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PATHWAYS

2024

 
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VCE English

English Language Unit 3 and 4

Prerequisites

A study of a unit from the VCE English Group at Unit 1 or 2. Students must complete Unit 3 prior to undertaking Unit 4.

Who is English Language for?

Any student is welcome to undertake English Language but it is particularly suited to:

  • those with a more analytical approach to the study of English;
  • English specialists;
  • students with a strong LOTE background;
  • students with strong essay writing skills and an interest in history, international studies and other humanities subjects.

Note: Students are expected to read widely in order to further their knowledge of language use in society. In order to succeed in English Language, students require excellent organisation skills, regular work patterns and a strong work ethic. An analytical and inquiring mind assists in structuring essay responses, as does a fluency of written expression and a strong understanding of the mechanics of language. As this is an advanced English course, it is advised that any student who struggles with English think carefully before committing to a complex subject such as this one.

Course Description

English Language is a highly technical study that considers the formal systems and structures of language as well as the way language is used to perform various social functions. Ultimately, successful English Language students are able to balance intricate grammatical knowledge with the meaningful and detailed discussion of ideas. English Language:

  • is informed by the discipline of linguistics;
  • considers the nature of language in human thought, social interaction and identity construction;
  • systematically and objectively deconstructs language in use by exploring the structures, features and discourse of written and spoken texts;
  • develops students' awareness of their own critical, selective and innovative use of language and their ability to apply it to their own writing and speaking.

Unit 3: Language Variation and Social Purpose

  • Students investigate English language in the Australian social setting, along a continuum of informal and formal registers.
  • They consider language as a means of societal interaction, understanding that through written and spoken texts we communicate information, ideas, attitudes, prejudices and ideological stances.
  • Each of the English Language units require students to understand linguistic concepts and use metalanguage appropriately to describe and analyse language in an objective and a systematic way.

Unit 4: Language Variation and Identity

  • Students focus on the role of language in establishing and challenging different identities. Many varieties of English exist in contemporary Australian society, including national, regional, cultural and social variations.
  • Students examine both print and digital texts to consider the ways different identities are constructed. Students explore how our sense of who we are is constantly evolving and responding to the situations in which we find ourselves and is determined not only by how we see ourselves, but by how others see us.
  • Each of the English Language units require students to understand linguistic concepts and use metalanguage appropriately to describe and analyse language in an objective and a systematic way.

Areas of Study (Unit 3)

Informal Language 

  • Students consider the way speakers and writers choose from a vast repertoire of language in order to vary the style of their language to suit a particular social purpose.
  • Consider the features and functions of informal language in written, spoken and electronic interactions, understanding that the situational and cultural context of an exchange determines the language used.
  • Students examine texts including conversations, narratives, monologues, interviews and unscripted commentaries, in which speakers use informal language.
  • They also consider informal texts produced by writers, including narratives, advertisements, journals, notes, and electronic or other written interactions involving one or more participants.

Formal Language 

  • Students examine the features and functions of formal language, particularly in literature and the public domain, and consider how formal language can achieve a range of social purposes.
  • They examine such formal written texts as legal documents, bureaucratic policy and procedures, official documents, informational prose and literature.
  • They also examine formal language in spoken texts such as speeches, lectures, oaths, liturgies, performances and monologues.
  • Students explore how variations in style reveal much about the intentions and values of speakers or writers, as well as the situational and social contexts in which formal texts are created.

Areas of Study (Unit 4)

Language Variation in Australian Society

  • This area of study enables students to understand the range of language varieties that exist in contemporary Australian society and the contributions these varieties make to a shared national identity. 
  • Increasing global contact and other social changes are shaping contemporary Australian English, and attitudes towards Australian language continue to evolve. Students consider variation between regions, a range of migrant ethnolects, and Aboriginal Englishes, in addition to exploring how the language features associated with stereotypes may invoke or challenge identities.

Individual and Group Identities

  • In this area of study, students focus on the role of language in reflecting and constructing individual and group identities. They learn that language users are able to play different roles within speech communities and to construct their identities through subconscious and conscious language variation according to age, gender, occupation, interests, aspiration and education.
  • Students investigate how, as individuals, we make language choices that draw on our understanding of social expectations and community attitudes.

Assessment

Outcomes Assessment Tasks Marks Allocated
(school-assessed coursework)
Identify and analyse distinctive features of informal language in written and spoken texts.

Students are required to complete one or more of the following tasks:

  • An essay.
  • A research investigation and report.
  • A folio.
  • An extended or short answer response to a text or texts.
  • An oral or multimodal presentation.
 50
ldentify and analyse distinctive features of formal language in written and spoken texts.

Students are required to complete one or more of the following tasks:

  • An essay.
  • A research investigation and report.
  • A folio.
  • An extended or short answer response to a text or texts.
  • An oral or multimodal presentation.
 50
Total Marks 100

 

Outcomes Assessment Tasks Marks Allocated
(school-assessed coursework)
Investigate and analyse varieties of Australian English and attitudes towards them.

Students are required to complete one or more of the following tasks:

  • An essay.
  • A research investigation and report.
  • A folio.
  • An extended or short answer response to a text or texts.
  • An oral or multimodal presentation.
 50
Analyse how people’s choice of language reflects and constructs their identities.

Students are required to complete one or more of the following tasks:

  • An essay.
  • A research investigation and report.
  • A folio.
  • An extended or short answer response to a text or texts.
  • An oral or multimodal presentation.
 50
Total Marks 100

Overall Final Assessment

Graded Assessment Title Assessment Exam Duration Contribution to Study Score (%)
1 Unit 3 Coursework School-assessed   25
2 Unit 4 Coursework School-assessed   25
3 Written examination November 2 hours 50

 

Reproduced by permission of the Victorian Curriculum and Assessment Authority, Victoria, Australia: www.vcaa.vic.edu.au