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VELS level 3 – Victorian Essential Learning Standards - English domain
The English domain of the Victorian Essential Learning Standards consists of three dimensions:
- Reading
- Writing
- Speaking and listening
Standards at level 3
Reading
At Level 3, students read and respond to an increasing range of imaginative and informative texts with some unfamiliar ideas and information, vocabulary and textual features. They interpret the main ideas and purpose of texts. They make inferences from imaginative text about plot and setting and about characters’ qualities, motives and actions. They infer meaning from material presented in informative texts. They identify how language is used to represent information, characters, people, places and events in different ways including identification of some simple symbolic meanings and stereotypes. They use several strategies to locate, select and record key information from texts.
Writing
At Level 3, students write texts containing several logically ordered paragraphs that express opinions and include ideas and information about familiar topics. They write narratives which include characters, setting and plot. They order information and sequence events using some detail or illustrative evidence, and they express a point of view providing some information and supporting detail. They combine verbal and visual elements in the texts they produce. They meet the needs of audiences by including appropriate background information.
They write a variety of simple and compound sentences and use verb tenses correctly. They use punctuation to support meaning, including exclamation marks and quotation marks, and accurately use full stops, commas and question marks. They use vocabulary appropriate to context and spell most one- and two-syllable words with regular spelling patterns, and frequently used words which have less regular spelling patterns. They use sound and visual patterns when attempting to spell unfamiliar words.
Speaking and listening
At Level 3, students vary their speaking and listening for a small range of contexts, purposes and audiences. They project their voice adequately for an audience, use appropriate spoken language features, and modify spoken texts to clarify meaning and information.
They listen attentively to spoken texts, including factual texts, and identify the topic, retell information accurately, ask clarifying questions, volunteer information and justify opinions.
Introduction to English domain
In the English domain, texts and language constitute the central and essential concepts. The concept of texts focuses equally on creating and analysing texts, understanding and interpreting texts, and moving beyond interpretation to reflection and critical analysis. The concept of language includes the use of language and the development of linguistic competence, and the development of knowledge about language.
Students learn to appreciate, enjoy and use language and develop a sense of its richness and its power to evoke feelings, to form and convey ideas, to inform, to discuss, to persuade, to entertain and to argue.
The English domain is centred on the conscious and deliberate study of language in the variety of texts and contexts in which it is spoken, read, viewed and written. It is concerned with a wide range of written and spoken texts in print and electronic forms including literary texts such as novels, short stories, poetry, plays and non-fiction; film and other multimodal texts; media texts; information, commercial and workplace texts; everyday texts; and personal writing.
The study of English involves students in reading, viewing, listening to, writing, creating, comparing, researching and talking about a range of text types from the simple to the complex, from texts dealing with concrete and straightforward information to those dealing with increasingly complex and abstract issues and ideas. English teachers encourage students to explore the meaning of texts and how meaning is conveyed. They introduce critical approaches to the ideas and thinking contained in texts and support students in the development of critical understanding about the ways writers and speakers control language to influence their listeners, readers and viewers.
Students develop an understanding of the way purpose, audience and situation influence the structures and features of language and learn to apply
their knowledge in their reading, writing, viewing, speaking and listening. They come to understand that different kinds of texts are appropriate for
different occasions and learn to appreciate the variety of English usage in different times and places. They also learn about the ways language shapes
and reflects attitudes in different times and places. Students are provided with opportunities to use language effectively in a range of contexts from informal to formal.
Students learn terminology or metalanguage to describe and discuss particular structures and features of language produced in a variety of contexts. They
learn to control language by applying their understanding of the grammatical structures of Standard Australian English, by learning to spell accurately and
use punctuation effectively, as well as by imitating good writers and speakers.
Understanding texts and recognising how language works within them is necessary for success at school and beyond for an active, informed and fulfilling life in modern Australian society and the global community. By understanding and working with texts, students acquire the knowledge, skills and personal qualities that enable them to read, view and listen critically and to think, speak and write clearly and confidently.
Learning focus for Level 3
As students work towards the achievement of Level 3 standards in English, they speak, listen, read and write with some critical awareness, using a growing variety of text types and show some appreciation of the role of formal discourses in English.
Students read an increasing range of texts including imaginative texts such as chapter books, junior novels and poems, as well as informative texts, in print and electronic form. Texts typically have varied sentence patterns, written language structures and some specialised topic-related or literary vocabulary, and ideas and information extending beyond students’ immediate experience. Students use a range of strategies to interpret the main ideas and purpose of texts – for example, interpreting figurative language or linking information from headings – and explore characters’ qualities, motives and actions. Through discussion, students develop their understanding of why interpretations of a text may vary, and how the choice of subject matter is influenced by context, the author’s purpose, and the intended audience. They read more critically and learn about the use of some simple symbolic meanings and stereotypes in texts.
Students develop confidence in writing a range of imaginative and informative texts, including simple narratives and descriptions, and texts that explain, inform and express a point of view. They draw on their knowledge of texts and language and learn to use a variety of sentences in appropriate grammatical order, using suitable vocabulary for the subject matter including nouns, verbs, adjectives and adverbs, and punctuating appropriately to support meaning including exclamation marks and quotation marks. They learn to spell most one- and two-syllable words with regular spelling patterns (for example, growing, found, might), frequently used words which have less regular spelling patterns (for example, because, there , friends), and some other words of more than one syllable (for example, yesterday, afternoon, money). They make plausible attempts at spelling new and more difficult words. They experiment with combining verbal and visual elements to enhance the texts they produce.
Students develop strategies for writing to assist in planning and organising ideas prior to writing, and adapt their writing to suit their audience and purpose. They learn to use a range of resources, including information and communications technology, to revise written work and check spelling.
Students recognise that speaking and listening provide opportunities to exchange information, to share and explore ideas, and to express opinions and listen to the opinions of others. They participate in discussions, conversations and presentations in small and large groups, learning to vary their speaking and listening to suit the context, purpose and audience. In spontaneous, planned and rehearsed situations they learn how to project their voice adequately for an audience and to use appropriate spoken language features such as sequence and past tense when recounting an event. When speaking, they recognise the need to rephrase statements to clarify meaning and information.
Students develop skills in listening attentively during class and group discussions, and to factual spoken texts such as audio, film and invited presentations. They practise identifying the topic, retelling information accurately, asking clarifying questions, volunteering information and justifying opinions.
Related materials
Previous key concept - Victorian Essential Learning Standards - Stages of learning: Laying the foundations
Next key concept - Zone of Proximal Development and scaffolding (Bruner, Rogoff, Sharpe, Vygotsky)