English as an Additional Language (EAL)
Unit 1-4
This study aims to develop competence in the understanding and use of English for a variety of purposes sufficient to meet the demands of post-school employment, further education, and participation in a democratic society. It emphasises the integration of reading, writing, speaking, listening, and thinking. It values student diversity and particularly encourages learning in which students take responsibility for their language development and thus grow in confidence and in language skill and understanding.
Entry
There are no prerequisites for entry to Units 1 and 2. Students must undertake Unit 3 prior to undertaking Unit 4. Units 1 to 4 are designed to a standard equivalent to the final two years of secondary education.
Eligibility for English as Additional Language - (EAL)
Students whose native language is a language other than English are eligible to enrol in EAL, providing they satisfy both the following conditions:
The student has been enrolled in an English speaking school for a period not more than seven calendar years immediately prior to the year in which English Units 3 and 4 are undertaken and;
English has been the student’s major language of instruction for a total period of no more than seven years prior to the commencement of the year in which English Units 3 and 4 are undertaken. This rule would also apply to applications for special consideration due to unfamiliarity with the English language in other studies
Unit 1
In this area of study, students engage in reading and viewing texts with a focus on personal connections with the story. They discuss and clarify the ideas and values presented by authors through their evocations of character, setting and plot, and through investigations of the point of view and/or the voice of the text. Students will also engage with and develop an understanding of effective and cohesive writing. They apply, extend and challenge their understanding and use of imaginative, persuasive and informative text through a growing awareness of situated contexts, stated purposes and audience. Students read and engage imaginatively and critically withmentor texts that model effective writing.
Areas of Study
- Reading and exploring texts
- Crafting Texts.
Outcomes
On completion of this unit students should be able to:
- Make personal connections with, and explore the vocabulary, text structures, language features and ideas in a text
- To demonstrate an understanding of effective and cohesive writing through the crafting of their own texts designed for a specific context and audience to achieve a stated purpose.
Assessment
Demonstration of achievement of Outcomes 1 and 2 will be based on students’ performance on a selection of assessment tasks. Assessment tasks will include:
- A personal response to a set text
- Two student-created texts such as: short stories, speeches (with transcripts), essays (comment, opinion, reflective, personal), podcasts (with transcripts)
- Poetry/songs, feature articles (including a series of blog postings) and memoirs
- A description of writing processes.
UNIT 2
In this area of study, students develop their reading and viewing skills, including deepening their capacity for inferential reading and viewing, to further open possible meanings in a text, and to extend their writing in response to text. Students will also consider the way arguments are developed and delivered in many forms of media. Through the prism of a contemporary and substantial local and/or national issue, students read, view and listen to a range of texts that attempt to position an intended audience in a particular context. They explore the structure of these texts, including contention, sequence of arguments, use of supporting evidence and persuasive strategies. They closely examine the language and the visuals employed by the author, and offer analysis of the intended effect on the audience. Students apply their knowledge of argument to create a point of view text for oral presentation.
Areas of Study
- Reading and exploring texts
- Exploring Argument.
Outcomes
On completion of this unit students should be able to:
- Explore and analyse how the vocabulary, text structures, language features and ideas in a text construct meaning
- Explore and analyse persuasive texts within the context of a contemporary issue, including the ways argument and language can be used to position an audience
- Construct a point of view text for oral presentation.
Assessment
Demonstration of achievement of Outcomes 1 and 2 will be based on students’ performance on a selection of assessment tasks. Assessment tasks will include:
- An analytical response to a set text
- An analysis of the use of argument and persuasive language and techniques in text(s)
- An oral presentation of a point of view text.
UNIT 3
In this area of study, students apply reading and viewing strategies to critically engage with a text, considering its dynamics and complexities and reflecting on the motivations of its characters. They analyse the ways authors construct meaning through vocabulary, text structures, language features and conventions, and the presentation of ideas. They also read and engage imaginatively and critically with mentor texts to inspire their own creative processes, to generate ideas for their writing and reflect on the deliberate choices they have made through their writing processes intheir commentaries.
Areas of Study
- Reading and responding to texts
- Creating Texts.
Outcomes
On completion of this unit, students should be able to:
- analyse ideas, concerns and values presented in a text, informed by the vocabulary, text structures and language features and how they make meaning
- 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
Demonstration of achievement of Outcomes 1 and 2 will be based on students’ performance on a selection of assessment tasks. Suitable tasks for assessment in this unit are:
- An analytical response to a set text
- Two written texts constructed in consideration of audience, purpose and context with a commentary reflecting on writing processes.
UNIT 4
In this area of study, students consolidate their capacity to critically analyse texts and deepen their understanding of the ideas and values a text can convey. Students also analyse the use of argument and language, and visuals in texts that debate a contemporary and significant national or international issue. Students apply their understanding of the use of argument and language to create a point of view text for oral presentation.
Areas of Study
- Reading and responding to texts
- Analysing argument.
Outcomes
On completion of this unit students should be able to:
- analyse explicit and implicit ideas, concerns and values presented in a text
- 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
Demonstration of achievement of Outcomes 3 and 4 will be based on students’ performance on a selection of assessment tasks. Suitable tasks for assessment in this unit are:
- An analytical response to text in written form
- An analytical response to argument in written form
- A point of view oral presentation.
Assessment
Satisfactory Completion:
The award of satisfactory completion for a unit is based on the teacher’s decision that the student has demonstrated achievement of the set of outcomes specified for the unit. Demonstration of achievement of outcomes and satisfactory completion of a unit are determined by evidence gained through the assessment of a range of learning activities and tasks.
Teachers must develop courses that provide appropriate opportunities for students to demonstrate satisfactory achievement of outcomes.
The decision about satisfactory completion of a unit is distinct from the assessment of levels of achievement. Schools will report a student’s result for each unit to the VCAA as S (satisfactory) or N (not satisfactory).
Levels of Achievement
Units 1 and 2:
Procedures for the assessment of levels of achievement in Units 1 and 2 are a matter for school decision. Assessment 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.
Units 3 and 4:
The VCAA specifies the assessment procedures for students undertaking scored assessment in Units 3 and 4. Designated assessment tasks are provided in the details for each unit in VCE study designs.
The student’s level of achievement in Units 3 and 4 will be determined by School-assessed Coursework (SAC) as specified in the VCE study design, and external assessment.
The VCAA will report the student’s level of achievement on each assessment component as a grade from
A+ to E or UG (ungraded). To receive a study score the student must achieve two or more graded assessments in the study and receive an S for both Units 3 and 4. The study score is reported on a scale of 0–50; it is a measure of how well the student performed in relation to all others who completed the study. Percentage contributions to the study score in VCE English and English as an Additional Language (EAL) are as follows:
Unit 3 School-assessed Coursework: 25 %
Unit 4 School-assessed Coursework: 25 %
End-of-year examination: 50 %