Why Is English Mandatory? And Should I Do English Or Lit?
Subject selection – it’s coming and there’s still a few important choices to be made.
In the past couple weeks, we’ve taken you through some things to think about when choosing your subjects, and we’ve explained how scaling works.
But you might be sitting there thinking ‘ok … but what subjects should I actually choose?!”
Well, we’re here to help – up first, it’s English or Literature.
English (or Lit) is often the only subject you have to do to get into uni, so your choice is pretty important here.
We spoke to English and Literature teacher Dr Jeannette Weeda about the subjects, and how to make your decision.
A question a lot of students ask is why English is made mandatory for Year 11s and 12s, and Dr Weeda said it’s because English skills are important for just about any job.
“Communication and being able to write, speak and to understand what you’re reading are essential study skills for any course you undertake, and any job in your future.”
So, which one is the better choice?
Well, there’s no ‘better’ choice, but English and Lit give you different experiences and different skills.
Although curriculums do vary across the country, in English, you generally divide your study into comprehending, responding, and composing, which Dr Weeda said are all key to the processes of communication.
“If you can’t write an analytical response ... if you have no sense of creativity or don’t understand the power of language, you’re going to run into problems at uni and in the workplace.”
She also said skills taught in English aren’t just useful in the workplace, but in every aspect of life.
“At a personal relationship level, these are all important skills to have, and we are relational beings. We need to know how to improve our communication throughout life.”
English also differs from Lit because you’re given the opportunity to study visual texts like films and images, whereas Lit is almost entirely text based.
In Literature, you’ll study texts in-depth, looking at novels, short stories, poems and plays, and Dr Weeda said you’ll gain a thorough understanding of those texts and the world around them.
“[Lit students] will learn so much. They learn an enormous amount of philosophy, literature, the arts, history, their cultural background, an understanding of important texts and how they change the world or challenge thinking. They come out of the course with a really strong sense of cultural capital.”
Lit is often seen as the harder option, but that’s not necessarily true. It definitely is a lot more in-depth, but it’s often a completely different experience.
“Often, it’s not as straightforward as English. There is a degree of sophistication required as they expand their horizons, their writing skills and communication skills.”
Generally, a smaller portion of students do Lit, but she said not to be discouraged by a perception of difficulty.
“Lots of students who do Literature are very grateful for maybe wrestling with texts and language more than they would have done in English.”
Dr Weeda said that when you’re considering which one you should do, you need to think about how far you want to go.
“They need to consider whether they would like to stretch themselves in the whole area of the arts and communication and whether they have a particular talent for writing and reading.”
She said consider your skills and interest in English, and whether you’re “interested in engaging with seminal texts that have changed the world.”
Still can’t decide? There are other options.
If you’re sitting there thinking “wow – both sound great, but how do I pick just one?”
The good news is that you don’t have to.
Depending on where you are, you can actually study both English and Lit in Year 11 and 12, which is perfect for all the bookworms out there.
And what’s more, you don’t have to do ATAR English.
If you’re not planning on going to uni, or you have a different pathway in mind, General English can be a great way to build your skills without taking an ATAR subject.
