VCE English Study Guide: Units 3 and 4 [NEW 2024 curriculum]

Worried your English marks will tank your ATAR? Learn how to tackle every area of study with our VCE English Study Guide for Units 3 and 4 in the new 2024 curriculum.

All about the VCE English Study Guide: Units 3 and 4

What do I need to know?

Units 3 and 4 of VCE English are undeniably important, as these are the units that are going to contribute to your ATAR.

Like in Units 1 and 2, you will explore 2 areas of study in each unit that you will need to master to score highly in school assessments and the final examination.

We discuss:

• An outline of the areas of study within VCE English Units 3 and 4
• What the VCE English units require of you
• The coursework and assessments you’ll face

What are the components of VCE English Units 3 and 4?

We’ll break down the components of Units 3 and 4, so that it’s easy to understand.

Unit 3, Area of Study 1: Reading and Responding to Texts

This course requires students to critically discuss how authors construct meaning with respect to their contextual values, intended audience, presentation and language.

In this area of study:

• Students critically view a text with a focus on the characters (their motivations and relationships), settings, plot and the point of view.
• They also consider how the ideas, concerns and conflicts within the text are influence by the author’s historical context and the existing values.
• Students communicate these insights in analytical forms such as formal essays.

Unit 3, Area of Study 2: Creating Texts

This course is structured to enable students to continue to develop their creative processes and writing skills.

In this area of study:

• Students use their assigned mentor texts to gain inspiration for their own writing.
• They will acknowledge the role that their mentor texts played in their creative decisions.
• They will reflect on the impact of their creative decisions on their audience, and how that was deliberately considered to serve a purpose.

Unit 4, Area of Study 1: Reading and Responding to Texts

Rather than just discussing the impact of the author’s context on the text, this course prepares students to consider how the different audiences’ contexts will shape their interpretation of the text.

In this area of study:

• Students further develop their reading and viewing skills.
• Students refine their ability to present their ideas in essay form.
• Their analysis should demonstrate a strong understanding of how language, context, values and structure intertwine to communicate nuanced meanings to different audiences.

Unit 4, Area of Study 2: Analysing Argument

This course requires students to analyse recent media publications on topical and/or controversial matters.

In this area of study:

• Students unpack the arguments presented in their contemporary text.
• They will need to consider how the text’s language features and forms, and visuals are constructed to enhance the argument and influence the intended audience.
• After viewing and evaluating a diverse range of views on a topic of their choice, students present their point of view in a mode that is most suitable for their context, purpose and intended audience.

Why is it important to know your Areas of Study for VCE English Units 3 and 4?

Each area of study requires a specific set of skills that you must demonstrate in your work to score highly.

Knowing what these requirements are makes it much easier for you to meet the criteria for high marks.

There are more compelling reasons to be familiar with your areas of study for VCE English:

• Your teachers will be using the area of study
• The area of study descriptions make studying for English less ambiguous because they show you how to approach each course.
• They also outline what kind of external assessments you will have to undertake, and give you insight into what your school-based assessments could look like.
• VCAA uses the area of study descriptions to develop the final examination and its marking criteria. This is ultimately what you are going to be assessed on.

The complete VCE Study Designs for all the English subjects can be found at the following links on the VCAA website:

• Bridging English as an Additional Language
• English and English as an Additional Language
• English Language
• Foundation English
• Literature

VCE English Assessments for Units 3 and 4

Your final VCE English Study Score will be calculated from a mixture of school-based and external assessments.

Here’s a breakdown of your VCE English Study Score:

• 25%: School-assessed score for Unit 3
• 25%: School-assessed score for Unit 4
• 50%: External end-of-year examination

Note that your marks from VCE English Unit 1 and Unit 2 are not used to calculate your VCE English Study Score. It is entirely your VCE English Unit 3 and 4 marks that will count towards your final ATAR.

VCAA has specific requirements for school-based assessments of VCE English Units 3 and 4.

Below, we have summarised the assessments that will contribute to your school-assessed score for each unit, along with their relative weightings.

Please note that this VCE English Study Guide provides information about assessments for new 2024 curricula for VCE English Units 3 and 4.

Unit 3: Summary of components contributing to School-Assessed Score

Unit 4: Summary of components contributing to School-Assessed Score