Languages

Year 7 • LANGUAGES

OVERVIEW Students in Year 7 have the option to choose either Chinese or German as their language other than English. Our Year 7 German program is a beginners’ course, allowing all students to take part without having studied German previously. Our Chinese classes in Bayview are streamed, in order to cater for the Advanced group (those who have studied Chinese in junior school, or who have a Chinese-speaking family background) and the Standard group (for example, those starting as beginners in Year 7). CHINESE (CONTINUING) SUBJECT LENGTH: YEAR UNIT VALUE: TWO This course is offered to students who studied Chinese in Year 8. The focus of Year 9 Chinese (continuing) is to reinforce skills previously introduced in Year 8 and extend the understanding and use of them. Cartoons are still used to springboard language concepts, with unit topics being selected for their interest and relevance to teenagers. Topics are drawn from the wider world of students’ experiences and interests, and include family and friends, entertainment, food, and sport.

Year 8 • LANGUAGES

OVERVIEW Students in Year 8 continue their language from Year 7 (either German or Chinese). Chinese is streamed into Standard and Advanced classes, but both groups will learn the foundational knowledge required to continue to Chinese in Year 9 and onwards if they choose to do so.

Year 9 • LANGUAGES

GERMAN (CONTINUING) SUBJECT LENGTH: YEAR UNIT VALUE: TWO This course is offered to students who studied German in Year 8. The focus of Year 9 German (continuing) is to reinforce skills previously introduced in Year 8 and extend the understanding and use of them. Cartoons are still used to springboard language concepts, with unit topics being selected for their interest and relevance to teenagers. Topics are drawn from the wider world of students’ experiences and interests, and include family and friends, entertainment, food, and sport. VSL Distance Education Languages are also available for Year 9 students. VSL LANGUAGES – DISTANCE ED SUBJECT LENGTH: YEAR UNIT VALUE: TWO This course allows students to study a language outside of our mainstream offerings (Chinese and German). Through the Victorian School of Languages, students are able to study French, Italian, Spanish, Indonesian, Japanese, Greek or Latin. Learning is via Distance Education mode, with students regularly submitting work to a teacher at the VSL, and undertaking regular conversational lessons via Skype or phone. Students may take these subjects as either a beginner or via an accelerated program but it is essential that the student is a confident, independent learner due to the nature of the study. As a guideline, Learning Behaviours should be high (mostly ‘Consistently’ and no lower than ‘Usually’) in all areas.

LANGUAGES

Year 10 • LANGUAGES

GERMAN, CHINESE (SECOND LANGUAGE) SUBJECT LENGTH: YEAR UNIT VALUE: TWO The Year 10 German and Chinese courses aim to develop and refine each student’s use of receptive, productive and interactive language, and to further develop self-awareness and a sense of personal and cultural identity. Topics include: family and hometown; occupations; school activities and cultural events. By the end of each Language Unit students should be able to: listen to and understand short dialogues; participate in simple conversations and oral presentations; read and understand authentic material; and complete simple written tasks. VSL LANGUAGES – DISTANCE ED SUBJECT LENGTH: YEAR UNIT VALUE: TWO This course allows students to study a language outside of our mainstream offerings (Chinese and German). Through the Victorian School of Languages, students are able to study French, Italian, Spanish, Indonesian, Japanese, Greek or Latin. Learning is via Distance Education mode, with students regularly submitting work to a teacher at the VSL, and undertaking regular conversational lessons via Skype or phone. Students may take these subjects as either a beginner or via an accelerated program but it is essential that the student is a confident, independent learner due to the nature of the study. As a guideline, Learning Behaviours should be high (mostly ‘Consistently’ and no lower than ‘Usually’) in all areas.

VCE GERMAN, CHINESE SECOND LANGUAGE AND

SECOND LANGUAGE ADVANCED • Units 1 to 4

OVERVIEW Includes German, Chinese and other languages via Distance Education with the Victorian School of Languages (VSL). All VCE Second Language subjects cover the skill areas of speaking and writing in the language, as well as reading written texts in the language, listening to conversations and spoken texts and viewing texts such as films or TV shows in the language. In Units 1 & 2, students complete three communication-based outcomes per semester. In Units 3 & 4, the students complete SACs covering the communication skill areas. SACs contribute 50 per cent to the overall study score, with the remaining 50 per cent being the final written and external oral examinations. The exams focus on the language being used, and as such there is not a grammar section on the exam per se, although is it assessed in the context of the written and oral tasks.

SPEAKING Students complete oral assessment tasks covering language skills such as: sharing information, discussing a resolution to an issue, and giving class presentations on a topic related to the culture or history of the language speaker community.

VIEWING Students will view various authentic audiovisual materials in the language, which then connect to tasks such as writing a review or discussing cultural aspects of the text. LISTENING Listening comprehension includes extracting meaning, both explicit and implied, from texts such as announcements, ads and news reports, as well as conversations.

READING Reading skills cover a range of formal and informal texts, including newspaper and magazine articles, short stories, diary entries and book extracts.

WRITING Students learn a range of styles of writing, including both formal and informal contexts. These might include writing children’s stories, writing a business letter, writing a report for a magazine, or even writing an evaluative article on a current news topic.

LANGUAGES

CHINESE LANGUAGE, CULTURE AND SOCIETY • Units 1 to 4

OVERVIEW Chinese Language, Culture and Society is a new subject created to give Australian students a more achievable avenue for Chinese study in VCE. The level of language required is more manageable than regular Chinese Second Language. Additionally, there is a social studies component included, which is taught and assessed in English. In Units 1 & 2, student are assessed internally by their teacher at School. In Units 3 & 4, students complete SACs in class which contribute 50 per cent to the study score. There is also a written and external oral exam, which contribute the other 50 per cent. The written exam will include listening and reading comprehension questions, a written task in Chinese, but also a response in English to the prescribed culture and society text in English. CHINESE CULTURE AND SOCIETY Students read and respond to texts in English about aspects such as Chinese family culture, education in China, traditional myths and legends, and modern societal values and issues. For Units 3 & 4, there will be a prescribed text in English published by VCAA.

LANGUAGE SKILLS Students will learn to read, write, speak and understand spoken Chinese on topics including family and school life, travel and geography, leisure and lifestyle, youth issues, and the world of work. VCAA publishes a list of characters and grammar that students need to know by the end of Year 12, this is available in the Study Design from the VCAA website.

ELIGIBILITY Students may not enrol in this subject if they have spent more than two years in a Chinesespeaking country (China, Taiwan, Hong Kong or Macau), or if they have previously studied for six months or more at a school where Chinese is the language of instruction (e.g. in the Chinese-medium schools in countries such as Malaysia or Brunei). Students also may not enrol in this subject if they are also completing another Chinese subject such as Chinese First Language or Chinese Second Language. OVERVIEW Chinese First Language is designed for students who speak Chinese as a first language, and have completed a significant amount of their schooling in China, Taiwan, Hong Kong or Macau, typically having moved to Australia during their secondary schooling. In Units 1 & 2, students complete communication-based outcomes, which are assessed internally. In Units 3 & 4, the students complete SACs covering the communication skill areas. SACs contribute 50 per cent to the overall study score, with the remaining 50 per cent being the final written and external oral examinations (10 per cent oral, 40 per cent written).

VCE CHINESE FIRST LANGUAGE • Units 1 to 4

THEMES AND SUB-TOPICS Students study topics within the areas of Self and Others, Tradition and Change in Chinesespeaking community and Global Issues.

SKILLS ASSESSED ■ Students will express themselves in a broad range of topics in Chinese, including written and spoken language across a broad range of formal and informal usages. ■ Texts and responses in this subject are to all be in Chinese. ■ The Unit 4 external oral examination will include a detailed study topic from the area of Language and Culture through Literature and the Arts.

It is recommended that students speak to the Head of Languages to discuss eligibility for the different Chinese pathways.