HSC & me

English Studies

2 unit course

Head of English
Email Mrs Rappell
Course Summary

The English Studies course is designed to provide students with opportunities to become competent, confident and engaged communicators and to study and enjoy a breadth and variety of texts in English. English Studies focuses on supporting students to refine their skills and knowledge in English and to enhance their personal, educational, social and vocational (work) lives. The course is distinctive in its focus on the development of students’ language, literacy and literary skills. It explores texts from a range of everyday, social, cultural, academic, community and workplace contexts. It has a structured and focused approach to responding to and composing texts. The English Studies course also provides diverse approaches to texts so that students may become flexible and critical thinkers, capable of engaging with, understanding and appreciating the variety of cultural heritages and differences that make up Australian and global societies. It also encourages the continued development of skills in literacy, individual and collaborative processes and reflective learning (taken from NESA, 'Rationale for English Studies' in Stage 6 Curriculum).

* This course will only run if there is sufficient student interest.

At the end of Year 12, English Studies students will sit ONE external exam paper for the HSC Examination of this course (2 hours and 30 mins). All students enrolled in the English Studies course will complete the English Studies HSC Examination.

ENGLISH STUDIES: ATAR ONLY PATHWAY

The English Studies course at CCAS is an ATAR pathway to obtaining the HSC qualification. Students do not need to apply for an ATAR, but we run the ATAR course to make it available to them. We will not provide the non-ATAR English Studies course in 2024.

The English Studies course is graded by NESA on the Common Grade Scale (alongside English Standard and English Advanced 2-unit courses). Because of this, it is impossible to achieve Band 6 results in English Studies and very difficult to achieve Band 5 results.

Please note: if a student is planning tertiary study and requires an ATAR (for university entry), we recommend that the student chooses the English Standard course. The English Studies course does not prepare students for the rigour of tertiary study.

Students who are considering this course for Stage 6 should make an appointment to speak with Mrs Ula Paton (Director of Senior Studies/Stage 6 Coordinator) and Mrs Hannah Rappell (Head of English).

What, if any, skills are needed?
  • willingness to participate in class discussions with maturity, and take responsibility for learning
  • literacy skills in reading, writing and comprehension
  • proactive efforts to seek help and clarification from the teacher
  • ability to follow structures and scaffolds provided to complete writing tasks
  • ability to discuss ideas that emerge from the study of a range of accessible texts.
Course Modules
Year 11 Modules Year 12 Modules
Mandatory Module: Achieving through English
Common Module: Texts and Human Experiences
Elective Module D: Digital Worlds: English and the Web
Elective Module E: Playing the Game
Elective Module H: Part of a Family
Elective Module A: We are Australian
Elective Module F: MiTunes and Text
Learning Experiences
  • Study days
  • Author talks, as available 
  • Mock job interview
  • Family tree research
Novels, Texts, Podcasts & Films

Year 11

Year 12

English

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