English Applied

In this course, students learn to comprehend and respond to the ideas and information presented in texts from a range of contexts. They will use reading strategies and recognise organisational features that assist comprehension. Learners will respond to text through discussion and questioning, and identifying purpose and intended audience.

Students will learn how to use language to help formulate and communicate different points of view and perspectives, and how to apply their knowledge to create a range of texts – interpretive, analytical and persuasive – using different modes and mediums. The role of social media is explored, with learners learning about literary styles used in these forms of communication.

Learners will interact with others in a variety of settings to discuss ideas and information. Proficiency in language and literacy skills will be demonstrated through the creation of a range of texts created for different purposes.

This course is designed to consolidate and refine the skills and knowledge needed by learners to become confident, competent and engaged users of English in many contexts including everyday individual, community, and workplace contexts. This course is designed to provide learners with the skills that will empower them to succeed in a wide range of post-secondary pathways.

This course will develop learners’ language and literacy skills to enable them to communicate successfully, both orally and in writing. These skills will also allow them to enjoy and use language for practical purposes, and for leisure and pleasure.

Learners comprehend, analyse, interpret and evaluate the content, structure and style of a wide variety of oral, written and multimodal texts, including literary, digital and media texts. Students learn how the interaction of structure, language, audience and context helps to shape different points of view and perspectives. Both independently and collaboratively, they apply their knowledge to create texts in different modes and mediums.

On successful completion of this course, learners will be able to:

1. comprehend information, ideas and language in texts selected from a range of contexts
2. understand language choices in a range of texts and the likely or intended effect of these choices
3. understand how the structures and language of texts varies in different modes, mediums and contexts
4. identify ideas, attitudes and values in texts
5. understand reasons for language choices in a variety of texts and their effects on intended audiences
6. create oral, written and multimodal texts for different purposes using appropriate communication strategies for interaction with others in real and/or simulated settings (such as everyday individual, community and workplace settings)
7. select, collect, organise and manage information from a variety of sources
8. apply time management and negotiation skills
9. apply clear and accurate communication and literacy skills
10. apply principles of academic integrity and use appropriate referencing (citation).

This course has a complexity level of 2.

At Level 2, the learner is expected to carry out tasks and activities that involve a range of knowledge and skills, including some basic theoretical and/or technical knowledge and skills. Limited judgement is required, such as making an appropriate selection from a range of given rules, guidelines or procedures. VET competencies at this level are often those characteristic of an AQF Certificate II.

This course has a size value of 15.

This course has three (3) compulsory strands and one (1) compulsory negotiated learning unit.

The three strands are:

• the construction and use of the spoken word
• reading and viewing for meaning and purpose
• creating texts for individual, community and workplace audiences.

All three strands must be completed. Strands do not have to be delivered sequentially. It is recommended that providers design programs of study that combine/concurrently deliver the three strands.

It is intended the negotiated learning unit be delivered and assessed after the three course strands have been completed.

Learning activities in this course will be contextualised in everyday adult settings that will include: individual; community; and workplace. Examples/characteristics of these settings include:

• Individual: interpersonal relationships, family, friends, relatives, colleagues, acquaintances. Also called ‘social’ settings. Texts tend to be informal and personal.
• Community: shared interest groups (clubs), local community, neighbourhood, school/college community. Texts tend to be more formal and public.
• Workplace: work experience, other on-the-job training, casual employment, part-time employment, real or simulated. Texts tend to be formal and official/business-like.

Course content in italics has been included to give illustrative examples, explanations and other additional information to assist the provider.

STRAND ONE: The construction and use of the spoken word
Focus: the construction of authentic, real-world spoken texts and communication activities for use in a wide range of everyday situations including individual, community and workplace settings.

Learners will:

• learn about the structures and features of spoken language
• learn about listening for meaning of spoken language, and how to be a respectful audience participant
• learn how to speak using appropriate language, content and mode for different purposes and audiences
• apply decision making processes to shape and improve their own speaking, listening and responding skills in conversations and group discussions
• apply oral communication skills to interact with and engage an audience.

Description:
In this strand learners will engage with a range of spoken texts to:

• consider how spoken individual, community and workplace texts are constructed for particular purposes and audiences
• understand the ways text structures and language features are used to influence audiences. For example, emotive language in speeches or films and vocabulary choices in advertisements
• study the effects of mediums, types of texts and text structures on audiences. For example, compare the register of spoken communication in television/radio news broadcast to that in a light entertainment chat show
• develop their skill in listening for the meaning of orally presented text
• contribute to conversations and group discussions, and exercise appropriate audience behaviour.

This strand may also provides learners with opportunities to:

• study the use of narrative features: for example, point of view in film, podcasts and video games
• use different strategies for finding information from oral texts such as taking notes to summarise
• use text structures and language features to communicate ideas and information in a range of spoken mediums
• understand the use of language features such as tone, register and style to influence responses, for example, character monologues in film, fiction and video games
• select text structures, language features and oral techniques to communicate and represent ideas and information in the creation of their own text
• use strategies for planning, drafting and proofing oral texts.

Texts and Presentations:
Learners will engage with a wide range of oral texts, such as: 

 Learners will use oral presentation strategies to enhance their presentation to the audience, such as:

• posture
• speech speed and flow
• articulation and enunciation
• use of pause and silence
• memorisation
• facial expressions
• gestures
• body language
• use of dot points and/or notes
• engagement with the audience
• use of visual mode to support oral text e.g. PowerPoint

Delivery:
This strand is designed to be delivered concurrently with Strands Two and Three. The emphasis is on preparing learners to be able to confidently speak in a wide variety of real-life/simulated situations, and to be an active listener. Learners will be encouraged to be self-aware, to seek feedback, and to constantly improve their spoken texts.

STRAND TWO: Read and view for meaning and purpose
Focus: engagement with a wide variety of written and visual texts with an individual, community and workplace focus. A range of written texts will be read, and visual texts will be viewed, for purpose and enjoyment. In their reading, learners will recognise the role of audience and how the writer expresses ideas, attitudes and values.

Learners will:

• read and view widely for purpose and enjoyment, and to explore ideas and attitudes
• learn the ways in which purpose, context and audience influence content
• use language features including visual and aural cues to identify main ideas, supporting arguments and evidence
• identify the ways in which main ideas, values and supporting details are represented in individual, community and workplace texts.

Description:
In this strand learners will engage with a range of written and visual texts to:

• make personal connections with read and viewed texts
• summarise ideas and information presented in read and viewed texts
• predict meaning using text structures and language features
• question texts to draw conclusions.

This strand may also provides learners with opportunities to:

• make inferences from content and text structures and language features
• identify similarities and differences between their own response to texts and those of others
• learn the ways text structures and language features are used to influence audiences
• study the effects of mediums, types of texts and text structures on audiences
• understand the use of narrative features for example, point of view in film, fiction and video games
• the use of language features such as tone, register and style to influence responses
• learn to skim read for general sense and scan for key information
• locate and select information from a range of sources
• use different strategies for finding information, such as taking notes to summarise and/or paraphrase information
• examine how to gain meaning from communications sent and received using social media (Social media: may include: Facebook, You Tube, Blogger, Yahoo, twitter, Gmail, Google+ )

  recognise, read and understand phonetic and symbolic language used in SMS communications, such as:

Learners will also develop:

• understanding of the features of informational text
• scanning and summarising skills
• skills in writing and reading instructions
• understanding of the language of advertisements
• understanding of ‘what is a narrative?’
• understanding of recounts and biographies
• skills in developing an argument.

Delivery:

This strand is designed to be delivered concurrently with Strands One and Three. The emphasis is on learners undertaking reading for meaning, and developing understanding of types of texts, genres and text structures.

STRAND THREE: Creating texts for individual, community and workplace audiences
Focus: creating a wide range of texts for different purposes using text structures and language features to communicate ideas and information in a range of modes and mediums.

Learners will:

• learn to write in a range of different forms for different purposes and audiences
• learn to use appropriate processes such as drafting, revising, editing, proofreading and referencing in the creation of texts
• learn to develop accuracy in spelling, punctuation and grammar
• learn to select text structures, language features and visual techniques to communicate and represent ideas and information.

Description:
In this strand learners will apply their learning from engagement with texts written by others, and use this learning to inform the creation of their own texts and develop their skills as a writer. Learners learn:

• to summarise ideas and information presented in texts
• to understand how texts are structured to organise information, such as hyperlinks, chapter headings and indexes
• to identify the relevance and usefulness of each source
• to use organisational strategies (e.g. graphic organisers – refer to list) to collect and process information
• the use of appropriate language, content and mode for different purposes and audiences in everyday individual, community or workplace contexts
• the use of persuasive, visual and literary techniques to engage audiences in a range of modes, mediums and contexts
• to use accurate spelling, punctuation and grammar
• to use strategies for planning, drafting and proofreading, and appropriate referencing.

This strand may also provides learners with opportunities to learn:

• how individual, community and workplace texts are constructed for particular purposes, audiences and contexts
• the ways in which main ideas, values and supporting details are represented in individual, community and workplace texts
• the ways text structures and language features are used to influence audiences
• the effects of mediums, types of texts and text structures on audiences
• to skim read for general sense and scan for key information
• to use different strategies for finding information
• the use of text structures and language features to communicate ideas and information in a range of mediums and digital technologies, for example, explaining workplace procedures, using navigation bars to create a web page and developing a character’s backstory
• to select text structures, language features and visual techniques to communicate and represent ideas and information
• to explore how social media* is used for texts for individual, community and workplace audiences, and for communication between virtual communities and networks.

*Additional examples of social media may include internet forums, webcasts, blogs, wikis, podcasts, Skype.

Organisational Strategies to Assist Writing:
Learners will learn about a range of writing strategies that will assist them to construct relevant texts, such as:

• co-constructing
• scaffolding
• focus
• personal voice
• effective sentences
• proofreading.

Graphic Organisers assist learners to organise and represent ideas and information in a pictorial/graphic mode. Graphic organisers might include:

• mind maps
• concept maps
• flow-chart
• fishbone
• tree
• chain
• spider-charts or maps
• idea wheel
• timeline
• persuasion map
• ticktacktoe
• ISP Chart (information/sources/page).

Delivery:
This strand is designed to be delivered concurrently with Strands One and Two. The emphasis is on empowering learners to write confidently for a wide variety of purposes in individual, community and workplace contexts.

NEGOTIATED LEARNING UNIT
Focus: This is a discrete, negotiated learning unit. It is recommended that it be undertaken and assessed after the course strands. It involves the creation of one significant project negotiated between learner and teacher from an area of interest in either an individual, community or workplace context. Learners will demonstrate the ability to select, collect and manage the use of information for specific contexts and purposes, and work within a given time frame.

It is intended that this unit will provide major assessment evidence for Criterion 7.

Learners will:

• learn to select and collect information from a range of sources
• learn how texts are structured to organise and manage information
• select text structures, language features and visual techniques to communicate and represent ideas and information for a specific purpose and audience
• learn to use persuasive, visual and literary techniques to engage audiences.

Description:
In this unit, learners will engage in learning that challenges them to develop skills such as: enquiry, reflective thinking, self-direction, semi-independence and effective communication. Learners will undertake a significant negotiated task in which they will:

• make personal connections with texts
• identify the relevance and usefulness of each source
• use text structures and language features to communicate ideas and information in a range of mediums and digital technologies
• use accurate spelling, punctuation and grammar
• use strategies for planning, drafting and proofreading, and appropriate referencing.

This unit may also provides learners with opportunities to:

• question texts to draw conclusions
• use structural and language features including visual and aural cues to identify main ideas, supporting arguments and evidence
• demonstrate how social, community and workplace texts are constructed for particular purposes, audiences and contexts
• locate and select information from a range of sources
• use graphic organisers to collect and process information
• use different strategies for finding information
• use persuasive, visual and literary techniques to engage audiences in a range of modes, mediums and contexts.

Illustrative examples (only) of Negotiated Learning in each of the three focus areas include:

Individual:

• living independently
• social media: its role in our lives and society
• safe partying: young people, drugs and alcohol
• contemporary issues* (e.g. same sex marriage, asylum seekers, drugs in sport)
• legal issues (e.g. abortion, euthanasia, adoption, children’s rights)
• how ICT and social media have changed the ways people interact and communicate with family and friends (such as Facebook, SMS, email, Skype). Has ICT and social media strengthened or weakened our interpersonal relationships?

*Contemporary issues may change from year to year as new issues enter the social environment

Community:

• exploring how people with a disability can flourish and live purposeful and happy lives
• youth volunteers (local, national and/or international)
• how to improve my local community* for young people, families, older people
• organ donation: why or why not? conflict between donor and family; government policies; community attitudes
• indigenous Australians: social situation; health issues; educational and employment opportunities
• create a community website (such as school, home, club)
• the role and importance of clubs/organisations in my local community
• organise a community event or fundraiser
• rural health concerns: mortality rates; health services; action by governments
• volunteering programs and opportunities for young people
• work and travel: what are the possibilities?
• Local community topics might include (for example) transport, facilities, environment, and events.

Workplace:

• creating my own new business proposal or business plan
• development of a product or a brand aimed at a youth market
• workplace health and safety (WHS) for young or new workers
• Australia’s Fair Work system: key features; workplace attitudes; political motives
• my rights and responsibilities as an employee
• exploitation of foreign workers (in a country outside Australia)
• combining part-time/casual work with further study or training
• investigate a future career path (e.g. required qualifications, training options, type of work, work conditions).

STRAND ONE:

For minimum assessment requirements learners will:

• write and deliver two short oral texts to different intended audiences which could include individual, community or workplace audiences, and may be delivered as part of a group discussion
• create and deliver a multimodal presentation, such as a PowerPoint with some text and images [and possibly sound effects] that the learner presents with oral commentary (Multimodal: a combination of two or more communication modes (for example print, image, and spoken text, as in a film or computer presentation.))
• engage in listening activities that require them to listen attentively and extract the meaning of what has been communicated
• participate in an interview process which could be real, simulated or scenario-based.

STRAND TWO:

For minimum assessment purposes learners will:

• read at least one substantial written text (this may be a fiction text, such as a novel, or a non-fiction text, such as a biography, travel guide book, journal, diary, or ‘how to’ manual) and four to six other texts (including multimodal texts)
• record brief reflective responses to the texts they have read or viewed and write a brief synopses of the content/meaning of the texts
• create one imaginative written text in response to a read or viewed text* (Imaginative texts: See Glossary. Some use the term ‘creative’ to refer to this text type.)
• create one analytical written text in response to a read or viewed text.* (Analytical texts: See Glossary)

*At least one of these two responses must be to a read text.

Illustrative examples (only) of learners’ reading texts for Strand Two:

Learner ‘A’

• a fiction novel (e.g. Tyger Tyger by Michael Hyde)
• three television advertisements for car insurance
• a graphic novel (e.g. The Sacrifice by Bruce Mutard)
• two feature newspaper articles
• a documentary film (e.g. When We Were Kings Leon Gast (Director))
• a complex website (such as the Multicultural Australia website)
• a WHS workplace manual.

Learner ‘B’

• a non-fiction text (e.g. From Kingslake to Kabul by Neil Grant and David Williams)
• two written reviews (e.g. of a recently released film, new product or music CD)
• a film (e.g. The Sapphires Wayne Blair (Director))
• a graphic novel (e.g. The Rabbits by John Marsden and Shaun Tan)
• a television feature (e.g. an episode of Who do you think you are? (Australian TV))
• two feature magazine articles
• a complex website.

STRAND THREE:

For minimum assessment purposes learners will:

• create at least one multimodal text that fulfills a specific purpose. The creative process should be noted, indicating how the content has been selected using difference sources, and how aesthetic elements have been used to enhance the final product
• create three written texts for three different audiences (one text for each audience: individual, community and workplace). The creation of at least one of these texts will be supported by the use of an appropriate graphic organizer.

NEGOTIATED LEARNING UNIT:

For minimum assessment purposes learners will:

• negotiate with their teacher, verbally and in writing, one negotiated learning project with either a individual, community or workplace focus
• be involved in regular discussions with their teacher in order to reflect on progress and plan future work
• submit at least one graphic organizer which reflect learning aims and goals, timelines, and projected outcomes
• undertake the research to support this project
• create and submit the project. This may include multimodal or other forms but MUST include significant (40-60%) written text.

SUMMARY OF MINIMUM WORK REQUIREMENTS

Criterion-based assessment is a form of outcomes assessment that identifies the extent of learner achievement at an appropriate end-point of study. Although assessment – as part of the learning program – is continuous, much of it is formative, and is done to help learners identify what they need to do to attain the maximum benefit from their study of the course. Therefore, assessment for summative reporting to TASC will focus on what both teacher and learner understand to reflect end-point achievement.

The standard of achievement each learner attains on each criterion is recorded as a rating ‘A’, ‘B’, or ‘C’, according to the outcomes specified in the standards section of the course.

A ‘t’ notation must be used where a learner demonstrates any achievement against a criterion less than the standard specified for the ‘C’ rating.

A ‘z’ notation is to be used where a learner provides no evidence of achievement at all.

Providers offering this course must participate in quality assurance processes specified by TASC to ensure provider validity and comparability of standards across all awards. To learn more, see TASC's quality assurance processes and assessment information.

Internal assessment of all criteria will be made by the provider. Providers will report the learner’s rating for each criterion to TASC.

The following processes will be facilitated by TASC to ensure there is:

• a match between the standards of achievement specified in the course and the skills and knowledge demonstrated by learners
• community confidence in the integrity and meaning of the qualification.

Process – Each provider will submit bodies of learners’ work sufficient to allow an assessment against a nominated criterion or range of nominated criteria and the overall award to an annual review meeting organised by TASC. The work, while not necessarily fully resolved, will be assessed by the provider against the nominated assessment criterion/ia and the overall award. TASC will give each provider guidance regarding the selection of learners and the nominated criterion/ia.

Each body of learner work that providers submit to the meeting will include sufficient and appropriate material for judgements to be made about the learner’s standard of literacy skills.

The review meeting will give advice about the provider’s assessment standards. Providers are expected to act on this advice.

TASC may require providers to supply further samples of individual learners’ work to determine that standards have been applied appropriately when finalising learners’ results. The nature and scope of this requirement will be risk-based.

The assessment of English Applied Level 2 will be based on the degree to which the learner can:

• 1. use accurate and effective language ** Essential criterion
• 2. communicate ideas through the creation of oral and multimodal texts
• 3. use strategies and skills to comprehend texts
• 4. identify ideas, attitudes and values in texts
• 5. identify audiences and contexts for which texts are created
• 6. select , collect and manage information
• 7. demonstrate time management and negotiation skills

* Essential criterion

English Applied Level 2 (with the award of):

EXCEPTIONAL ACHIEVEMENT

HIGH ACHIEVEMENT

COMMENDABLE ACHIEVEMENT

SATISFACTORY ACHIEVEMENT

PRELIMINARY ACHIEVEMENT

The final award will be determined by the Office of Tasmanian Assessment, Standards and Certification from 7 ratings.

The minimum requirements for an award in English Applied Level 2 are as follows:

EXCEPTIONAL ACHIEVEMENT (EA)
 6 ‘A’ ratings, 1 ‘B’ rating

 HIGH ACHIEVEMENT (HA)
 3 ‘A’ ratings, 3 ‘B’ ratings, 1 ‘C’ rating

 COMMENDABLE ACHIEVEMENT (CA)
 4 ‘B’ ratings, 2 ‘C’ ratings (must include a ‘C’ rating or higher on Criterion 1)

 SATISFACTORY ACHIEVEMENT (SA)
 6 ‘C’ ratings (must include a ‘C’ rating or higher on Criterion 1)

 PRELIMINARY ACHIEVEMENT (PA)
 4 ‘C’ ratings

A learner who otherwise achieves the rating for a SA (Satisfactory Achievement) award but who fails to show any evidence of achievement in one or more criteria (‘z’ notation) will be issued with a PA (Preliminary Achievement) award.

The Department of Education’s Curriculum Services will develop and regularly revise the curriculum. This evaluation will be informed by the experience of the course’s implementation, delivery and assessment.

In addition, stakeholders may request Curriculum Services to review a particular aspect of an accredited course.

Requests for amendments to an accredited course will be forwarded by Curriculum Services to the Office of TASC for formal consideration.

Such requests for amendment will be considered in terms of the likely improvements to the outcomes for learners, possible consequences for delivery and assessment of the course, and alignment with Australian Curriculum materials.

A course is formally analysed prior to the expiry of its accreditation as part of the process to develop specifications to guide the development of any replacement course.

The statements in this section, taken from documents endorsed by Education Ministers as the agreed and common base for course development, are to be used to define expectations for the meaning (nature, scope and level of demand) of relevant aspects of the sections in this document setting out course requirements, learning outcomes, the course content and standards in the assessment.

ESSENTIAL ENGLISH: UNIT 1

Content Descriptions

Use strategies and skills for comprehending texts including:

• using structural and language features, for example, visual and aural cues to identify main ideas, supporting arguments and evidence (ACEEE001)
• predicting meaning using text structures and language features (ACEEE002)
• making personal connections with texts (ACEEE003)
• questioning texts to draw conclusions. (ACEEE004)

Consider the ways in which texts communicate ideas, attitudes and values including:

• how social, community and workplace texts are constructed for particular purposes, audiences and contexts (ACEEE005)
• the ways text structures and language features are used to influence audiences, for example, image selection in websites, emotive language in speeches or films, stereotypes in video games and vocabulary choices in advertisements (ACEEE006)
• the use of narrative features, for example, point of view in film, fiction and video games. (ACEEE007)

Using information for specific purposes and contexts by:

• locating and extracting information and ideas from texts, for example, skim reading for general sense and scanning for key information (ACEEE008)
• understanding how texts are structured to organise information, for example, hyperlinks, chapter headings and indexes (ACEEE009)
• using strategies and tools for collecting and processing information, for example, graphic organisers and spreadsheets. (ACEEE010)

Create a range of texts:

• using appropriate language, content and mode for different purposes and audiences, for example, in everyday, social, community or workplace contexts (ACEEE011)
• using text structures and language features to communicate ideas and information in a range of mediums and digital technologies, for example, explaining workplace procedures, using navigation bars to create a web page, and developing a character’s back story (ACEEE012)
• developing appropriate vocabulary and using accurate spelling, punctuation and grammar (ACEEE013)
• using strategies for planning, recording sources of information and proofreading. (ACEEE014)

ESSENTIAL ENGLISH: UNIT 2

Content Descriptions

Use strategies and skills for comprehending texts including:

• interpreting structural and language features and aural and visual cues used in texts (ACEEE015)
• making inferences from content, text structures and language features (ACEEE016)
• summarising ideas and information presented in texts (ACEEE017)
• identifying similarities and differences between own response to texts and responses of others. (ACEEE018)

Consider the ways in which context, purpose and audience influence meaning including:

• the ways in which main ideas, values and supporting details are represented in social, community and workplace texts (ACEEE019)
• the effects of mediums, types of texts and text structures on audiences, for example, pop-ups on websites, flashbacks in films and intonation in speeches (ACEEE020)
• the use of language features such as tone, register and style to influence responses, for example, character monologues in film, fiction and video games. (ACEEE021)

Using information for specific purposes and contexts by:

• locating and selecting information from a range of sources (ACEEE022)
• identifying the relevance and usefulness of each source (ACEEE023)
• using different strategies for finding information such as taking notes to summarise and/or paraphrase information. (ACEEE024)

Create a range of texts:

• using persuasive, visual and literary techniques to engage audiences in a range of modes, mediums and contexts (ACEEE025)
• selecting text structures, language features and visual techniques to communicate and represent ideas and information (ACEEE026)
• developing appropriate vocabulary and using accurate spelling, punctuation and grammar (ACEEE027)
• using strategies for planning, drafting and proofreading, and appropriate referencing. (ACEEE028)

The accreditation period for this course has been renewed from 1 January 2019 until 31 December 2021.

During the accreditation period required amendments can be considered via established processes.

Should outcomes of the Years 9-12 Review process find this course unsuitable for inclusion in the Tasmanian senior secondary curriculum, its accreditation may be cancelled. Any such cancellation would not occur during an academic year.

Version 1 – Accredited on 21 October 2013 for use in 2014 - 2018. This course replaces English Applied (ENA215109) that expired on 31 December 2013

Version 2 - 21 November 2016. Major refinements to criteria 1 and 2, and associated standard elements.

Version 2.1 - 2 February 2018 - major refinements to criterion 5's standard elements.

Version 2.2 - 9 March 2018 - addition of academic integrity standard elements to criterion 6.

Version 2.3 - 22 November 2018 (for use from 2019) - addition of two (2) Learning Outcomes.  Accreditation renewed on 22 November 2018 for the period 1 January 2019 until 31 December 2021.

GLOSSARY

Appreciation
The act of discerning quality and value of literary texts.

Attitude
A way of thinking about a situation/idea/character. For example, an author or audience may be subjective, supportive or antagonistic towards something or someone.

Audience
The group of readers, listeners or viewers that the writer, designer, filmmaker or speaker is addressing. Audience includes learners in the classroom, an individual, the wider community, review writers, critics and the implied audience.

Comprehension strategies
Strategies and processes used by readers to make meaning from texts. Key comprehension strategies include:

• activating and using prior knowledge
• identifying literal information explicitly stated in the text
• making inferences based on information in the text and their own prior knowledge
• predicting likely future events in a text
• visualising by creating mental images of elements in a text
• summarising and organising information from a text
• integrating ideas and information in texts
• critically reflecting on content, structure, language and images used to construct meaning in a text.

Context
The environment in which a text is responded to or created. Context can include the general social, historical and cultural conditions in which a text is responded to and created (the context of culture) or the specific features of its immediate environment (context of situation). The term is also used to refer to the wording surrounding an unfamiliar word that a reader or listener uses to understand its meaning.

Conventions
An accepted practice that has developed over time and is generally used and understood, for example, the use of specific structural aspects of texts such as in report writing with sections for introduction, background, discussion and recommendations.

Digital texts
Audio, visual or multimodal texts produced through digital or electronic technology, which may be interactive and include animations and/or hyperlinks. Examples of digital texts include DVDs, websites, e-literature.

Form
The shape and structure of texts (for example, poetry, novels, short stories, film).

Grammar
The language we use and the description of language as a system. In describing language, attention is paid to both structure (form) and meaning (function) at the level of the word, the sentence and the text.

Intonation
The rise and fall of one’s voice when speaking; sometimes used for emphasis.

Language features
The features of language that support meaning (for example, sentence structure, noun group/phrase, vocabulary, punctuation, figurative language, framing, camera angles). Choices in language features and text structures together define a type of text and shape its meaning. These choices vary according to the purpose of a text, its subject matter, audience, and mode or medium of production.

Language patterns
The arrangement of identifiable repeated or corresponding elements in a text. These include patterns of repetition or similarity (for example, the repeated use of verbs at the beginning of each step in a recipe, or the repetition of a chorus after each verse in a song). The patterns may alternate (for example, the call and response pattern of some games, or the to and fro of a dialogue). Other patterns may contrast (for example, opposing viewpoints in a discussion, or contrasting patterns of imagery in a poem). The language patterns of a text contribute to the distinctive nature of its overall organisation and shape its meaning.

Media texts
Spoken, print, graphic or electronic communications with a public audience. They often involve numerous people in their construction and are usually shaped by the technology used in their production. The media texts studied in English can be found in newspapers and magazines and on television, film, radio, computer software and the internet.

Medium
The resources used in the production of texts, including the tools and materials used (for example, digital text and the computer, writing and the pen or typewriter).

Metalanguage
Language used to discuss language (for example, language used to discuss film or literary study such as mise-en-scène, symbolism, characterisation or language used to talk about grammatical terms such as ‘sentence’, clause’, ‘conjunction’).

Mode
The various processes of communication: listening, speaking, reading/viewing and writing/creating. Modes are also used to refer to the semiotic (meaning making) resources associated with these communicative processes, such as sound, print, image and gesture.

Multimodal text
Combination of two or more communication modes (for example, print, image and spoken text, as in film or computer presentations).

Narrative
A story of events or experiences, real or imagined. In literary theory, narrative includes the story (what is narrated) and the discourse (how it is narrated).

Narrative point of view
The ways in which a narrator may be related to the story. For example, the narrator might take the role of first or third person, omniscient or restricted in knowledge of events, reliable or unreliable in interpreting what happens.

Perspective
The way a reader/viewer is positioned by the author through the text, or how a particular ideology is embedded in a text, for example, a feminist perspective.

Point of view
The opinion or viewpoint expressed by an individual in a text, for example an author, a narrator, a character or an implied reader.

Register
The degree of formality or informality of language used for a particular purpose or in a particular social setting

Rhetorical devices
Language techniques used in argument to persuade audiences (for example, rhetorical questions, repetition, propositions, figurative language).

Scanning
When reading, moving the eyes quickly down the page seeking specific words and phrases. Scanning is also used when readers first find a resource to determine whether it will answer their questions.

Standard Australian English
The variety of spoken and written English language in Australia used in more formal settings such as for official or public purposes, and recorded in dictionaries, style guides and grammars. While it is always dynamic and evolving, it is recognised as the ‘common language’ of Australians.

Style
The ways in which aspects of texts (such as words, sentences, images) are arranged and how they affect meaning. Style can distinguish the work of individual authors (for example, Jennings’s stories, Lawson’s poems), as well as the work of a particular period (for example, Elizabethan drama, nineteenth-century novels), or of a particular genre or type of text (for example, recipes, scientific articles, play-by-play commentary). Examples of stylistic features are narrative viewpoint, structure of stanzas, juxtaposition, nominalisation, alliteration, metaphor and lexical choice.

Text structures
The ways in which information is organised in different types of texts (for example, chapter headings, subheadings, tables of contents, indexes and glossaries, overviews, introductory and concluding paragraphs, sequencing, topic sentences, taxonomies, cause and effect). Choices in text structures and language features together define a text type and shape its meaning. Examples of text structures in literary texts include sonnets, monologues and hypertext.

Theme
The main idea or message of a text.

Tone
Tone describes the way the ‘voice’ is delivered. For example, the tone of voice or the tone in a passage of writing could be friendly or angry or persuasive.

Types of texts
Classifications of texts according to the particular purposes they are designed to achieve. In general, in the senior subjects in the Australian Curriculum: English, texts are classified as imaginative, interpretive, analytical or persuasive types of texts, although these distinctions are neither static nor discrete and particular texts can belong to more than one category.

Analytical texts
Texts whose primary purpose is to identify, examine and draw conclusions about the elements or components that make up other texts. Analytical texts develop an argument or consider or advance an interpretation. Examples of these texts include commentaries, essays in criticism, reflective or discursive responses and reviews.

Imaginative texts
Texts whose primary purpose is to entertain or provoke thought through their imaginative use of literary elements. They are recognised for their form, style and artistic or aesthetic value. These texts include novels, traditional tales, poetry, stories, plays, fiction for young adults and children including picture books, and multimodal texts such as film.

Interpretive texts
Texts whose primary purpose is to explain and interpret personalities, events, ideas, representations or concepts. They include autobiography, biography, media feature articles, documentary film and other non-fiction texts. There is a focus on interpretive rather than informative texts in the senior years of schooling.

Persuasive texts
Texts whose primary purpose is to put forward a point of view and persuade a reader, viewer or listener. They form a significant part of modern communication in both print and digital environments. They include advertising, debates, arguments, discussions, polemics and essays and articles.