The highest-level HSC English course is set to undergo its biggest shakeup in more than 25 years as part of a suite of proposed syllabus reforms that will also overhaul maths and history subjects.
For the project-based subject English extension 2, in which year 12 students complete a major creative work, curriculum writers have slashed the required word count for a student’s creative writing from 6000 to 3000 words.
The requirement to study Shakespeare has been retained in the latest draft proposal of the syllabus.Credit: Louise Kennerley
Half of the course time will instead be devoted to studying literary theory with every student set to spend 25 out of the 60 course hours in year 12 learning about a topic called “Author and Authority” which will also feature literary case study.
“This focus area provides students with a rich knowledge base to build their skills in the way that they craft language and refine their personal voice in critical and creative ways,” the proposed syllabus states.
The extension 2 English subject was introduced as part of education reforms in 1997 by then-premier Bob Carr’s government. During the lead-up to the 1995 election, Carr had vowed to “end the bias against humanities subjects in the HSC” and allow students to take four-unit English.
Bob Carr in the lead up to the 1995 election, a time in which he had promised to level the playing field when it came to HSC subjects and introduce a high level English subject.Credit: Greg White
The latest move proposes an exam for the subject, which comes after some universities around the world reverted to pen-and-paper tests amid a rise in cheating cases driven by students using the popular AI chatbot ChatGPT.
Under HSC rules, students can choose their own subjects but must study either advanced or standard level English. The four areas of study were overhauled in 2019 to introduce a topic called the “craft of writing” and remain untouched in the latest syllabus overhaul.
Cherrybrook High’s head of English Steve Henry welcomed the fact the syllabus was largely intact and said the tweaks were light, but appreciated.
“It won’t necessarily make a big difference to the students, but it will make a difference to the teachers,” he said.
English extension 2 students would be required to sit an exam under the proposed shakeup.Credit: Louise Kennerley
In the draft proposal, the requirement that English advanced students study a Shakespearean drama has been retained.
English educators across the state are keenly awaiting the release of the HSC prescription lists next year, he said, which dictate the books, films and poetry pupils will study.
“We’re all looking forward to that,” Henry said.
The biggest material change in the proposed standard and advanced syllabus was additional guidance when studying texts composed by Indigenous authors.
“There are some clearer pointers – it is a lovely part of the curriculum in both standard and advanced,” he said.
The draft states that students must learn about Indigenous Cultural and Intellectual Property and how cultural symbolism, imagery, allusion and irony shape meaning.
The HSC mathematics draft syllabuses set to be released on Monday will reorganise content, so students and teachers will no longer cover the same content multiple times.
The modern history, ancient history, history extension syllabuses will also be released for consultation on Monday.
The English and maths curriculum will be released next year and taught from 2026 while the new history syllabuses will be taught in NSW schools from 2027.
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