Dandenong High School
VCE English/ESL
Units 3 and 4
Orientation Program 2011
ORIENTATION PROGRAM for 2011
YEAR 12 COURSE OUTLINE – ENGLISH AS A SECOND LANGUAGE
The following table is a summary of the outcomes for Units 3 & 4
Unit 3
Unit 4
Outcome 1
Outcome 1
Analyse, in writing, how a selected text constructs
meaning, conveys ideas and values, and is open to
a range of interpretations.
Develop and justify a detailed interpretation of a
selected text.
Outcome 2
Draw on ideas and/or arguments suggested by a
chosen Context to create written texts for a
specified audience and purpose; and analyse their
decisions about form, purpose, language,
audience and context.
Outcome 2
Draw on ideas and arguments suggested by a
chosen Context to create written texts for a
specified audience and purpose; and analyse their
decisions about form, purpose, language,
audience and context.
Outcome 3
Analyse the use of language in texts that present a
point of view on an issue currently debated in the
Australian media, and to construct, orally, a
sustained and reasoned point of view on the
selected issue.
School Assessed Coursework (SACs) will be set to rate each student’s achievement on
these outcomes. The following table is a summary of the SACs for Units 3 & 4.
Summary of 2010 School Assessed Coursework (SACS) & Dates
UNITS 3 and 4
Assessment Tasks
Worth
Outline
Conditions
UNIT 3
Outcome 1: Reading
and Responding
35
Text: Interpreter of
Maladies
One analytical essay
on Interpreter of
Maladies
Term 1
600 – 800 words
Conditions of the SAC:
Dates to be confirmed
A single planning session will be organised
to explain and help all ESL students
understand the topic and how to write the
essay. The planning session will take place
in the classroom and be supervised by the
classroom teacher.
The planning session will be followed by 2
writing sessions at which time students
will be expected to conference with their
teacher, draft and write their final copy.
The writing sessions will take place in the
classroom and be supervised by the
classroom teacher.
Outcome 2: Creating
and Presenting
Context: Exploring
Issues of Identity &
Belonging
Text: Growing up
Asian in Australia
30
A sustained written
text between 9001200 words or three
to five shorter texts,
1000 -1500 in total,
created for a specified
audience and context.
Related to Growing
up Asian in Australia.
Term 2
Dates to be confirmed
Conditions of the SAC:
A single planning session will be organised
to explain and help all ESL students
understand the prompt and how to
respond. The planning session will take
place in the classroom and be supervised
by the classroom teacher.
The planning session will be followed by 2
writing sessions at which time students
will be expected to conference with their
teacher, draft and write their final copy.
The writing sessions will take place in the
classroom and be supervised by the
classroom teacher.
Outcome 3: Using
Language to Persuade
35
Oral Presentation
Term 2
Dates to be confirmed
Conditions of the SAC:
Four planning sessions will be provided to
explain and help students understand the
issue and how to prepare the
presentation. Students are expected to
prepare their presentations at home. Oral
presentations will take place during class
time in front of the teacher and
classmates.
Term 2
Date to be confirm
Mid Year Exam
Total worth of
Unit 3
Analyse the use of
language in
persuasive texts.
Present a sustained
and reasoned point of
view on an issue
currently debated in
the Australian media.
Prepared in students’
own time. Performed
in class time.
100
UNIT 4
Outcome 1: Reading
and Responding
50
Text: The Old Man
Who Read Love
Stories
Outcome 2: Creating
and Presenting
One extended written
interpretation on The
Old Man Who Read
Love Stories.
Term 3
The topic for the text response will be
posted electronically the Friday before the
SAC is due to take place.
600 – 800 words
Students will have 2 writing lessons to
plan and write their response. The SAC
will take place in the students’ usual class
under examination conditions. There will
be no conferencing, no input or help from
the teacher.
50
Context: Exploring
Issues of Identity &
Belonging
At least one sustained
or three to five
shorter texts, created
for a specific audience
and context.
1500 words maximum
Text: Growing up
Asian in Australia
Practice Exam
Term 3
The prompt for the response to the
context Exploring Issues of Identity and
Belonging will be posted electronically the
Friday before the SAC is due to take place.
Students will have 2 writing lessons to
plan and write their response. The SAC
will take place in the students’ usual class
under examination conditions. There will
be no conferencing, no input or help from
the teacher.
Sept/October
Exam
50
Total worth of
Unit 4
100
Administered by the Term 4
VCAA
Thursday, 27th October 2011
(3 hours 15 minutes)
Date to be confirmed
(These SAC dates are not fixed and will be confirmed closer to the time)
Order of Study for Texts
1. Interpreter of Maladies
by Jhumpa Lahiri
(Anthology of short stories)
2. Growing up Asian in Australia
Edited by Alice Pung
(short stories) (Context: Exploring
Issues of Identity and Belonging)
VCAA EXAM = 3 responses
Term 4
Unit 3 = 25%
Unit 4 = 25%
Exam = 50%
1 Text Response (40%)
1 Writing in Context (30%)
1 Note-taking &
Analysis of Language use (30%)
3. The Old Man Who Read Love
Stories (film)
Achieving your VCE English requires you to successfully complete:




School Assessed Coursework, which contributes 50% to your final assessment.
The VCAA-set 3 hour written exam, which contributes 50% to your final assessment.
All classroom learning tasks and coursework set by your teacher including the attached
holiday study program and the Mid-year and October exams.
A minimum 90% attendance.
Assessed Holiday Study Program
1. Read the 2 print texts.
2. Watch the film text
3. Complete the activities set out in this booklet.
This set work will be assessed as part of your coursework
Key to Success: Preparation
The only way to achieve success in the VCE is through hard work. Constant revision and completion
of all set tasks is essential. In this booklet there are a number of introductory tasks that are designed to
give you an excellent head start to an incredibly demanding year.
AREA OF STUDY ONE: Reading and Responding
INTERPRETER OF MALADIES
Author – Jhumpa Lahiri
1. BRAINSTORM everything you can discover about this text by examining
the front and back covers, including quite obvious facts, such as that it
is a collection of short stories (anthology) and that it won a Pulitzer
Prize in 2000. Do not open the book itself.
2. OPEN the front cover of the book to see the photograph of the author.
Does this offer you any further information?
3. LOOK up the words ‘interpret’, ‘interpreter’ and ‘malady’ in at least
three different dictionaries – copy the definitions you find.
4. WRITE down what you think the author, Jhumpa Lahiri, might have
meant by an ‘interpreter of maladies’. Write down your guess as to the
meaning.
5. WHAT is the Pultizer Prize, which was awarded to Jhumpa Lahiri in 2000
for Interpreter of Maladies?
6. READ all the stories in the anthology at least once.
7. WRITE a journal entry after reading each story. Use the following
questions as prompts to help you reflect on your response to the
stories.
a. Did you enjoy the story? Why (not)?
b. Could you relate to any of the characters? Which ones? How?
c. What do you think the author is trying to show us is the story?
d. Did the story make you reflect on your experiences or the
experiences of those around you? Explain.
*Note: Each journal entry should be about half a page long.
Interpreter of Maladies
Story Summaries
‘A Temporary Matter’
Told from the third-person perspective of the husband, this story deals with the disintegrating
relationship of an Indian couple, Shoba and Shukumar. Their stillborn child has created
distance between the two of them, and Shukumar observes as Shoba transforms from the
attentive wife into someone more aloof and self-absorbed. As in most of Lahiri’s stories, food
plays a significant role in the couple’s relationship. Shoba had always given the impression
that their pantries were stuffed with endless supplies of food. When she begins to neglect this,
Shukumar simply observes as the food vanishes, cooking what he can of it using Shoba’s old
recipes. He makes no moves to create a new supply. In fact, he makes no move to cover up
the signs of neglect throughout the house that he holds Shoba accountable for when in fact his
own apathy and grief are to blame as well. Likewise, he does little to comfort Shoba in her
grief, not quite realizing the seriousness of their relationship problems. One day, they receive
notice that their electricity will be out for one hour every night for five days. They spend each
of these nights in the dark sharing secrets with each other, things they had never shared
before. Each confession becomes more bold and reveals a larger flaw in their marriage, until
their impending separation becomes clear.
‘When Mr Pirzada Came to Dine’
Lilia is a ten-year-old Indian girl. She recalls events that occur in the autumn of 1971. Her
family has a regular dinner guest at their home. Mr. Pirzada is from Dacca, the capital of
Pakistan. He lives there with a wife and seven daughters whose names all start with A.
Because of the war with India he does not hear from them in six months. Mr. Pirzada has a
grant to study New England foliage. Lilia is unaware of country distinctions until she asks
about setting a glass for the Indian man. They speak the same language, share the same
customs and look similar, but her father says he is not Indian. He explains the British gave
independence to India in 1947 and divided the country by Hindu and Muslim sects. When Mr
Pirzada arrives for dinner each evening they all sit down in the living room to eat while they
watch the news. Mr. Pirzada follows a nightly ritual of giving Lilia little candies. At
Halloween, Lilia shows Mr. Pirzada how to carve a face on a pumpkin. While carving it, they
overhear that Pakistan and India may go to war. When Mr. Pirzada hears that, the knife slips.
The next night Lilia and her friend Dora dress up for Halloween as witches and they go trickor-treating. When she returns, Mr. Pirzada and her parents do not greet her. They are not
watching television and seem upset. They hear that evening and several nights after that
Pakistan and India are drawing closer to war. On December fourth they declare war and
twelve days later Pakistan surrenders. During this period Lilia's father does not ask her to
watch the news with them. Mr. Pirzada brings no more candy and her mother fixes boiled
eggs and rice for dinner. Some nights Mr. Pirzada sleeps on their couch. Lilia recalls they
seem to share lives as if they are one. Mr. Pirzada is busy the rest of the year and they do not
see him very much. In January he returns to Dacca. Months later they receive a letter from
him. He is reunited with his wife and children. They survive the war by staying with his
wife's grandparents. Lilia and her parents have a special meal to celebrate and toast Mr.
Pirzada. For the first time Lilia misses him. Every night since January she eats one piece of
candy for his family. Tonight she does not and in time throws them away.
‘Interpreter of Maladies’
Mr. and Mrs. Das, Indian Americans visiting the country of their heritage, hire middle-aged
tour guide Mr. Kapasi as their driver for the day as they tour India along with their three
children, Ronny, Bobby, and Tina. Mr. Kapasi notes the parents’ immaturity Mr. and Mrs.
Das look and act young to the point of childishness, go by their first names when talking to
their children, and seem selfishly indifferent to the kids. On their trip, when her husband and
children get out of the car to sightsee, Mrs. Das sits in the car, eating snacks she offers to no
one else, wearing her sunglasses as a barrier, and painting her nails. When Tina asks her to
paint her nails as well, Mrs. Das just turns away and rebuffs her daughter. Mr. and Mrs. Das
ask the good-natured Mr. Kapasi about his job as a tour guide, and he tells them about his
weekday job as an interpreter in a doctor’s office. Mr. Kapasi’s wife resents her husband’s
job because he works at the doctor’s clinic that previously failed to cure their son of typhoid
fever. She belittles his job, and he, too, discounts the importance of his occupation as a waste
of his linguistic skills. However, Mrs. Das deems it “romantic” and a big responsibility,
pointing out that the health of the patients depends upon Mr. Kapasi’s correct interpretation
of their maladies. Mr. Kapasi begins to develop a romantic interest in Mrs. Das, and conducts
a private conversation with her during the trip. Mr. Kapasi imagines a future correspondence
with Mrs. Das, picturing them building a relationship to translate the transcontinental gap
between them. However, Mrs. Das reveals a secret: she tells Mr. Kapasi the story of an affair
she once had, and that her son Bobby had been born out of her adultery. She explains that she
chose to tell Mr. Kapasi because of his profession; she hopes he can interpret her feelings and
make her feel better as he does for his patients, translating without passing judgment.
However, when Mr. Kapasi reveals his disappointment in her and points out her guilt, Mrs.
Das storms off. As Mrs. Das walks away towards her family, she trails crumbs of puffed rice
snacks, and monkeys begin to trail her. The neglectful Das parents don’t notice as the
monkeys, following Mrs. Das’s food trail, surround their son, Bobby, isolating the son born
of a different father. The monkeys begin to attack Bobby, and Mr. Kapasi rushes in to save
him. Mr. Kapasi returns Bobby to his parents, and looks on as they clean up their son.
‘A Real Durwan’
Boori Ma is a feeble 64-year-old woman from Calcutta who is the stair-sweeper, or durwan,
of an old brick building. In exchange for her services, the residents allow Boori Ma to live on
the roof of the building. While she sweeps, she tells stories of her past: her daughter’s
extravagant wedding, her servants, her estate and her riches. The residents of the brick
building hear continuous contradictions in Boori’s storytelling, but her stories are seductive
and compelling, so they let her contradictions rest. One family in particular takes a liking to
Boori Ma, the Dalal’s. Mrs. Dalal often gives Boori Ma food and takes care of her ailments.
When Mr. Dalal gets promoted at work, he improves the brick building by installing a sink in
the stairwell and a sink in his home. The Dalal’s continue to improve their home and even go
away on a trip to Simla for ten days and promise to bring back Boori Ma a sheep’s hair
blanket. While the Dalal’s are away, the other residents become obsessed with making their
own improvement to the building. Boori Ma even spends her life savings on special treats
while circling around the neighborhood. However, while Boori Ma is out one afternoon, the
sink in the stairwell is stolen. The residents accuse Boori Ma of informing the robbers and in
negligence for her job. When Boori Ma protests, the residents continue to accuse her because
of all her previous inconsistent stories. The residents' obsession with materializing the
building dimmed their focus on the remaining members of their community, like Boori Ma.
The short story concludes as the residents throw out Boori Ma’s belongings and begin a
search for a “real durwan.”
‘Sexy’
One of only two stories in this collection told by a non-Indian narrator, “Sexy” tells the story
of a young woman, Miranda, and her affair with a married Indian man named Dev. Aside
from what she hears from her one Indian friend at work, a woman named Laxmi, Miranda
knows very little about India and its culture. The first time she meets Dev, she is not able to
discern his nationality. However, she is instantly captivated by his charm and the thrill of
being with an exotic, older man. The title of the story refers to something he whispered to her
in the Christian Science center’s Mapparium, a moment that she would remember for its
intimacy but would later come to see as a sign of an unhealthy relationship. She has pangs of
guilt because he is married, and this is highlighted by the fact that Laxmi’s cousin has
recently been abandoned by her husband for a younger woman. One day, Laxmi’s cousin
comes to Boston and Miranda is asked to babysit her eight-year-old son, Rohin. Rohin ends
up giving Miranda some insight into his mother’s grief and calls to her attention the more
unglamorous aspects of being the “other woman.” This experience eventually leads her to call
off her affair.
‘Mrs. Sen's’
In this story, 11-year old Eliot begins staying with Mrs. Sen - a university professor's wife after school. The caretaker, Mrs. Sen, chops and prepares food as she tells Elliot stories of her
past life in Calcutta, helping to craft her identity. Like "A Temporary Matter," this story is
filled with lists of produce, catalogs of ingredients, and descriptions of recipes. Emphasis is
placed on ingredients and the act of preparation. Other objects are emphasized as well, such
as Mrs. Sen's colorful collection of saris from her native India. Much of the plot revolves
around Mrs. Sen's tradition of purchasing fish from a local seafood market. This fish reminds
Mrs. Sen of her home and holds great significance for her. However, reaching the seafood
market requires driving, a skill that Mrs. Sen has not learned and resists learning. At the end
of the story, Mrs. Sen attempts to drive to the market without her husband, and ends up in an
automobile accident. Eliot soon stops staying with Mrs. Sen thereafter.
‘This Blessed House’
Sanjeev and Twinkle, a newly married couple, are exploring their new house in Hartford,
which to appears to have been owned by fervent Christians: they keep finding gaudy Biblical
paraphernalia hidden throughout the house. While Twinkle is delighted by these objects and
wants to display them everywhere, Sanjeev is uncomfortable with them and reminds her that
they are Hindu, not Christian. This agreement reveals other problems in their relationship;
Sanjeev doesn’t seem to understand Twinkle’s spontaneity, whereas Twinkle has little regard
for Sanjeev’s discomfort. He is planning a party for his coworkers and is worried about the
impression they might get from the interior decorating if their mantelpiece is full of Biblical
figurines. After some arguing and a brief amount of tears, a compromise is reached. When the
day of the party arrives, the guests are enamored with Twinkle. Sanjeev still has conflicting
feelings about her; he is captivated by her beauty and energy, but irritated by her naivete and
impractical tendencies. The story ends with her and the other party guests discovering a large
bust of Jesus Christ in the attic. Although the object disgusts him, he obediently carries it
downstairs. This action can either be interpreted as Sanjeev giving into Twinkle and
accepting her eccentricities, or as a final, grudging act of compliance in a marriage that he is
reconsidering.
‘The Treatment of Bibi Haldar’
Bibi Haldar is a twenty-nine year old female who suffers from an undiagnosed ailment. She is treated
by spiritual healers, charlatans and medical doctors. She is taken to holy sites, medical facilities and
Calcutta in hopes of a cure. The treatments vary, but the results remain unsuccessful. The ailment
struck all of a sudden. She is confined to the building where her cousin and wife rent an apartment.
Bibi might collapse and fall into an episode at any time. She is unable to go out on her own because of
that risk. Bibi spends her days in a low-ceilinged storage room on the roof. For a living she sits in the
storage room recording the inventory of her cousin's courtyard cosmetics business. The storage room
has an adjoining latrine and shelves. She is paid in meals, provisions and cotton, but no money. She
sleeps on a cot in her cousin's second floor apartment. Haldar's wife is pregnant and in November tells
Bibi she's contagious like the pox and will spoil the baby. She isolates Bibi from their living utensils.
One day Bibi has another episode by the fish pond. The neighbors attend to her. A group of the
husbands take her home with the women following behind. Haldar refuses to let the hysterical Bibi
spend the night with his pregnant wife. Bibi sleeps in the storage room. After the baby's birth he lets
her sleep by their apartment, in the corridor. Bibi spends time alone, has more seizures and is left
unattended. The neighbors protest by no longer shopping at Haldar's store. The shelves and inventory
grow dusty. The weather gets colder and the baby gets sick. Haldar's wife blames Bibi for the baby's
sickness. Haldar moves her out of their apartment completely. She stays in the storage shed and
makes her home there. She stays alone and no longer goes out at all. Haldar clears out all of his
inventory by mid-December. The neighbors drive him out of business. He and his family leave town
and mail is returned unopened from any relatives of Bibi. She stays in the storage shed and the
neighbors leave food for her. They find her four months pregnant in April. She does not remember
what has happened. She does not identify the father. By September she delivers a son. They show her
how to feed and care for him. She cleans up the storage room and turns it into a store. The neighbors
buy goods from her. She takes care of herself and raises her son. She is cured.
‘The Third and Final Continent’
The narrator recounts his tale of leaving India in 1964 with a commerce certificate and the equivalent
of ten dollars in his pocket. He sails on a cargo ship for three weeks across the Arabian, Red and
Mediterranean seas to England. He lives in London with twelve or more penniless Bengali bachelors
like himself. When he is thirty-six years old, the narrator's family arranges a marriage. At the same
time he receives a job offer in America at the MIT library. He accepts the job and receives a green
card. He flies to Calcutta for his wedding and then flies to Boston to begin his employment. He rents a
room not far from the university. This is the first time he would live in the home of someone who is
not Indian. A tiny old woman opens the door when he arrives at the appointed time and rings the bell.
Her first instruction to him is to lock the door when he enters. She shows him her house and says she
expects him to be on time with the rent. He offers a letter confirming his MIT employment. He moves
into the room at Mrs. Crofts the next day. When he enters he finds her at the bench wearing the same
thing she wore the day before. She asks him if he's locked the door. She tells him there's an American
flag on the moon. He recognizes this to be a nightly ritual. It lasts ten minutes until she drifts off to
sleep so he goes along with it. Mrs Croft daughter, Helen, reveals Mrs. Croft is a widow and eats only
soup since she turned one hundred, three years ago. He is amazed. He thinks she is in her eighties,
maybe ninety. He reflects that his mother's widowhood drove her insane. His father died when he was
sixteen and his mother never adjusted. They were unable to help her. His brother gave up his
education so he could take a job to keep the household running. His responsibility was to watch over
and take care of her. He offers to help Mrs. Croft with her soup and Helen says that would kill her. He
worries about her and decides to spend time with her on the bench in the evenings. He gives her the
limited care he can as a tenant. His wife Mala arrives. He finds an apartment he and Mala can share.
He pays Mrs. Croft on Friday and tells her he is leaving. One evening he asks Mala if she'd like to go
out. They walk by Mrs. Crofts and he opens the gate, hoping to say hello. Helen answers the ring and
asks if they will visit for awhile so she can run out for errands. Mrs. Croft cannot stay alone these
days. The couple enters the parlor and finds Mrs. Croft in bed. She tells him to sit on the sofa, but
Mala wanders over to the piano and sits on the bench. Mrs. Croft says she broke her hip, called the
police and asks what he has to say. He cries out splendid. Mala laughs and Mrs. Croft asks who that
is. She asks if she plays the piano. When she says no Mrs. Croft tells her to stand up. After looking at
her for a long time she says she is a perfect lady. He laughs quietly and then he and Mala smile at
each other. It was then that the distance between him and Mala began to lessen. They begin exploring
Boston together. He tells her of his early experiences in London and then in Boston and the YMCA.
Months later he reads of Mrs. Croft's obituary and stares silently at the wall, not able to speak.
AREA OF STUDY TWO: Creating and Presenting
Context: Exploring Issues of Identity and Belonging
GROWING UP ASIAN IN AUSTRALIA
Edited by Alice Pung
This area of study is much like the context writing that you did in units one and two for
Encountering Conflict. The context for year twelve is Exploring Issues of Identity and
Belonging and you will be doing a range of activities exploring this throughout year.
The Prompt
Your
Piece
The Texts
The Context
About the Editor
Alice Pung is a Melbourne writer and lawyer. She was born in
Footscray, and grew up in Braybrook, attending local primary and
secondary schools in the Western suburbs.
Alice is the author of Unpolished Gem and the editor of Growing up
Asian in Australia. She has had stories and articles published in
Good Weekend, Meanjin, the Monthly, Age, The Best Australian
Stories 2007 and Etchings.
Although Alice is currently practicing as a solicitor, she has worked
extensively with both primary and secondary school students - as an
art instructor, independent school teacher, and student mentor.
Alice has received enormous critical acclaim for her writing. Unpolished Gem won the 2007
Australian Newcomer of the Year award in the Australian Book Industry Awards and was
shortlisted for several other awards including the Victorian Premier’s Literary Awards, the
New South Wales Premier’s Literary Awards and The Age Book of the Year 2007.
EXPLORING ISSUES OF IDENTITY AND BELONGING
Read all of the stories from the set anthology, Growing Up Asian in
Australia, and choose any (3) three that you enjoyed the most. For all
the (3) three stories, answer all of the questions below:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
What is the title of the story?
Who is the author and what is their background?
Where does the story take place?
Summarise what happens in the story.
What parts of the story did you relate to and why? For example
did you relate to the character’s experiences or feelings in the
story?
6. What does this story show you about identity and belonging?
Your answers will be shared on a class wiki or blog (to be
organised next year).
When you have finished writing, choose one story only and prepare a
short talk to the class.
Use the above questions to help you prepare the talk.
Be prepared to explain why you chose to talk about this story.
This work is due in your first ESL lesson in 2011.
AREA OF STUDY THREE: Using Language to Persuade
Read the following material to help you revise what you know about persuasive language,
and introduce you to some of the skills you will need to complete units 3 and 4.