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NSW Curriculum
NSW Education Standards Authority

11–12English Advanced 11–12 Syllabus

Record of changes
Implementation from 2026
Expand for detailed implementation advice

Content

Year 12

Critical study of literature

Students develop detailed analytical and critical knowledge of a substantial literary text. Through increasingly informed personal responses to the text in its entirety, students understand and appreciate the text’s distinctive qualities, notions of meaning, and significance. Students study ONE prescribed text, focusing on an analysis of the text’s construction, content and language. This enables students to develop informed personal perspectives of the text as well as an understanding of its cultural contribution, basing their judgements on evidence drawn from their critical reading. They evaluate the context of the text’s composition and reception, investigate and evaluate the perspectives of others, and explore the ideas in the text, further strengthening their personal perspectives.

Understanding
  • The relationship between reader, author, text and context

  • The ways a text can be valued for its aesthetic qualities, text structures, language features and stylistic elements

  • The language of critical expression in refining arguments and interpreting texts

  • The ways mode, medium and form shape and inform responses to texts

  • The ways language forms, features and structures are used to represent a range of perspectives

  • The ways texts can reflect, confirm and challenge expectations associated with particular genres and styles

  • The ways context can shape social, moral and ethical perspectives in texts

  • The effect of theme and genre, and how these can influence a texts value

Responding
  • Compose critical texts that affirm or challenge the ideas, values and perspectives represented in a complex text

  • Compose informed personal responses shaped by critical interpretations of texts and textual analysis

  • Support critical interpretations of texts through sustained argument and relevant textual analysis

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