General English

The General English course focuses on everyday functional English and facilitates learner understanding of the language, communication and conventions
used in an English-speaking country. The course aims to provide students with a learning environment that is as close as possible to common everyday
situations in Australia and is also designed around common student-based requirements.

The course is structured into six levels, Starter, Elementary, Pre-Intermediate, Intermediate, Upper Intermediate and Advanced as described below. Students
will be placed at the appropriate level and may complete one or more levels according to their needs.

At Starter level, the course is based on survival-type English which a beginner student needs to learn to communicate following arrival in an English-speaking
country. On completion of this level, students will be able to understand and use familiar everyday expressions and basic phrases, will be able to introduce
themselves and others, as well as ask and answer questions about personal details. Students will also be able to interact in a simple way when the other
person speaks slowly and clearly and repeats or clarifies information as needed.

Completion of the Elementary level will enable students to be able to understand and use sentences and frequently used expressions related to areas of
most immediate relevance (for example, basic personal and family information, shopping, local geography, employment). Students will also be able to
communicate in situations requiring a simple and direct exchange of information on familiar and routine matters.

Completion of the Pre-Intermediate level will enable students to understand the main points of clear standard input on familiar matters regularly encountered
in work, school, leisure and other familiar situations. They will also be able to write simple, connected text on topics which are familiar or of personal interest,
as well as describe experiences and events, dreams, hopes and ambitions and give brief reasons and explanations for opinions and plans.

Completion of the Intermediate level will enable students to understand the main ideas of complex texts on both concrete and abstract topics. Students will
be able to interact with some fluency and spontaneity, making regular interaction with native speakers relatively easy. They will also be able to produce clear,
detailed text on a wide range of subjects and explain a viewpoint on a current issue, outlining the advantages and disadvantages of various options.

Completion of the Upper Intermediate level will enable students to understand a wide range of demanding, longer texts, as well as recognise implicit
meaning. Students will also be able to express themselves fluently and spontaneously, use language flexibly and effectively for social, academic and
professional purposes. In addition, students will be able to produce clear, well-structured and detailed text on complex subjects and demonstrate controlled
use of organisational patterns, connectors and cohesive devices.

Completion of the Advanced level will enable students to understand with ease virtually everything heard or said and can summarise information from
different spoken and written sources, reconstructing arguments and accounts in a coherent presentation. Students can also express themselves spontaneously, fluently and precisely and differentiate finer shades of meaning even in more complex situations.

The detailed syllabus included in this curriculum document includes the detailed learner outcomes for each macro-skill (speaking, listening, reading and
writing) and for each unit within each level.