SACE Stage 2 Tamil (continuers) flashcards

32 cards. Read the term and the definition here. The deck at the top of this page is optional.

Performance standards A to E

Holistic descriptors used in SACE subjects to describe the quality of a student's performance, from excellent (A) to inadequate (E), applied to evidence collected across assessment tasks.

Learning and assessment plan

The school document that sets out which assessment tasks will be used, their types and weightings, and how they address the subject outline; it must be approved before teaching begins.

Formative versus summative evidence

Formative evidence is gathered during learning to guide teaching and does not count toward the grade; summative evidence comes from the planned assessment tasks that do count.

Response to text task

An assessment in which students read or listen to a Tamil text and answer questions or write a response demonstrating comprehension, interpretation and, where required, personal evaluation.

Interaction assessment

An oral assessment in which the student sustains a conversation or discussion in Tamil, assessed on fluency, pronunciation, range of language and ability to respond to unfamiliar questions.

Text production task

A writing assessment requiring students to create a Tamil text for a stated audience, purpose and register, such as a letter, article, speech or narrative, assessed for communication and accuracy.

Investigation task

A research-based assessment in which students explore an aspect of Tamil-speaking culture or society and present findings in Tamil, combining content knowledge with language use.

School moderation

A process in which teachers compare and cross-mark student work against the performance standards so that judgements are consistent and comparable across classes and teachers.

Assessment integrity

The requirement that work submitted is the student's own; unacknowledged copying, translation tools or AI-generated text are breaches that can result in a zero for the task.

Language accuracy criterion

The assessment criterion covering grammar, spelling, script conventions and sentence structure; errors that obstruct meaning are penalised more than minor slips that do not.

Register in Tamil

The level of formality of language chosen for an audience; formal written Tamil suits official letters and articles, while informal or spoken Tamil suits friends and dialogue.

Communicating criterion

The assessment criterion covering how effectively the student conveys meaning and fulfils the task's purpose, audience and text type in Tamil comprehension and production.

Cultural understanding criterion

The assessment criterion covering knowledge of Tamil-speaking cultures, customs and social contexts, and the ability to use that knowledge appropriately in responses and interaction.

Oral assessment conditions

The procedures for conducting oral tasks, including preparation time, recording requirements and supervision, which are set by the SACE Board and followed by the school.

Externally assessed component

The part of Stage 2 Tamil (continuers) set and marked outside the school by the SACE Board; its exact format and weighting must be checked in the current subject outline.

Written examination comprehension

A section of the external written paper in which students read Tamil texts and answer short-answer or extended questions showing literal and inferential understanding.

Extended response in Tamil

A longer written answer in the external paper requiring students to develop and support ideas in Tamil, usually with a stated audience, purpose and text type.

Oral examination component

The externally assessed speaking task, normally conducted at school under SACE Board procedures and marked or moderated externally, assessing conversation and discussion in Tamil.

Tamil script accuracy

Correct use of Tamil orthography, including vowel signs, consonant clusters, the pulli marker and short versus long vowels, assessed as part of the language-accuracy criterion.

Pulli (puḷḷi)

The dot placed above a Tamil consonant to show that it is pronounced without an inherent vowel, as in க்; omitting or misplacing it changes the word.

Short and long vowels

Tamil distinguishes short and long vowels (for example அ/ஆ, இ/ஈ); length can change meaning, so it is checked under the language-accuracy criterion in written tasks.

Audience and purpose

The stated reader and reason for a text; in external writing tasks these determine content, tone, text type and register, and responses are marked against them.

Text type conventions

The structural features expected of a given text type, such as a letter's salutation and closing or an article's headline, which students must follow in production tasks.

Inferential comprehension

Understanding meaning not stated directly in a Tamil text, such as implied attitude or cause; external comprehension questions often require this beyond literal reading.

Listening comprehension

Understanding spoken Tamil, including main ideas, specific detail and speaker attitude; it may form part of the external assessment depending on the current subject outline.

Special provisions

Adjustments approved by the SACE Board for students with a disability or disadvantage, applied to external assessment so that students are assessed on equal terms.

Dictionary rules in examinations

The rules governing whether a dictionary or reference may be used in the external examination; only what the current subject outline permits is allowed.

SACE Board marking

The process by which external tasks are marked by trained markers against the performance standards, with moderation to ensure consistency across all students.

Content before accuracy

A marking principle in language tasks: communication of relevant content is judged first, with language accuracy and range applied as separate criteria rather than overriding meaning.

Verb tense consistency

Maintaining the same tense and aspect within a Tamil text unless a shift is meaningful; inconsistent tense is penalised under the language-accuracy criterion in writing.

Formal letter in Tamil

A text type with formal address, structured body and conventional closing, used for official correspondence; external tasks may require this register rather than conversational Tamil.

Time allocation in the examination

Distributing the examination period across sections according to marks and task length; longer production tasks need planning and checking time for script and grammar accuracy.