senior secondary years 11-12

The South Australian Certificate of Education (SACE) is awarded to students who successfully complete their senior secondary education. The SACE involves studies at Stage 1 (Year 11 level) and Stage 2 (Year 12 level).

Requirements of the SACE

To qualify for the SACE a student must:

• study 22 units according to the required curriculum pattern

• reach at least a level of "Recorded Achievement" in these 22 units

• reach a level of "Satisfactory Achievement" in 16 of these 22 units; six of these 16 must be taken as three full-year (2-unit) Stage 2 subjects.

• satisfy the Writing-Based Literacy Assessment (WBLA)

Required Curriculum Pattern

The 22 SACE units must be made up as follow:

Stage 1

• Compulsory Units of English or English as a second Language (ESL)

• One unit of Mathematics

• One unit of Australian Studies.

Required groups:

• Two or more Group 1 units (Arts/Humanities/Social & Cultural)

• Two or more Group 2 units (Mathematics/Science/Technology)

Stage 2

Required groups:

• Two or more Group 1 units (Arts/Humanities/Social & Cultural)

• Two or more Group 2 units (Mathematics/Science/Technology)

• Two or more units taken as a full-year subject of student's own choice.

This pattern allows students a free choice of an additional eight units from either Stage 1 or Stage 2.

At Blackfriars students will be expected to take three additional Stage 1 units in order to meet the school's Religious Education requirement. These will be undertaken as follows

• In Year 11 (Stage 1) two Stage 1 - Studies in Religion units.

• In Year 12 (Stage 2) one Stage 1 - Studies in Religion unit.

ACHIEVEMENT CATEGORIES

Two classifications are used to denote the level of achievement:

Recorded Achievement (RA) indicates that a student had undertaken all work, including assessment tasks, specified for the subject. At Stage 2, it will mean a score of 3-9 on the 20 point scale used by SSABSA for Year 12 accredited subjects, or in Community Studies obtain the result "recorded achievement'.

Satisfactory Achievement (SA) indicates a student has undertaken all the work, including assessment tasks, and reached the level specified for the subject. At Stage 2, the student must reach a score of 10 or more on the 20 point scale, or in Community Studies obtain the result "satisfactory achievement'. This level of achievement is required for at least 16 of the 22 units, including three full-year Stage 2 subjects.

Writing Based Literacy Assessment (WBLA)

The WBLA is a requirement that a student must complete satisfactorily to be awarded the SACE. The assessment is drawn from the normal learning program across the curriculum. It is not a separate subject.

Students will be required to submit a literacy folio with four pieces of writing:

• One piece from English

• One piece from Group 1 (Arts/Humanities/Social & Cultural Studies)

• One piece from Group 2 (Mathematics/Science/Technology)

• One piece from any area of study.

The following requirements are also prescribed:

• Each piece must be of at least 250 words

• Three pieces must be in continuous prose

• At least two must be produced under direct teacher supervision. (This may include drafting and rewriting - it does not necessarily mean "test conditions".

• All work must be verified by a teacher as a student's own work.

SENIOR CURRICULUM

The following table shows the Stage 1 & 2 subjects that are offered.