1. Advanced, Standard or English Studies in 2018?

2. “Do I need Advanced English?”
Very few university courses specify the level of English required apart from some Journalism and English Teaching Courses.
Check with your Careers Adviser if in doubt.
If you do not want an ATAR then you don’t need Advanced English and could consider English Studies.
Standard English can give you more time to work on your other ATAR subjects as one less text is studied and the demands are less rigorous. (Especially if your other subjects involve a work placement or major work)

3. “Advanced English means I will get a higher ATAR , doesn’t it ?”
Not necessarily, the impact of scaling can mean that a low Advanced mark can be scaled down much further than a higher Standard mark.
Historically, a HSC Standard mark of 75% or above has been scaled similarly to Advanced in calculating a student’s ATAR.
A past Dux of the Campus was a Standard English student who gained entry into Medicine.
Many of the highest ATARs achieved in past cohorts were from students who studied Standard English.

4. “I can change English courses if I don’t like it, can’t I?”
You can change from Advanced to Standard but NOT from Standard to Advanced or from Studies to Standard.
In 2016, 80 students began in Preliminary Advanced but now in 2017, there are 35 in the HSC Advanced Course.
This means that 45 students, or 1 out of every 2 students who originally chose Advanced, have had the disruption of changing to new classes with new teachers and some have lost confidence “I used to be good at English”.
English in Stage 6 is CONTENT based as well as skill based.
A suggested minimum guideline for Advanced would be a NAPLAN Band 8 in Literacy
You need to choose wisely. You only have 3 terms of Year 11!

5. HSC STANDARD – COURSE REQUIREMENTS
HSC ADVANCED – COURSE REQUIREMENTS
HSC STANDARD – COURSE REQUIREMENTS
Close Study of 4 types of text
Shakespeare
Prose fiction or Non fiction
Poetry or Drama
Film, media or digital text
PLUS – one related text in the common module
The HSC examination
format for both courses is
yet be announced.
Close Study of 3 types of text
Prose fiction or Non fiction
Poetry or Drama
Film or media
PLUS – one related text in the common module

6. Should I choose English Studies?
Only if I am NOT interested in gaining an ATAR.
If I struggle with English and I want to improve my skills with a view to employment.
If I achieved below a NAPLAN Band 6 for literacy.

7. Should I Study
EXTENSION ENGLISH?

8. “WHY STUDY EXTENSION ENGLISH?”
The Extension English course enables students who are accomplished, analytical and imaginative in their use of English to refine their understanding of the cultural roles and significance of texts.
This course is designed for students who wish to follow a specialised study of English both for their HSC and at tertiary level.

9. WHO SHOULD STUDY EXTENSION ENGLISH?
This is a challenging subject which involves research, analysis of texts and writing essays.
Students should have received a minimum of a Band 8 in NAPLAN literacy.
Students who are interested in and enthusiastic about English.
Students must be also studying Advanced English

10. HOW IS EXTENSION ENGLISH STUDIED?
Students undertake a study involving exploration and understanding of the ideas of genre.
It develops their understanding of the conventions and understanding of generic forms.

11. HOW IS EXTENSION ENGLISH STUDIED?
Students are set a number of complex prescribed texts. They are also expected to research texts of their own and analyse their relationships to both the genre and the prescribed texts.
Students also compose a range of texts themselves.

12. WHAT WILL MY HSC EXAM BE LIKE?
At this stage the HSC exam specifications for this new syllabus are yet to be confirmed.

13. Questions on any English course?