HSC English - Standard vs Advanced
Some thoughts from someone who's not an English teacher
In the HSC, English Studies Exam, English Standard and English Advanced scale exactly the same.
I wrote about that here:
So, assuming all that, how should students approach the choice of Standard and Advanced? If the two scale exactly the same, why take the harder subject? Why not just study Standard, save yourself some hassle, and ace it?
The short answer is, I guess, ‘It just doesn’t work that way’.
Across the state, there’s a general shared understanding in 2 unit English. One part of that understanding is that Band 6 students study Advanced.
Of the 31,696 students who completed English Standard in 2023, 99 of them achieved at Band 6 level. That’s about 0.3% of students.
Of the 25,102 students in English Advanced, 1,153 achieved Band 2 and 3 scores. That’s about 4.6% of students. Only 15 students in English Advanced achieved a Band 1.
Band 6 English students are almost all in English Advanced. Band 2 and 3 achieving students are almost all in English Standard. There are exceptions at both ends, but they are very much exceptions, not the rule.
HSC English Scaling
Here’s what scaling and ATAR contributions look like for different bands of achievement in English Standard and Advanced.
A Band 6 in English is worth just about 96 as an ATAR contribution. That is, according to UAC, Band 6 students in English Standard and Advanced are working at an ATAR equivalent of 96 plus. That’s no small thing. Band 6 achievement is a very high level of achievement.
A Question of Resources
Teaching is complex. Meeting students where they’re at and helping them take the best next steps to improve their skills, understanding and knowledge is no straightforward task. Doing all that with 20 plus students all at their own starting point with a unique mix of strengths and areas needing to be developed makes it all the more so.
English Standard, when taught as intended, does not, I don’t think, lend itself to teaching at Band 6 achievement level. That doesn’t mean it can’t be taught at that level and that students can’t achieve at that level. But the way I’ve heard experienced English teachers refer to this is that Band 6 Standard students need to be taught as an Advanced English student, but with Standard texts.
This creates a problem of resources. Few schools have enough classes to run a Standard course for high Band 5 and Band 6 students, especially when they’re already running Advanced English with most of those students in the Advanced course. The same is true for Advanced students working toward Band 3 and below.
Generalities
Band 6 students should study Advanced.
Band 3 and below students should study Standard or Studies.
For Band 4 and 5 students, the water is muddy. In very general terms, I tend to think that students who are capable of a Band 5 will usually be better served in Advanced. Students who are really headed for Band 4 will, I think, most oftern be better served in Standard.
But these are all only in general. They’re only a starting point. Specific Circumstances need to be taken into account.
Teacher Advice is Supreme
The people who best know which level of English is best for a student are experienced English teachers who know the students and their work. This must trump all else.
I think most students who are capable of achieveing a Band 5 in English should be in the Advanced course. But most is not all. There should be a lot of exceptions. Those exceptions should be advised by the experience of teachers who know their students and want what is best for them in their own individual circumstances. A Band 5 is Standard is not easier to achieve than a Band 5 in Advanced. It’s not a question of ease or scaling. It’s a question of texts, personalities, school resources and other factors besides.
The Easy Option
I detest the notion that students should take the subjects that will give them the easiest path to their educational goals. I want students to pursue interests. I do not want students to pursue ease. If you’re prepared for and can achieve in Advanced, there’s a good chance, I think, that Advanced is exactly the right course for you. It’s not that everything should be gruelling. But shying away from the hard thing, simply because it’s the hard thing, is not good for students.
External Advice
There is no shortage of advice outside of schools as to which subjects students should study. I’m not working as a teacher in a school and I’m arrogant enough to think writing about this is appropriate. There are many others, on social media, on tutoring blogs and whatever else, doing similar. And students are listening.
One difficult part of this is that nuance is boring and confusing. The more expertise a person has in something, the more likely they are to acknowledge the complexity in what they’re talking about. Media, be it social or otherwise, does not reward or value complex nuance. It rewards confident simplicity.
Schools need to be the places of authority on this. External advice that encourages students to turn their faces away from the advice of their teachers is likely to be bad advice. Articles that say the percentiles of achievement in Standard and Advanced indicate that students should only study Advanced are wrong. They’re demonstrating poor use of true data.
Everyone Has Good Intentions
No one who gives advice is trying to hurt a student’s future. In almost every circumstance, advice is given with the best of intentions. I’m sure there are exceptions, but they’re few and far between. But we need to value expertise over confidence.
English teachers who have carefully developed their own expertise in teaching and the HSC, are the best placed people to advise their students on which English course they should be studying. This advice, I think, should be both ambitious and realistic for individual students.