

LITERATURE

SCHOOL-ASSESSED COURSEWORK


Unit 3

Outcome 1

Analyse the extent to which meaning changes when a text is adapted to a different form.

DESCRIPTOR: typical performance in each range

Very low

Low

Medium

High

Very high

Limited recognition of the form and conventions of the texts.

Some identification of the form and conventions of the texts.

Clear recognition of the form and conventions of the texts and how they affect meaning.

Detailed knowledge of the forms and conventions of the texts and how they affect meaning.

Comprehensive knowledge of the forms and conventions of the texts and how they affect meaning.

Limited understanding of the ways creators of adaptations present assumptions and ideas.

Some understanding of the ways creators of adaptations present assumptions and ideas about aspects of culture and society that reflect or are different from the original text.

Clear understanding of the ways creators of adaptations present assumptions and ideas about aspects of culture and society that reflect or are different from the original text.

Detailed understanding of the ways creators of adaptations present assumptions and ideas about aspects of culture and society that reflect or are different from the original text.

Thoughtful and complex understanding of the ways creators of adaptations present assumptions and ideas about aspects of culture and society that reflect or are different from the original text.

Limited identification and discussion of the similarities and differences between the texts. Limited provision of textual evidence.

Some identification and analysis of the similarities and differences between the original and the adapted or transformed text. Some selection of textual evidence from the original and adapted text.

Clear identification and analysis of the similarities and differences between the original and the adapted or transformed text. Sound selection and effective use of textual evidence from the original and adapted text.

Clear and detailed identification and analysis of the similarities and differences between the original and the adapted or transformed text. Considered selection and very effective use of textual evidence from the original and adapted text.

Clear and highly detailed identification and analysis of the similarities and differences between the original and the adapted or transformed text. Highly considered selection and highly effective use of textual evidence from the original and adapted text.

Limited analysis of the ways in which meaning is altered when the form of a text is changed

Some analysis of the ways in which meaning is altered when the form of a text is changed. Some understanding of the construction of the texts.

Clear analysis of the ways in which meaning is altered when the form of a text is changed. Sound understanding of the construction of the texts.

Detailed analysis of the ways in which meaning is altered when the form of a text is changed. Detailed understanding of the construction of the text.

Sophisticated and insightful analysis of the extent to which meaning changes when the form of a text is changed. Complex understanding of the construction of the texts.

Basic expression of ideas in written and/or oral form.

Mostly clear expression of ideas in written and/or oral form.

Generally clear, fluent and coherent development of ideas in written and/or oral form.

Expressive, fluent and coherent development of ideas in written and/or oral form.

Highly expressive, fluent and coherent development of ideas in written and/or oral form.

KEY to marking scale based on the Outcome contributing 50 marks

Very low 1–14

Low 15–24

Medium 25–34

High 35–44

Very high 45–50

LITERATURE



Unit 3

Outcome 2

Respond creatively to a text and comment on the connections between the text and the response.


Very low

Low

Medium

High

Very high

Limited commentary on the connections between the text and the response. Limited analysis of the language choices and literary features of the original text and how these are used in the response. Basic expression of ideas in written and/or oral form.

Some commentary on the connections between the text and the response demonstrated, through basic analysis of the language choices and literary features of the original text and how these are used in the response. Mostly clear expression of ideas in written and/or oral form.

Sound commentary on the connections between the text and the response demonstrated, through solid analysis of the language choices and literary features of the original text and how these are used in the response. Generally clear, fluent and coherent development of ideas in written and/or oral form.

Considered commentary on the connections between the text and the response demonstrated, through thoughtful analysis of the language choices and literary features of the original text and how these are used in the response. Expressive, fluent and coherent development of ideas in written and/or oral form.

Insightful commentary on the connections between the text and the response demonstrated, through perceptive analysis of the language choices and literary features of the original text and how these are used in the response. Highly expressive, fluent and coherent development of ideas in written and/or oral form.

Limited use of techniques to create, recreate or adapt the original text. Limited awareness of how these techniques represent concerns and attitudes.

Some use of techniques to create, recreate or adapt a text. Some awareness of how these techniques represent particular concerns and attitudes.

Sound use of techniques to create, recreate or adapt the original text. General awareness of how these techniques represent particular concerns and attitudes.

Effective use of techniques to create, recreate or adapt the original text to thoughtfully represent particular concerns and attitudes.

Highly effective use of techniques to create, recreate or adapt the original text in order to perceptively represent particular concerns or attitudes.

Limited understanding of the original text including the point of view, context, form, features and the representation of ideas.

Some understanding of the original text including the point of view, context, form, features and the representation of ideas.

Sound understanding of the original text including the point of view, context, form, features and the representation of ideas.

Detailed understanding of the original text including the point of view, context, form, features and the representation of ideas.

Insightful understanding of the original text including the point of view, context, form, features and the representation of ideas.

Limited use of stylistically appropriate features with limited written and/or oral language.

Some use of stylistically appropriate features with some clarity in written and/or oral language.

Sound use of stylistically appropriate features supported by generally fluent and coherent written and/or oral language.

Convincing and accomplished use of stylistically appropriate features supported by expressive, fluent and coherent written and/or oral language.

Sophisticated and highly accomplished use of stylistically appropriate features supported by highly expressive, fluent and coherent written and/or oral language.


Very low 1–2

Low 3–4

Medium 5–6

High 7–8

Very high 9–10

Very low 1–8

Low 9–16

Medium 17–24

High 25–32

Very high 33–40

LITERATURE



Unit 4

Outcome 1

Produce an interpretation of a text using different literary perspectives to inform their view.


Very low

Low

Medium

High

Very high

Limited understanding, comparison, analysis and evaluation of perspectives presented in literary criticism.

Some understanding, comparison, analysis and evaluation of perspectives presented in literary criticism.

Appropriate understanding, comparison, analysis and evaluation of perspectives presented in literary criticism.

Detailed understanding, comparison, analysis and evaluation of perspectives presented in literary criticism.

Comprehensive understanding, comparison, analysis and evaluation of perspectives presented in literary criticism.

Limited identification and analysis of the views and values in the text with limited understanding of how literary criticism foregrounds particular views and questions texts in particular ways.

Some identification and analysis of the views and values in the text supported by some explanation of how literary criticism foregrounds particular views and questions texts in particular ways.

Sound identification and analysis of the views and values in the text supported by a clear explanation of how literary criticism foregrounds particular views and questions texts in particular ways.

Detailed identification and analysis of the views and values in the text supported by a developed explanation of how literary criticism foregrounds particular views and questions texts in particular ways.

Insightful identification and analysis of the views and values in the text supported by a sophisticated explanation of how literary criticism foregrounds particular views and questions texts in particular ways.

Limited development of an interpretation with limited references to the text and literary criticism. Limited understanding of how literary criticism informs interpretations of texts.

Some development of an interpretation with some references to the text and literary criticism. Some analysis of how literary criticism informs interpretations of texts.

Appropriate interpretation developed through suitable selection and use of some detail from the text and literary criticism. Clear analysis of how literary criticism informs interpretations of texts.

Thoughtful interpretation developed through careful selection and use of detail from the text and literary criticism. Thoughtful analysis of how literary criticism informs interpretations of texts.

Insightful interpretation developed through considered selection and use of significant detail from the text and literary criticism. Sophisticated analysis of how literary criticism informs interpretations of texts.







Very low 1–14

Low 15–24

Medium 25–34

High 35–44

Very high 45–50

LITERATURE



Unit 4

Outcome 2

Analyse features of texts and develop and justify interpretations of texts.

Note: This assessment task will be completed twice for Outcome 2.


Very low

Low

Medium

High

Very high

Little discussion of key features of the text, using appropriate conventions. Limited reference to the effects and nuances of language, style and form in the text.

Some analysis of key features of the text, using appropriate conventions. Some consideration of the effects and nuances of language, style and form in the text.

Sound analysis of key features of the text, using appropriate conventions. Clear consideration of the effects and nuances of language, style and form in the text.

Thorough discussion of key features of the text, using appropriate conventions. Detailed consideration of the effects and nuances of language, style and form in the text.

Thorough and detailed analysis of key features of the text, using appropriate conventions. Highly detailed consideration of the effects and nuances of language, style and form in the text.

Limited understanding of the views and values presented in the text and how the writer reveals these in the text.

Some understanding of the views and values presented in the text and limited analysis of how the writer reveals these in the text.

Sound understanding of the views and values presented in the text and clear analysis of how the writer reveals these in the text.

Detailed understanding of the views and values presented in the text and thoughtful analysis of how the writer reveals these in the text.

Sophisticated understanding of the views and values presented in the text and insightful analysis of how the writer reveals these in the text.

Limited interpretation demonstrating limited understanding of the significance of the selected passages, connections between them, the ways that they reveal developments in the text and their relationship to the text as a whole. Limited use of textual detail to support the interpretation.

Some interpretation demonstrating some understanding of the significance of the selected passages, connections between them, the ways that they reveal developments in the text and their relationship to the text as a whole. Some use of textual detail to support the interpretation.

Appropriate interpretation demonstrating clear analysis of the significance of the selected passages, connections between them, the ways that they reveal developments in the text and their relationship to the text as a whole. Suitable selection and use of textual detail to support the interpretation.

Thoughtful interpretation demonstrating considered analysis of the significance of the selected passages, connections between them, the ways that they reveal developments in the text and their relationship to the text as a whole. Careful selection and use of textual detail to support the interpretation.

Insightful interpretation demonstrating sophisticated analysis of the significance of the selected passages, connections between them, the ways that they reveal developments in the text and their relationship to the text as a whole. Considered selection and use of significant textual detail to support the interpretation.






KEY to marking scale based on the Outcome contributing 50 marks (25 marks for each text)

Very low 1–6

Low 7–11

Medium 12–16

High 17–21

Very high 22–25



© VCAA 2015Page 25

© VCAA 2015

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Appendix: Employability skills

Assessment task

Employability skills selected facets

Analytical response to text/ interpretation of text

Communication (writing to the needs of the audience; reading independently)Planning and organising (collecting, analysing and organising information)Self management (evaluating and monitoring own performance; taking responsibility)

Creative response to text

Communication (writing to the needs of the audience; reading independently)Planning and organising (collecting, analysing and organising information)Self management (evaluating and monitoring own performance; taking responsibility; articulating own ideas and visions)Initiative and enterprise (being creative)

The employability skills are derived from the Employability Skills Framework (Employability Skills for the Future, 2002), developed by the Australian Chamber of Commerce and Industry and the Business Council of Australia, and published by the (former) Commonwealth Department of Education, Science and Training.

© VCAA 2015Page 29



Updated June 2018

Authorised and published by the Victorian Curriculum and Assessment AuthorityLevel 1, 2 Lonsdale StreetMelbourne VIC 3000

ISBN: 978-1-925264-05-0

© Victorian Curriculum and Assessment Authority [year]

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ContentsIntroduction1Administration1Curriculum1Developing a course1Text selection1Units 1 and 21Units 3 and 43Employability skills3Resources4Assessment4Scope of tasks5Units 1 and 26Units 3 and 46Authentication8Learning activities9Unit 1: Approaches to literature9Unit 2: Context and connections13Learning activities and School-assessed Coursework (SAC)17Unit 3: Form and transformation17Unit 4: Interpreting texts21Performance Descriptors25Appendix: Employability skills29


Updated June 2018

Introduction

The VCE Literature Advice for teachers handbook provides curriculum and assessment advice for Units 1 to 4. It contains advice for developing a course with examples of teaching and learning activities and resources for each unit.

Assessment information is provided for school based assessment in Units 3 and 4 and advice for teachers on how to construct assessment tasks with suggested performance descriptors and rubrics.

The course developed and delivered to students must be in accordance with the VCE Literature Study Design Units 1 and 2: 2016-2020, Units 3 and 4: 2017–2020.

Administration

Advice on matters related to the administration of Victorian Certificate of Education (VCE) assessment is published annually in the VCE and VCAL Administrative Handbook. Updates to matters related to the administration of VCE assessment are published in the VCAA Bulletin.

VCE Literature Study Design examination specifications, past examination papers and corresponding examination reports can be accessed at: www.vcaa.vic.edu.au/Pages/vce/studies/Literature/exams.aspx

Graded Distributions for Graded Assessment can be accessed at www.vcaa.vic.edu.au/Pages/vce/statistics/2013/index.aspx

Curriculum

Developing a course

A course outlines the nature and sequence of teaching and learning necessary for students to demonstrate achievement of the set of outcomes for a unit. The areas of study describe the learning context and the knowledge and skills required for the demonstration of each outcome.

Teachers must develop courses that include appropriate learning activities to enable students to develop the knowledge and skills identified in the outcomes in each unit.

Text selection

Units 1 and 2

The requirements for text selection for Units 1 and 2 are provided on page 8 of the VCE Literature Study Design.

Students are encouraged to read widely in Units 1 and 2 to support the achievement of all outcomes.

A range of texts that could be considered are provided below.

Unit 1 Area of Study 1

Brittain, Vera, Testament of Youth (non-fiction)

Drewe, Robert, Stories of the Beach (short stories)

Fitzgerald, F. Scott, The Great Gatsby (novel)

Frame, Janet, An Angel at my Table (non-fiction)

Funder, Anna, All That I Am (novel)

Garner, Helen, Postcards from Surfers (short stories)

Kinsella, John, Peripheral Light (poetry)

Lanagan, Mango, Black Juice (short stories)

Levi, Primo, If This Is A Man (non-fiction)

Miller, Arthur, A View From the Bridge (play)

O'Brien, Tim, The Lake of the Woods (novel)

Pierre, DBC, Vernon God Little (novel)

Poetry of TS Eliot

Poetry of Dorothy Porter

Poetry of Glen Harwood

Rayson, Hannie, Glass Soldiers (play)

Salinger, JD, Catcher in the Rye (novel)

Winton, Tim, Scission (short stories)

Zusak, Markus, The Book Thief (novel)

Unit 1. Area of Study 2

Altmann, Robert, The Player (film)

Austen, Jane, Pride and Prejudice (novel)

Bennett, Alan, The History Boys (play)

Bolt, Robert, A Man For All Seasons (play)

Camus, Albert, The Outsider (novel)

Capote, Truman, Breakfast at Tiffany's (novella)

Dickens, Charles, A Christmas Carol (novel)

Hamid, Mohsin, The Reluctant Fundamentalist (novel)

Heiss, Anita, I'm Not Ugly (poems)

Jolley, Elizabeth, The Newspaper of Claremont Street (play)

Sophocles, King Oedipus (play)

Shakespeare, William, Much Ado about Nothing (play)

Tan, Shaun, Tales from Outer Suburbia (graphic text)

Torday, Paul, Salmon Fishing in the Yemen (novel)

Walker, Alice, The Colour Purple (novel)

Williams, Tennessee, A Streetcar Named Desire (play)


Abouet, Marguerite, Aya of Yop City (graphic text)

Akutagawa, Ryunosuke, Rashomon and Other Stories (short stories)

Allende, Isabelle, Of Love and Shadows (novel)

Becket, Samuel, Endgame (play)

Conrad, Joseph, The Secret Agent (novel)

Durrenmatt, Friedrich, The Visit (play)

Eliot, George, Silas Marner (novel)

Fo, Dario, Accidental Death of an Anarchist (play)

Fugard, Athol, Master Harold and the Boys (play)

Huong, Duong Thu, Paradise of the Blind (novel)

Ibsen, Henrik, A Doll's House (play)

Kafka, Franz, Metamorphosis (short story)

Lahiri, Jhumpa, Interpreter of Maladies (short stories)

O'Brien, Tim, The Things They a Carried (novel)

Poetry of Emily Dickinson

Poetry of William Blake

Poetry of William Wordsworth

Rostand, E., Cyrano de Bergerac (play)Satrapi, Marjane, Persepolis (graphic text)

Sophocles, Antigone (play)

Takahata, Isao, Grave of the Fireflies (film)

The Best Stories of Edgar Allen Poe (short stories)

Wharton, Edith, Ethan Frome (novel)

Yoshimoto, Banana, Kitchen (novella)


Austen, Jane, Emma and McCall-Smith, Alexander, Emma

Austen, Jane, Pride and Prejudice and Fielding, Helen, Bridget Jones' Diary

Barker, Pat, Re

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