Skill Areas

Students are required to locate, identify, explain, interpret, infer and analyse information in and about texts. The skill areas assessed are:

• Text comprehension
• Writer’s craft
• Syntax
• Vocabulary

Content

ICAS English assesses reading and language skills in a range of contexts. The following aspects of texts are assessed and reported: text comprehension—reading for meaning—in different text genres; the writer’s craft of using various techniques to create meaning; syntax; and vocabulary. The questions require students to locate, identify, sequence, explain, interpret, analyse and infer information in and about texts.

Students read a variety of texts which narrate, describe, explain, argue, persuade and review. These include diverse text types including extracts from picture books, novels, poems, play scripts, transcripts of interviews, letters, diary entries, advertisements, web pages, feature articles and opinion pieces. These texts cover a range of topics and may include tables, diagrams, maps and other visual information.