Description
The Essential English CIA is a 90-minute (plus 15 minutes of planning time) short response to stimulus, one seen and one unseen. It can be delivered in one continuous session or 90 minutes allocated over no more than three consecutive sessions.
Short response to seen stimulus
Students will respond to representations of a community, local and/or global issue in a seen media text by writing a response that identifies, considers and explains how the elements or components that make up the text/s shape meaning.
Short response to unseen stimulus
Students will respond to representations of an identity or identities, place, event or concept in an unseen media text by writing a response that identifies, considers and explains how the elements or components that make up the text communicate ideas and information.
Topics
The topics for 2024 are representations of:
- gaming
- sport.
Schools deliver the CIA in one of two phases and will receive a 2024 CIA paper on one of these topics - either 'gaming' or 'sport' - depending on their selected phase.
Gaming refers to the action of playing interactive electronic games on a digital device, e.g. on smartphones, consoles, computers.
Sport refers to a form of activity, game or competition requiring physical exertion and skill in accordance with specific rules, either as an individual or as a team - maybe for enjoyment, a hobby or as a professional career.
CIA materials
The QCAA provides the following materials:
- seen stimulus book: given to students at the start of the three-week phase to enable deconstruction of only the seen stimulus in class. Teachers must ensure students do not have access to an annotated copy of the seen stimulus during the administration of the assessment
- question and response book: given to students at the start of the CIA session/s
- stimulus book: given to students at the start of the CIA session/s — it includes the seen and unseen stimulus
- marking guide: used to mark student responses and guide moderation processes — not to be given to students.
Sample papers
To help schools prepare students for the CIA, the QCAA has developed sample papers for Essential English.
Schools can use the sample assessments to:
- revise and test subject knowledge
- familiarise students with the language of assessment, the types of questions that might be asked, and the expected length of responses
- enable students to experience common internal assessment conditions and practise relevant skills
- build students’ confidence in understanding the requirements of common internal assessment.
More information
For information about the Essential English CIA, please email EssentialEnglish@qcaa.qld.edu.au or phone (07) 3864 0289.
- Last updated:
- 7 March 2024
