Consider the scope of the area of study and the ways that it best fits the cohort. Determine which key knowledge and key skills will be formally assessed through the task, and how they map to the outcome statement. (Key knowledge and key skills that are not included in the formal assessment are usually explored in teaching and learning activities and achievement is determined through observation and discussion.)
Unit 1, Outcome 1: Reading and exploring texts
This area of study requires that students respond personally to a text.
1. Scaffolded task
Write a personal response to the set text.
Use one or more of the following statements to guide your response.
- Identify two key ideas from the text, explore how they are represented in the text and then connect those ideas and representations to your own lived experience.
- Identify two key characters from the text, explore their story arc and consider the ways the text resolves their story then connect those arcs and resolutions to your own understanding of the way individuals experience the society around them.
2. Journal
Throughout the area of study, students keep writing journals about the text. As the text is read or viewed, and discussed, explored and challenged in class, students record their impressions and make connections with contemporary or personal experiences or events. At the end of the area of study, students write a reflection in their journal, outlining the ways they have connected with the text throughout the study.
Unit 1, Outcome 2: Crafting texts
This area of study requires that students produce two texts and one reflection on the processes of writing.
There are many opportunities for assessment for this area of study. The following are two possible examples.
1. Workshop task
Students develop a text and document the writing processes.
They produce a:
- plan for their text
- draft of their text
- sample of feedback from a peer
- final version of their text.
2. Responding to stimulus task
Students, under timed and supervised conditions, craft a text (drawn from work completed in class) in response to a stimulus and within set parameters. ‘Conflict’ is the idea that has shaped their exploration of writing.
Stimulus:
- ‘Conflict cannot survive without your participation’ (Wayne Dyer).
-
Audience: Peers
Craft a text, written for your peers, that incorporates the idea of conflict. You must include one of the pieces of stimulus in your response (and you can include both).
The text should be shaped around a purpose (express, entertain, argue, inform) and must consider the concerns and the language of the indicated audience.
Unit 2, Outcome 1: Reading and exploring texts
This area of study requires students to produce an analytical response to text.
Students choose between two essay topics on their set text list and write an analytical response to demonstrate their understanding and knowledge of the text. For example:
Frankenstein by Mary Shelley
- ‘The chaos in
Frankenstein does not come from acts of creation but from acts of neglect.’ How is this idea explored in the novel?
- How does Shelley both condone and condemn the 'acquirement of knowledge' in Frankenstein .
Unit 2, Outcome 2: Exploring argument
This area of study requires students to produce an analytical response to persuasive text and to create a persuasive oral text.
Analytical response
Students are provided with persuasive texts and, under timed and supervised conditions, write an analysis of the ways contention, argument, language and persuasive techniques work together to create a persuasive effect on the reader / audience.
Oral presentation
Students work in groups and decide on an issue they would like to explore. They choose a form for their presentation (debate, discussion or dialogue) and develop individual scripts or speeches to explore the issue through different points of view, for persuasive effect.
Differences between English and EAL
This table describes the differences between English and EAL for Units 3 and 4
| Unit 3 | English | EAL |
|---|
|
Outcome 1: Reading and responding to texts | An analytical response to text in written form | An analytical response to text in written form
and
Comprehension of an audio / audio visual text focused on historical, cultural and / or social values in the set text, through: - short-answer responses
- note form summaries
|
|
Outcome 2: Creating texts | Two written texts constructed in consideration of audience, purpose and context
and
A commentary reflecting on writing processes | Two written texts constructed in consideration of audience, purpose and context
and
A set of annotations reflecting on writing processes |
|
Unit 4 |
English |
EAL |
|---|
|
Outcome 1: Reading and responding to texts | An analytical response to text in written form | An analytical response to text in written form |
|
Outcome 2: Analysing argument | An analytical response to argument in written form
and
A point of view oral presentation | An analytical response to argument in written form
and
A point of view oral presentation |
School-assessed Coursework
In VCE English and EAL, students demonstrate their understanding of outcome statements, key knowledge and key skills through School-assessed Coursework (SACs). Each area of study is linked to assessment tasks and an allocation of marks (see Unit 3, p. 28, Unit 4, p. 34). These assessment tasks and their allocated marks are deliberately distinct from the assessment tasks students will face in the external examination. While these tasks will have commonalities, it is important for teachers and schools to distinguish their internal assessment tasks from the external assessment tasks set by the VCAA in the examination. School-assessed Coursework should offer breadth in opportunities for students to demonstrate their knowledge and understanding of their learning. Teachers should therefore consider designing assessment tasks with diverse conditions and through different language modes.
While it is acknowledged that students require preparation for external examination tasks, they should have opportunities to extend themselves in their learning and their assessment. School-assessed Coursework should be seen as both formative and summative assessment and students should be given feedback on their understanding of the content, on their skills in writing or speaking, and on possible avenues for improvement. Internal assessment should provide scope for ongoing dialogue with students about their learning.
School-assessed Coursework must be part of the regular curriculum and assessment program and must not unduly add to the workload associated with that program. Assessment tasks must be completed mainly in class.
Teachers must consider the condition in which School-assessed Coursework is completed and the authentication strategies relevant for each assessment task.
Students should be provided with clear, written instructions about the conditions for each assessment task. These instructions should include the key knowledge and key skills that will be assessed in the task, how the task will be structured, and any materials or resources that will be allowed when completing the task.
Oral presentation
The requirement for an oral presentation is mandated in Unit 4, Outcome 2. The language mode of speaking and listening represents critical skills for young people emerging from the secondary school environment. In this study, the oral presentation invites diverse ways in which students can engage with these skills. They are able to present an individual, formal speech to a class or others on an issue. They can also present by engaging in a debate with other members of the class on an agreed issue, or through a dialogue, where the issue is explored through a number of points of view. In this area of study, students can develop podcasts or some other digital form.
Teachers are reminded that the assessment task must be clear to all students and that all students must have access to the same conditions and supports. Teachers should also carefully consider the assessment tool they employ to assess the oral presentation. If, for example, students are presenting though a digital form, elements such as eye contact and gesture will be more difficult to formally assess.
Assessment tools
Assessment tools (performance descriptors or rubrics) are important for moderation between teachers, to communicate the levels of achievement to students and to provide feedback to students. All teachers should be using some kind of assessment tool for each assessment task.
The VCAA publishes performance descriptors for each assessment task in Units 3 and 4. These performance descriptors provide advice only and teachers are welcome to modify them or develop their own.
Teachers should note that, in modifying or developing unique performance descriptors, they should work from the study design and the key areas of outcome statements, key knowledge and key skills. Clearly, not all key knowledge and key skills will or can be formally assessed in an assessment task – some key knowledge and key skills are observable in classroom engagement and learning – but all criteria in any assessment tool must be drawn directly from the study design.
Unit 3, Outcome 2
Demonstrate effective writing skills by producing their own texts, designed to respond to a specific context and audience to achieve a stated purpose; and to explain their decisions made through writing processes.
This sample approach focuses on the first part of the outcome.
Step 1: Define the parameters of the outcome and the related assessment task options
Read the outcome and key knowledge and skills for Unit 3 Area of Study 2: Creating texts carefully and consider what evidence could be gathered to demonstrate student learning. It should be noted that each key knowledge and skill does not need to be individually identifiable in the task nor should the task focus on too narrow a range of key knowledge and skills.
Step 2: Examine the assessment advice in this handbook
Unpack the performance descriptors as they provide a clear indication of qualities and characteristics that you are looking for in a student response.
For example, a written text for this outcome would need to demonstrate the ability to generate and use ideas, employ voices appropriate to purpose, context and audience, experiment with and extend vocabulary and draft, refine and complete individual writing.
Step 3: Design the assessment task
The requirements of the task will be determined by the selected idea from the Framework of Ideas and the selected mentor texts. The following is an example of an assessment task based on the idea ‘Writing about play’.
Writing about play
Drawing on the writing you have drafted, explored and completed over this unit of work, create a written text that explicitly incorporates one of the items of stimulus (below), for an audience of your peers in a public context. The purpose of the written text is to be determined by you.
Stimulus 1
“Play is, by definition, a safety space. If a designer or artist can make safe spaces that allow the negotiation of real-world concepts, issues, and ideas, then a game can be successful in facilitating the exploration of innovative solutions for apparently intractable problems.”
– Mary Flanagan,
Critical Play: Radical Game Design
Stimulus 2
“According to the pianist and essayist Stephen Nachmanovitch, play is sometimes conceived as a threat to normativity precisely because it wastes time. A game of amateur soccer or netball is measurably productive: it is good for our physical health, it develops teamwork skills. Similarly positive outcomes can be matched to more intellectual games like chess or cryptic crosswords. But if we devote too much time to this kind of play at the expense of family or work duties, we open ourselves up to criticism. I wonder about this, and about the double-edged nature of my radically altered state since play became such a large part of my everyday life. 'Play is not the way to maintain a tightly controlled society,' writes Nachmanovitch, 'or a clear definition of what is good, true or beautiful.' No, it isn't. And that's what makes it so delightful. That's what makes me want to defend it.”
Julienne van Loon, ‘The play of days’,
Stimulus 3
“I went to great lengths in that environment to hide my sexuality while I was playing footy, I didn't want any of them to figure it out. And what that looks like to give you an idea was I would second guess everything that I said or did — I wouldn't get involved in conversations about relationships or what I was doing on the weekend out of fear that they might figure it out. And I even went to the extent of creating a separate Facebook list, so that just my teammates wouldn't see photos I was tagged in, places I was checked into or what my relationship status was. And it probably limited the kinds of friendships and bonds that I could have developed with my teammates growing up. Cause I was always hiding a big part of my life.”
Jason Ball, ‘I Played Better,
Step 4: Determining teaching and learning activities
For Unit 3 Outcome 2, the teacher plans a sequence of teaching and learning activities that will enable students to develop knowledge and skills. This will include opportunities to plan, explore, draft, revise and complete written texts
See Teaching and learning for additional activities that could support students to prepare for this assessment.
Other considerations
When to assess the students
The teacher must decide the most appropriate time to set this task. This decision is the result of several considerations including:
- the estimated time it will take to cover the key knowledge and skills for the outcome
- when tasks are being conducted in other subjects and the workload implications for students
- where there are multiple classes in English/EAL, a common School-assessed Coursework scheduling is advisable.
Marking the task
The marking scheme used to assess a student's level of performance should reflect the relevant aspects of the Performance descriptors and be explained to students before starting the task.
Sample assessment : English Unit 3, Outcome 1 and Unit 4, Outcome 1: Reading and responding to texts
Outcome statement –
analyse ideas, concerns and values presented in a text, informed by the vocabulary, text structures and language features and how they make meaning (Unit 3, Outcome 1)
analyse explicit and implicit ideas, concerns and values presented in a text, informed by vocabulary, text structures and language features and how they make meaning (Unit 4, Outcome 1)
Assessment mandated in the Study Design - An analytical response to text in written form
Sample approaches
Offer students two or more essay questions from which they choose.
Examples of questions
Propositional
‘There are no heroes or heroines in
In Cold Blood; only victims.’ How far do you agree?
Quotation based
Al Dewey is determined to learn “the why and the who” of the Clutter murders. He succeeds with ‘the who’ but not ‘the why’. Discuss.
Direct
What role does family play in
In Cold Blood?’
VCE English examination papers (Section A) can also provide inspiration for teachers when writing essay questions. It is important to
always modify the examination questions for internal assessment tasks to maintain the integrity of the assessment task and to provide fair and equitable conditions for students.
Sample assessment: EAL Unit 3, Outcome 1 and Unit 4, Outcome 1: Reading and responding to texts
Outcome statement –
listen to and discuss ideas, concerns and values presented in a text, informed by selected vocabulary, text structures and language features and how they make meaning (Unit 3, Outcome 1)
discuss ideas, concerns and values presented in a text, informed by selected vocabulary, text structures and language features and how they make meaning (Unit 4, Outcome 1)
Assessment mandated in the Study Design – An analytical response to text in written form
Comprehension of an audio / audio visual text focused on historical, cultural and/or social values in the set text, through:
- short-answer responses
- note form summaries (Unit 3, Outcome 1)
An analytical response to text in written form (Unit 4, Outcome 1)
Sample approaches
An analytical response to text in written form
Offer students two or more essay questions from which they choose.
Examples of questions
Propositional
‘No one really wins in
In Cold Blood; there is only loss.’ How far do you agree?
Quotation based
Dick Hickock always maintained that “Perry Smith killed the Clutters”. Does
In Cold Blood support Hickock’s view?
Direct
What role does family play in
In Cold Blood?’
VCE English examination papers (Section A) can also provide inspiration for teachers when writing essay questions. It is important to
always modify the examination questions for internal assessment tasks to maintain the integrity of the assessment task and to provide fair and equitable conditions for students.
Comprehension of an audio / audio visual text focused on historical, cultural and/or social values in the set text, through:
-
short-answer responses
-
note form summaries
Locate a short audio or audio / visual text with a clear focus on the set text. Examples could include an interview with an author, a discussion about or review of about the text in a podcast episode or on radio.
Example:
Sunday Feature –
Literary Pursuits Truman Capote: In Cold Blood (the discussion begins at minute 3.00)
This podcast episode runs for 48 minutes so an extract would be appropriate. Students can listen to the extract of this podcast and either answer a series of short answer questions or can produce a summary of the extract in note form.
Sample assessment: English and EAL Unit 3, Outcome 2: Creating texts
Outcome statement -
demonstrate effective writing skills by producing their own texts, designed to respond to a specific context and audience to achieve a stated purpose; and to explain their decisions made through writing processes.
Assessment mandated in the Study Design – Two written texts constructed in consideration of audience, purpose and context
Sample approaches
Written texts constructed in consideration of audience, purpose and context
Example 1
Students maintain a writing journal for three or more mentor texts during the teaching and learning program for this outcome in which they develop their ideas, explore text structures, language features, vocabulary and conventions and draft their written texts.
Teacher provides a set of seen/unseen stimulus materials based on the idea selected from the Framework of Ideas. Students determine the context, the audience and the purpose of their written piece and construct it over two supervised lessons.
Example 2
Students maintain a writing journal for three or more mentor texts during the teaching and learning program for this outcome in which they develop their ideas, explore text structures, language features, vocabulary and conventions and draft their written texts.
Teacher provides a set of unseen stimulus materials based on the idea selected from the Framework of Ideas and determines the audience and context for which the written text is constructed. Students develop a written text within those parameters but determine their own purpose.
Example 3
Students maintain a writing journal for three or more mentor texts during the teaching and learning program for this outcome in which they develop their ideas, explore text structures, language features, vocabulary and conventions and draft their written texts.
As a class, students develop set of stimulus materials based on the idea selected from the Framework of Ideas. These stimulus materials are shared with all members of the class. Students select from the stimulus materials and produce a written text incorporating their chosen stimulus, in consideration of an audience, a context and a purpose. Teachers determine an appropriate process of authentication for the submitted text. (See the
VCE and VCAL Administrative Handbook, pages 77 and 78 for support.)
Sample assessment: English Unit 3 Outcome 2
A commentary reflecting on writing processes
Example 1
Students write a commentary on the writing processes they used to develop their written text(s) in a supervised classroom environment.
Example 2
Students maintain a writing journal over the teaching and learning sequence, adding to it after each class and in consideration of the mentor texts under examination. Students submit a set of these written entries. Teachers determine an appropriate process of authentication. (See the
VCE and VCAL Administrative Handbook, pages 77 and 78 for support.)
Sample assessment: EAL Unit 3 Outcome 2
A set of annotations reflecting on writing processes
Example 1
Students annotate one of their written texts, identifying structural elements, language features, vocabulary and convention employed and indicating the processes they used in creating the text.
Example 2
Students develop a series of mind maps. They select key passages or sentences from their text and then map them to:
- mentor texts
- structural elements
- language features
- vocabulary
- early drafts of the passage/sentence
Sample assessment: English and EAL Unit 4, Outcome 2: Analysing argument
Outcome statement -
analyse the use of argument and language in persuasive texts, including one written text (print or digital) and one text in another mode (audio and/or audio visual); and develop and present a point of view text.
Assessment mandated in the Study Design – An analytical response to argument in written form
and
A point of view oral presentation
Sample approaches
Analytical response to argument in written form
Teachers provide students with at least two persuasive texts (one written, in another mode). The text in a mode other than written is supported with a transcript. Students watch and/or listen to the text in a mode other than written (twice). Students write an analytical response to the texts considering argument, language, persuasive strategies and effects.
Point of view oral presentation
Example 1
Students write and individually present a point of view speech to an audience. The audience can be peers or parents. The presentation can take place in person or online.
Example 2
Students write and present, in groups, point of view speeches. These speeches can be presented in a debate format or can take the form of a discussion / dialogue.
Example 3
Students write and record a point of view speech. There are options for students to present this point of view speech as part of an ‘imaginary’ podcast or similar.
For all examples, teachers determine an appropriate process of authentication. (See the
VCE and VCAL Administrative Handbook, pages 77 and 78 for support.)
English and EAL general advice
The VCAA publishes performance descriptors for each assessment task in Units 3 and 4. These performance descriptors are advice only and provide a guide to developing an assessment tool when assessing the outcomes of each area of study. The performance descriptors can be adapted and customised by teachers in consideration of their context and cohort, and to complement existing assessment procedures in line with the
VCE and VCAL Administrative Handbook and the
VCE assessment principles.
Performance descriptors can assist teachers in moderating student work, in making consistent assessment, in helping determine student point of readiness (zone of proximal development) and in providing more detailed information for reporting purposes. Using performance descriptors can assist students by providing them with informed, detailed feedback and by showing them what improvement looks like.
Teachers should note that, in modifying or developing unique performance descriptors, they should work from the study design and the key areas of outcome statements, key knowledge and key skills. Not all key knowledge and key skills will or can be formally assessed in an assessment task – some key knowledge and key skills are observable in classroom engagement and learning – but all criteria in any assessment tool must be drawn directly from the study design.
Performance descriptors are developed for each outcome statement and reflect the key skills that underpin that outcome statement. Key skills are allocated a row and each row describes five progressively higher levels of performance for that key skill. Teachers can infer an increase in progressively higher difficulty by reading the performance descriptors left to right, but not a similarity of difficulty reading the performance descriptors top to bottom.
| Increasing levels of difficulty and complexity
 |
| Outcome | Key skill | Expected quality of performance | Expected quality of performance | Expected quality of performance | Expected quality of performance | Expected quality of performance | Expected quality of performance |
| Key skill | Expected quality of performance | Expected quality of performance | Expected quality of performance | Expected quality of performance | Expected quality of performance | Expected quality of performance |
Performance descriptors and outcome statements
In general, there is one set of performance descriptors for each outcome statement. Each set of performance descriptors includes the key skills underpinning the outcome statement that relate directly to the task mandated in the study design. However, Unit 3, Outcome 2 and Unit 4, Outcome 2 have outcome statements that require students to demonstrate two distinct sets of skills.
Unit 3, Outcome 2 requires students to produce individual written texts and to reflect on their writing processes. To support these separate skill sets, there are two sets of performance descriptors, one to assess the requirement that a student ‘ … demonstrate effective writing skills by producing their own texts, designed to respond to a specific context and audience to achieve a stated purpose’ and another to assess the requirement that a student ‘ … explain their decisions made through writing processes’.
Unit 4, Outcome 2 requires that students analyse the use of argument and language in persuasive text and develop and present a point of view text. To support these separate skills sets, there are two sets of performance descriptors, one to assess the requirement that a student ‘ … analyse the use of argument and language in persuasive texts, including one written text (print or digital) and one text in another mode (audio and/or audio visual)’ and another to assess the requirement that a student ‘ … develop and present a point of view text’.
English as an Additional Language (EAL) students
The VCE English and EAL Study Design outcome statements have been differentiated to provide for a more scaffolded approach to teaching and learning for EAL students. The EAL performance descriptors have been developed to include the key skills relevant and specific to the tasks to be completed by EAL students.
Advice for using performance descriptors
In designing School-assessed Coursework assessment tasks, teachers can adapt performance descriptors. Performance descriptors should be able to capture the skill level of every student being assessed and will help provide the allocation of a range of marks. Thus, the lowest quality performance should be something most or all students can do, and the highest quality performance should be something that extends the most able students within the parameters of the outcome statement. These descriptors can also serve as a guide for how to describe student performance.
Teachers can also explore the performance descriptors with their students, unpacking the levels of expected performance so students have a clear understanding of what can be possible in terms of development and achievement.
English
English as an Additional Language (EAL)