Assessment and exam practice.

Try this with English

1. Check the task format, time limit and permitted materials with your school.
2. Start with one timed section or task and record where you spent the most time.
3. Review errors before attempting another section. Separate missing knowledge from timing problems.

View English resources on ATARMAXXING ↗

Practice paper focus areas

• Exam 1 — Argue a clear, contestable contention directly addressing the prompt's key terms; Analyse Shakespeare's construction of character, theme and dramatic technique — not plot summary; Discuss the author's views and values as embedded in the text's deliberate choices
• Exam 2 — argue a clear contention about the author's views and values; analyse the text as a deliberate construction with embedded evidence; address all key terms of the prompt
• Exam 3 — Analyse how Achebe constructs the tension between tradition and change in Things Fall Apart; Discuss the author's views and values as revealed through characterisation and narrative structure; Examine how Achebe positions the reader to understand the costs of cultural collision
• Exam 4 — Contention and argument development; Analysis of author's construction, views and values; Textual evidence embedded and discussed (not listed)
• Exam 5 — Analytical interpretation of Rear Window (Hitchcock); Argument and language analysis on AI in Australian classrooms; Textual evidence and technique identification
• Exam 6 — Argue a clear contention about the text's central ideas and the author's views and values; Analyse the text as a deliberate construction — authorial choices, not plot summary; Embed concise, accurate textual evidence integrated into analytical sentences
• Exam 7 — Argue a clear contention and sustain it throughout; Analyse the text as a deliberate construction — the author's choices, views and values; Embed concise, accurate textual evidence in service of argument (not plot summary)
• Exam 8 — The author's construction of identity and belonging; Clarke's use of personal narrative to critique systemic racism; The role of language and voice in shaping the reader's understanding of racial injustice
• Exam 9 — Analyse how Hannah Kent constructs meaning through the tension between silence and voice in Burial Rites; Explore the role of landscape and place in shaping character and theme; Examine how Kent positions the reader to question systems of power and justice
• Exam 10 — Analytical interpretation of a literary text; Analysis of argument and persuasive language; Understanding of author's views and values
• Exam 11 — Argument and contention development; Language techniques and their intended effects; Tone and tonal shifts
• Exam 12 — Contention and argument development; Analysis of author's views and values; Embedded textual evidence
• Exam 13 — Argue a clear contention and sustain it throughout; Analyse the text as a deliberate construction, addressing the author's views and values; Embed concise, precise textual evidence in support of analytical claims
• Exam 14 — Argue a clear contention and address the prompt's key terms precisely; Analyse the text as a deliberate construction — Wilder's choices, views and values; Embed concise textual evidence (dialogue, visual technique, narrative voice) without plot retelling
• Exam 15 — Argue a clear, sustained contention that directly addresses the prompt's key terms; Analyse the text as a deliberate construction — Brooks's craft, choices, views and values; Embed concise, precise textual evidence in service of argument (not plot summary)
• Exam 16 — Argue a clear, sophisticated contention that addresses the prompt's key terms directly; Analyse the text as a deliberate construction — Kazan's craft, views and values — not plot summary; Embed concise, accurate textual evidence (dialogue, staging, visual symbolism) to support analysis
• Exam 17 — Analytical interpretation of a literary text; Analysis of argument and persuasive language; Constructing a sustained contention with textual evidence
• Exam 18 — Analytical interpretation of a text (Section A); Analysis of argument and language (Section B); Author's views and values
• Exam 19 — Argue a clear contention about the text's central concerns; Analyse the author's construction, views and values (not plot retell); Embed concise textual evidence and discuss its effect
• Exam 20 — Analytical interpretation of a studied text; Analysis of argument and language in persuasive material; Construction of authorial views and values