English as an Additional Language or Dialect ATAR Course Year 12 Syllabus (for teaching from 2024)
Units 3 and 4 are assessed through school-based tasks (Investigation 15%, Common oral assessment task 10%, Oral production 10%, Written examination 30%, Response 15%, Written production 20% of the school mark) and one ATAR course written examination (10 minutes reading time, 3 hours working time) that is combined with the moderated school mark. The examination has four parts weighted 25/25/20/30 of the written examination whatever the raw marks: Section One - Listening (two aural texts, each played twice, short-answer questions including 1-2 multiple-choice; 35 minutes suggested; 31 marks on the 2026 cover), Section Two - Reading and viewing (two prose texts and one visual text, short-answer questions and one extended synthesis; 55 minutes; 24 marks), Section Three Part A - Speech (one of two questions, one from each unit; 35 minutes; 24 marks) and Section Three Part B - Essay (one of two questions, each requiring two studied texts; 55 minutes; 25 marks). Raw section marks change every year (2023 115 raw marks, 2024 113, 2025 107, 2026 cover 104). You may bring one print English language dictionary or English learning dictionary with no notes in it; bilingual and electronic dictionaries are not allowed.
Past papers on this subject span more than one syllabus. Papers written under an older one still work as practice, but the units and content areas they test have changed — the index labels every paper with the syllabus it was set under.
Revised Year 12 syllabus and examination format (first examined 2023; current v9 effective 1 January 2024) · 2023–2026Previous examination format (Listening 30%, Reading and viewing 35%, Extended writing one from five 35%) · 2021–2022
The units and content areas, one by one
Each area below lists the concepts named in the syllabus, what the SCSA exam asks of them, and the mistake that most often costs marks.
- Listening (Section One)
- Reading and viewing (Section Two)
- Extended writing: speech (Section Three Part A)
- Extended writing: essay (Section Three Part B)
- Language skills (the Language table)
- Unit 3: Australia as a cultural community
- Unit 4: Language and empowerment
Area 1 of 7
Listening (Section One)
Two aural texts on Unit 3 or Unit 4 themes - conversations, lectures, narratives, interviews, explanations or news broadcasts, with different voices and accents - each played twice. Questions follow the order of information in the text and range from one-mark multiple choice and 'state' items to 2-3 mark outline/explain items and tables. You may take notes at any time; notes are not marked.
What the syllabus lists under this area · 4 points
- Lectures and speeches
- Interviews
- Multiple-choice and table items
- Explaining meaning, metaphor and speaker purpose
What the exam asks
2025 used a lecture on changing Australian childhoods and an interview about a community mending group; 2024 an interview on community refugee sponsorship and a speech on the environmental cost of AI (with two 6-mark tables); 2023 a radio interview with a chef about heritage and a speech about a refugee swimming program.
Where marks go missing
Writing everything you heard. The 2024 report warns that extra elaboration or several guesses can cost the marks for the correct part; the 2025 report says many candidates answered only one component of multi-part questions. Count the marks, use the question's verb and give exactly that many precise points.
6 real SCSA questions indexed on this area →
Area 2 of 7
Reading and viewing (Section Two)
Two prose texts and one visual text on a shared theme. Short-answer questions draw only on the text named; then a 15-mark synthesis (2023-2025) asks for three main ideas common to the texts, in your own words, with your own knowledge and/or experience and reference to all three texts.
What the syllabus lists under this area · 5 points
- Short-answer comprehension of prose texts
- Fact, opinion and perspective
- Persuasive devices
- Graphs and visual texts
- Synthesis of three texts
What the exam asks
Themes: bilingual education (2025), teaching Indigenous languages (2024), ageing and ageism (2023). Short items included fact or opinion, finding quotations for a perspective, why an expert's quotes persuade and findings from a graph.
Where marks go missing
Summarising each text in turn instead of synthesising ideas across texts (2025 report), repeating a text's opinion as 'own experience', and writing a full introduction and conclusion that earn nothing (2024 report).
7 real SCSA questions indexed on this area →
Area 3 of 7
Extended writing: speech (Section Three Part A)
One speech from two questions, one tied to each unit, written for the audience and purpose in the prompt. Marked on how fully it addresses the key terms with support, control of speech conventions, grammar and punctuation, register, vocabulary and spelling. Studied texts are not required.
What the syllabus lists under this area · 2 points
- Unit 3 speech: Australia as a cultural community
- Unit 4 speech: language and empowerment
What the exam asks
2025: listening to First Nations stories, or keeping a first language after migration. 2024: the changing role of social media, or advice on culture shock. 2023: what it means to be Australian, or persuading politicians to hear young people.
Where marks go missing
Writing an essay with 'Good morning' added (2024 report), giving a memorised speech on another topic, and spending too long on the speech, which is worth less than the essay (2023 report).
3 real SCSA questions indexed on this area →
Area 4 of 7
Extended writing: essay (Section Three Part B)
One essay from two questions (one per unit), each requiring reference to two texts studied in the course. Marked on addressing the key terms with evidence from both texts (9), essay conventions - thesis, topic and tieback sentences, cohesive devices (6) - grammar and punctuation (5), vocabulary (3) and spelling (2).
What the syllabus lists under this area · 2 points
- Unit 3 essay: Australia as a cultural community
- Unit 4 essay: language and empowerment
What the exam asks
2025: representations of multiculturalism, or how texts changed your attitude to a contemporary issue. 2024: texts that inspired connection with cultural heritage, or why students should read diverse texts. 2023: benefits of a multicultural life, or how language influences and persuades.
Where marks go missing
Prepared essays that ignore the question, plot retell, and 'firstly, secondly, thirdly' structures; the 2024 report says mentioning key words only in topic sentences capped the content criterion at 5 of 9.
3 real SCSA questions indexed on this area →
Area 5 of 7
Language skills (the Language table)
The syllabus makes its Language table examinable: grammatical structures (modality, nominalisation, voice, conjunctions, reported speech), punctuation, vocabulary (collocations, idioms, register) and spelling. These are scored directly in the speech and essay keys.
What the exam asks
Grammar and punctuation is 5 marks, vocabulary 3 and spelling 2 in both 2025 extended-writing keys, with register 2 in the speech.
Where marks go missing
Errors creeping in towards the end of long answers (2025 report). Leave the proofing minutes the paper suggests.
Area 6 of 7
Unit 3: Australia as a cultural community
Contexts: Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples; migration; identity; commonality and difference; Australia's place in the global community - explored through cultural schemas and how culture shapes the way people see the world.
What the exam asks
Supplies one speech and one essay question every year and many listening and reading themes (refugee settlement, multiculturalism, First Nations stories).
Where marks go missing
Writing about multiculturalism in another country when the question is about Australia (2023 report).
Area 7 of 7
Unit 4: Language and empowerment
Suggested contexts: the power of language; language and culture; contemporary issues; challenges such as language loss and culture shock - how language can privilege or marginalise people and how persuasive devices create power relationships.
What the exam asks
Supplies one speech and one essay question every year (e.g. how language persuades, social media, contemporary issues) and themes such as language maintenance and Indigenous languages.
Where marks go missing
Writing a general 'language and empowerment' essay that does not answer the actual question (2023 report).
Common questions
Which EAL/D syllabus applies to the 2026 exam?
The Year 12 syllabus effective from 1 January 2024 (2013/28359 version 9). The 2023 examination report says the revised syllabus and new format began in 2023, and the 2023, 2024 and 2025 papers all follow the same design brief as the 2026 front cover.
How long is the exam and what can I bring?
Ten minutes reading and three hours working time. Besides pens, pencils, eraser, ruler and highlighters you may bring one print English language dictionary or English learning dictionary with no notes or marks; bilingual and electronic dictionaries or thesauruses are not allowed.
How many marks is each section worth?
On the 2026 front cover: Listening 31 marks, Reading and viewing 24, Speech 24 and Essay 25 (104 raw marks). The written examination is weighted 25%, 25%, 20% and 30%, so raw marks are not percentages and they change from year to year.
How does this site handle the listening section?
The site cannot play audio. Each practice listening text is an original, clearly labelled printed transcript; read it twice as you would hear it twice. Practise real listening too, with podcasts and the official SCSA recording transcripts and past papers, because reading is easier than hearing.
Do I need studied texts for the speech?
No. Only the essay requires reference to two texts studied in the course. The 2023 report notes candidates wasted time adding text references to speeches.
What is the synthesis question?
The last question in Section Two (15 marks in 2023-2025). You identify three main ideas shared by the texts, explain them in your own words in thematic paragraphs, refer to all three texts and add your own knowledge or experience with a specific example. Dot points and text-by-text summaries are penalised.
Is the common oral assessment task part of the exam?
No. The COAT is a recorded oral interview your school runs in Term 2 (10% of the school mark). The ATAR course examination is written only.