Pre VCE English Language

Subject Overview

Pre VCE English Language is a year-long English elective designed to explore the relationship between language and identity. In this subject you will explore how language is used to construct and expose individual and group identity and our place in Australia and the world. This subject is influenced by the field of linguistics and social sciences. It aims to give you a taste of possible different directions for your future English studies and to help connect your study of English to the way we communicate in contemporary society.

Content and ideas: 

In Semester One, you will consider how the language we speak and write shapes how others perceive us, and how this perception can be controlled through the careful consideration of the language we chose in a given situation. You will learn how to analyse spoken and written language in relation to its intended function, and how that can be shaped by audience and context. 

In Semester Two, you will continue to explore the ways in which we perceive and produce language with identity construction in mind.  You will consider how cultural context can also shape identity and the way we use language.

Typical class activities:

• Group discussion

• Close reading and analysis of passages

• Exploration of media texts

• Study of short fiction texts

• Reflective, expository or analytical writing tasks

• Research project

Skills focus:

• Critical and creative thinking

• Written expression, particularly controlled use of syntax and lexical choice

• Analysing the ‘hidden meaning’ encoded in texts

• Exploring the social values and beliefs shaping the use of language

Assessment Tasks:

The range of assessment tasks for this subject may include:

• Text Response Essay

• Creative writing

• Research tasks

• Group collaborations and presentations

• Discourse analysis (media texts activity)

Do this subject if:

• You aren’t quite sure which VCE English to take

• You want to study texts that are reflective of the everyday use of English

• You are interested in how English works (syntax, lexicology, discourse, semantics)

• You are interested in the connections between language, culture, thought and power