Coordinating the SACE | Admin | Information sheets | 05
Previously Information sheet 05 Eligibility for enrolment — languages at beginners level
Language subjects at beginners level are designed for senior secondary students with no prior knowledge or experience of the language (whether spoken or written) who wish to begin their study of the language at Stage 1. It is intended that students will study the language for 2 consecutive years (at Stage 1 and Stage 2).
In making beginners-level language subjects available, the Board recognises that some prior knowledge or experience of the language would not necessarily place a student at an advantage over a student with no prior knowledge or experience of the language. Such knowledge or experience may be very limited and/or very distant in time.
For eligibility purposes ‘Chinese’ refers to spoken Mandarin, Cantonese, Hokkien, or any regional Chinese dialect, and to characters in traditional form and simplified form.
Students with prior knowledge of, or experience in, Malay are not eligible to enrol in Indonesian at beginners level.
Procedure
In order to enrol in a language subject at beginners level, a student must be determined eligible based on the criteria. Students should apply to their school principal or principal’s delegate using Form 7.
Eligibility is determined by the principal or the principal’s delegate of the teaching school of the subject. To be deemed eligible for a subject, a student must meet all the eligibility criteria for the subject at the time of enrolment in the subject.
The principal or the principal’s delegate should advise each student of the outcome of his or her application in writing, by providing a signed copy of the application form.
Where eligibility is not easily determined, the school may seek policy advice from the SACE Board.
Schools are responsible for collecting and verifying documentation in order to support a student’s application. Appropriate documentation may include assessment reports and statements from schools previously attended.
Completed forms (Form 7) and any supporting documentation should be kept at the school. This information may be requested by the SACE Board for auditing purposes.
On this page
Eligibility criteria
Form 7 requires applicants to list all knowledge and experience of the proposed language of study (or dialect) to enable the principal or the principal’s delegate to determine eligibility for enrolment.
Information is required in three categories:
- Prior formal learning
- In-country experience
- Family or community linguistic experience.
The eligibility criteria for languages at beginners level are:
- the student has done little or no study of the language; that is, the student has not studied the language beyond the equivalent of Year 8 and has not studied the language in the previous 2 calendar years
- the student has little or no in-country experience; that is, the student has not visited or lived in a country where the language is spoken for longer than 3 months
- the student has little or no family or community linguistic experience; that is, the student does not use (speak or is spoken to) the language with:
- immediate family
- extended family more than monthly
- community and friends more than monthly.
Important enrolment advice
Students who were deemed eligible to enrol in a Stage 1 beginners-level language subject in 2019, and who intend to enrol in the same subject at Stage 2 in 2020 as part of a 2-year program, are not required to complete a Form 7 for 2020.
Students who want to enrol in a Stage 1 beginners-level language subject, and who did not complete a Form 7 for 2019 or who did not complete 20 credits at Stage 1 in 2019, are required to complete Form 7 before enrolling at Stage 2 in 2020.
Should a student’s circumstances change during the period of enrolment, for example, an extended in‑country experience, the student is required to reapply for eligibility to enrol using Form 7. A stay of more than 2 months is considered to be an extended in-country experience.
Students may not repeat Stage 1 or Stage 2 language subjects at beginners level.
Completed forms (Form 7) must be submitted to, and verified by, the principal or the principal’s delegate before the student is enrolled in the subject.
The enrolment of a student in a language subject at beginners level is deemed confirmation that the principal or the principal’s delegate has verified that the student meets the eligibility criteria.
Appeal process and breach of rules
Students who believe that their application for eligibility to enrol in a language subject at beginners level has been inappropriately assessed by the school may appeal in writing to the SACE Board.
It is a breach of the rules if students provide incorrect, misleading, or incomplete information in support of their eligibility for enrolment application. Such students may be withdrawn from the subject or have their result in the subject removed from official SACE Board records.
For more information on eligibility to enrol in language subjects at beginners level, contact the relevant SACE officer.
Guide to eligibility for beginners languages
Eligibility applications must be approved for all students before enrolling in a Stage 1 beginners level language.
More information
Forms
The completed form and any supporting documentation should be kept at the school. This information may be requested by the SACE Board for auditing purposes for up to 2 years from the date of this application.