Develop a deeper understanding of how you use, write, respond to and read the English language. Through this core subject you will interact with and apply language to build new ideas, advance your ability to communicate and unpack a range of texts. Through analysing these texts, you will learn about how ideas are presented and develop strong skills of analysis.You will read and view a range of texts, engaging with the ideas, concerns and tensions to analyse ways vocabulary, text structures, language features and conventions of a text work together to create meaning.

In English, you will discuss and clarify ideas and values presented by authors through their characters, settings and plots of texts that are relevant and meaningful to youth. By engaging with current, relevant and topical local and/or national issues, you will devise personal responses that consider the way texts create meaning on several levels and in different ways. You will also develop an understanding of the art of writing by challenging yourself with the use of imaginative, persuasive and informative text

ENGLISH IS FOR:

All students studying VCE at NCAT as it is a core subject.

ENGLISH ENABLES YOU TO:

• Explain and analyse a range of texts.
• Develop your own writing style.
• Explore how the time and place a text was created affects its meaning.
• Read a range of text types.
• Interpret how authors use a range of conventions to create meaning.
• Draft, edit and refine your work.

Build an understanding of how business works from the initial ideas to what it looks like day to day. Learn all about the happenings of a business, become familiar with challenges and aware of the ways resources are managed to make sure that business outcomes are met.

In Business Management, you will have the opportunity to participate in an ‘introduction to Entrepreneurship Program’ to develop a pitch presentation on a personal business idea.

You will also apply the knowledge you learn in class back to your business idea and contemporary business core studies, to produce a folio of work that includes financial record keeping, marketing and staffing. You will examine the ways in which people, at various levels within a business organisation, manage resources to achieve the objectives of the organisation and develop an understanding of the challenges, complexities and rewards that come from business management.

BUSINESS MANAGEMENT IS FOR:

• Students interested in creating their own business, or being a key stake holder in one.
• Students who enjoy being innovative and exploring new responses to challenges.
• Students drawn to management in a range of fields.
• Students fascinated by the type of businesses and their objectives.
• Students who are interested by the legal and economic sectors.

BUSINESS MANAGEMENT ENABLES YOU TO:

• Learn and apply the process of developing a business, from concept through to the day-to-day management.
• Develop an understanding of the issues facing businesses today.
• Propose and evaluate business strategies.
• Build skills in motivation, management skills and management styles.
• Foster your ability to describe, analyse and interpret a range of business materials.

Create and perform you own dance works in VCE Dance. Learn from visiting dancers and continue to improve your techniques in the genres of Contemporary, Jazz and Ballet. Explore movement as a creative expression and communication and how dance styles and traditions can have an influence.

Take on opportunities for you to perform your own work as well as solo and group dance pieces choreographed by others. To help you dance at your best, you will build on your physical dance skills through regular and systematic training throughout each unit. Study the work of others through performance and analysis. Explore how other choreographers have created and arranged movement to communicate an intention so that you can apply this in your own pieces. Develop and refine your own choreographic skills by investigating original and learnt movements.

DANCE IS FOR:

• Students who want to be a professional dancer, choreographer or teacher.
• Students who have studied, and want to continue to study Contemporary, Jazz and Ballet techniques.
• Students who want to learn and build their skills in choreography and direct others.
• Students who want to pursue dance at a tertiary level.
• Students who want to explore the dancing of others to improve their own dancing.
• Students want to perform in as a part of a group and individually.

DANCE ENABLES YOU TO:

• Choreograph group and solo pieces.
• Analyse famous texts, solos, duos and group works.
• Learn structured improvisation techniques.
• Learn ballet, contemporary and jazz techniques from a variety of specialist teachers and choreographers.
• Prepare for auditions which lead to fulltime study, joining a dance company or a commercial company such as Disney or Universal Studios.

PREREQUISITE
Entry to this subject is via audition. Students must present two solo dances; one they have learnt and one they have choreographed.

To organise an audition, please call the school on 9478 1333.

In addition to VCE Dance, NCAT also runs VCE VET Certificate II in Dance which is also a scored subject. For more information on NCAT VET Dance visit this page.

Both VCE Dance and VCE VET Dance can be taken as part of a VCE or a VCE VM program.

Health, wellbeing and development are subject to a wide range of contexts and interpretations, with different meanings for different people. This subject helps you identify personal perspectives and priorities relating to health and wellbeing, and enquire into factors that influence health attitudes, beliefs and practices, including among Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders and people from a variety of low- and middle-income countries around the world.

This study helps you build your understanding of health in a global context through examining changes in burden of disease over time and studying the key concepts of sustainability and human development. You will explore the factors that contribute to health inequalities between and within countries, including the physical, social and economic conditions in which people live. You will consider the health implications of increased globalisation and worldwide trends relating to climate change, digital technologies, world trade and the mass movement of people.

HEALTH AND HUMAN DEVELOPMENT IS FOR:

• Students interested in the human body and disease.
• Students fascinated by the ideas of health and wellbeing.
• Students who are curious about the World Health Organisation, the United Nations and the work they do with the world’s most vulnerable people.
• Students who are drawn to the different health and wellbeing experiences of different groups in society and around the world.

HEALTH AND HUMAN DEVELOPMENT ENABLES YOU TO:

• Develop an understanding of the concept of health and wellbeing and how this applies to both an individual and global context.
• Draw conclusions from, and analyse a range of data relating to disease patterns, global trends and development within and among countries.
• Explain the role of nutrients and healthy eating.
• Explore Australia’s health care system.
• Research a range of relevant health and wellbeing cases, particularly those related to Indigenous Australians and those living in poverty and/or other challenging circumstances.
• Investigate methods that enable individuals to take social action and bring about change.

Investigate criminal law, civil law, how laws are constructed, and the issues of dispute resolution and justice. Study actual cases to investigate how and develop an understanding of why the legal system works, and changes over time.

In Legal Studies, you will participate in a visit to the Magistrates and the County or Supreme Court to view the Victorian Courts and Justice System in operation. You will participate in the virtual ‘You Be the Judge’ program, developed by the Statutory Advisory Council, where you are given the opportunity to apply your knowledge of sentencing to a variety of case studies.

LEGAL STUDIES IS FOR:

• Students who have a strong pull towards the ideas of justice.
• Students who are curious about politics.
• Students who would like to better understand the legal system in Australia.
• Students who would like to consider the role of the law in Australia and how it is constructed.

LEGAL STUDIES ENABLES YOU TO:

• Explore the ideas of justice and its components.
• Apply legal reasoning to real life cases.
• Unpack the different elements of the law.
• Discover the components of a legal case from the victim to the accused.

Maths is a life skill that compliments many of the other subjects that NCAT offers. Studying Maths provides you with a new way of thinking as well as a variety of skills to apply to many different situations in life.

In General Maths explore a variety of data displays, the best ways to display them, and the relationships between different contexts, such as ice cream sales and weather. Apply mathematical concepts to relevant and meaningful scenarios, such as the value of your smartphone in three years. Learn financial maths that will set you up for success in life, particularly in relation to different types of loans and depreciation. Make life easier for yourself by knowing how to find the shortest and most efficient path from A to B.

MATHS IS FOR:

• Students who enjoy problem solving.
• Students who require maths as a pre-requisite for a tertiary course.
• Students who love numbers.
• Students who relish the opportunity to work through processes.

MATHS ENABLES YOU TO:

• Solve a range of mathematical equations.
• Construct mathematical tables for a range of purposes.
• Answer a range of questions drawing on specific knowledge.
• Become familiar with a range of mathematical topics.

Make films, take photos, record podcasts and learn about the media and its role in society. Media studies allows you to explore the far-reaching arms of the media through the relationship it has with audiences, how it is used to tell stories and how and why the media constructs and reflects reality.

In Media, you will explore how youth and/or gender are constructed in film and songs, and then use this information to create your own short film. Collaborate with your peers to produce a whole-class photo shoot and investigate what it means to be ‘Australian’ by examining the Australian media. You will also analyse the work of directors and a variety of films to inspire a short film of your creation, and a variety of other mediums, such as photography, print and animation. Examine how media and technology have changed over time and the issues of agency and control in the media.

MEDIA IS FOR:

• Students with an interest in becoming a part of the media industry.
• Students who want to create products in lots of different media forms.
• Students that want to develop an understanding of how media products are made.
• Students who want to build a range of technical and analytical skills.

MEDIA ENABLES YOU TO:

• Analyse different media products.
• Develop your skills of analysis, creativity, flexibility and an understanding of industry.
• Become familiar with the different production stages across mediums.
• Learn to record, edit and produce different pieces of media using industry standard software and equipment.
• Acquire an understanding of how the media creates representations of what we see in society.
• Undertake a range of theoretical and practical tasks.
• Create different media products in the form of film, audio, photography and print individually and collaboratively.

In addition to VCE Media, NCAT also runs the VCE VET Certificate III in Screen and Media. For more information visit Screen & Media (Creative & Digital Media) and Screen & Media (Video).

Explore music works in a range of styles and genres to develop an understanding of the diverse practices of music creators working in different times, places and stylistic traditions.

Expand your knowledge of the ways composers/music creators manipulate elements of music and concepts, and use compositional devices to develop music works and elicit responses

Develop knowledge about the music characteristics and style of two selected works or collections of minor works, one of which must be a work created by an Australian composer since 1990.

Create two short compositions in response to your understanding of the music characteristics in the works selected for study and devise a folio brief in preparation for an extended original composition or collection of short pieces.

Document your creative processes while creating an original work, or group of works which you will perform as part of your end of year assessment.

PREREQUISITE
Entry to this subject is via audition. Students must perform two contrasting pieces. To organise an audition, please call the school on 9478 1333.

In addition to VCE Music subjects, NCAT also runs the VCE VET Certificate III in Music Industry.  Student can choose to do either the Performance Stream and/or the Sound Production stream. Both are scored VCE subjects.  See Music Industry (Music Performance) and Music Industry (Sound Production).

Prepare and perform ensemble and/or solo music works to develop technical control, expression and stylistic understanding of your chosen instrument.  Explore and develop your understanding of how music is organised and music language concepts by performing, creating, analysing and responding to music works that exhibit different approaches.

Explore and develop your understanding of the possibilities of how music can be used to create an intended effect by performing, analysing and responding to music works that create different effects.

MUSIC IS FOR:

• Students who want to work in the Music industry as professional musicians

• Students who want to improve their technical and performance Music skills and knowledge
• Students who want to pursue Music at a tertiary level.
• Students want to perform in as a part of a group and individually.

MUSIC RENABLES YOU TO

• Improve your technical and musicianship skills
• Create and perform your own compositions
• Gain a solid understanding of music language concepts
• Perform at various public events either solo or in a group

PREREQUISITE
Entry to this subject is via audition. Students must perform two contrasting pieces. To organise an audition, please call the school on 9478 1333.

In addition to VCE Music subjects, NCAT also runs the VCE VET Certificate III in Music Industry.  Student can choose to do either the Performance Stream and/or the Sound Production stream. Both are scored VCE subjects.  See Music Industry (Music Performance) and Music Industry (Sound Production).

Work towards building a performance program that you will present for your end-of-year assessment.  Study the work of other performers and their approaches to interpretation and personal voice in performing music works.

Develop strategies to address the technical, expressive and stylistic challenges relevant to works you are preparing for performance. Listen and respond to a range of recorded music by a variety of performers in contemporary styles to study music language concepts that relate to contemporary music.

Analyse and interpret a wide range of recorded music, responding to and analysing music elements, concepts, compositional devices and music language. Learn how to recognise and recreate music language concepts such as scales, melodies, chords, harmony and rhythmic materials that relate to contemporary music.

PREREQUISITE
Entry to this subject is via audition. Students must perform two contrasting pieces. To organise an audition, please call the school on 9478 1333.

In addition to VCE Music subjects, NCAT also runs the VCE VET Certificate III in Music Industry.  Student can choose to do either the Performance Stream and/or the Sound Production stream. Both are scored VCE subjects.  See Music Industry (Music Performance) and Music Industry (Sound Production).

Recognise your potential as a designer and be introduced to the world of fashion and textiles. Imagine, plan and make creations you have been dreaming of in your mind.

Explore, analyse and produce a range of pieces. You are supported as you take on the role of fashion design and remain in charge of the creative process of your own piece. The skills, terminology and approach you develop is mirrored on that of industry. Collaborate and refine your eye throughout practical projects with a focus on sustainability. Take on a brief from a client and create a folio of work based on this product. Explore and analyse influences on the design, development and manufacture of products in industry. In conversation with the client, you make adjustments and carry out a series of checks to ensure you are on the right track.

PRODUCT DESIGN & TECHNOLOGY IS FOR:

• Students who have a strong passion for the fashion and textile industry.
• Students who want to be a designer.
• Students who are interested in learning the processes of industry.
• Students who love to imagine products and see those things come to life.
• Students who are curious about commercial product design and development.

PRODUCT DESIGN & TECHNOLOGY ENABLES YOU TO:

• Develop your skills and explore your style as a designer.
• Respond to client briefs.
• Create a folio that demonstrates your work practices.
• Plan and produce a number of fashion works.

NCAT also runs the Certificate II in Applied Fashion Design and Technology which can be taken as an elective as part of a VCE or VCE VM program.

Psychology allows you to explore how and why people think, feel and act the way they do. In doing so you will consider a range of biological, psychological and social factors and how they work together.

In Psychology, you will analyse how the functioning of the human nervous system enables a person to interact with the external world, and evaluate the different ways in which stress can affect functioning. You will also investigate the importance of sleep and discover the disruptions to a person’s psychological functioning when they don’t get enough sleep. Learn about mental health and the factors lead to the development and management of mental illness, in particular phobias. You will apply your knowledge in practical tasks by creating a variety of physical models, participating in experiments and designing and implementing research studies of your choosing.

PSYCHOLOGY IS FOR:

• Students who are curious about human behaviour.
• Students who have an interest in the way the mind works and why we do what we do.
• Students who love researching and examining case studies.
• Students who like to pick apart different ideas.

PSYCHOLOGY ENABLES YOU TO:

• The ability to analyse information and data.
• Knowledge of the process of undertaking research and experiments.
• Delve into the human mind and find out why it works how it does.
• Better understand the world around you.

Contemporary Art Practice is all about you becoming the best artist that you can be. You will be encouraged to explore a range of inspirations and techniques to better your own art practice. Work in a range of mediums to develop your art style and produce a number of works.

Work on project-based art investigations, leading towards the production of a creative body of work. Engage in the exploration of ideas, and experiment using different materials, techniques and processes through the creative art practice. Through inquiry-based learning, you will explore the process in which artist develop ideas, find inspiration and create artworks. Furthermore, you will actively engage in the research and study of the practices of selected historical and contemporary artists of their choice, which will influence and inform their own art creation practice

ART PRACTICE IS FOR:

• Students who love painting, drawing, watercolour and doodling on their exercise books.
• Students who relish the opportunity to explore artworks to get ideas.
• Students who take inspiration from their surroundings.
• Students who are moved towards expressing their ideas visually.

ART PRACTICE ENABLES YOU TO:

• Develop your practice as an artist.
• Build a folio of work you can take to gain entry into other courses.
• Learn a range of technical skills across a range of mediums.

Explore and develop photographic practices, materials and techniques by studying Photography at NCAT. With both colour and black and white darkrooms, and fully equipped photographic studios NCAT provides you with industry level facilities and equipment to start you off on your photographic journey.  Experiment and develop skills with a range of devices and innovative equipment in our state-of-the-art photography centre,

Examine how photographic artists from different societies, cultures and historical periods communicate meaning and ideas in their photos. Make connections to artworks and investigate how they communicate ideas and perspectives. Deep dive into areas of personal interest to you and develop series of photos related to these interests. Experiment with a range of materials, techniques and processes to create bodies or work.

ART PRACTICE (PHOTOGRAPHY) IS FOR:

• Students who want to work with black and white and colour film, as well as digital technology.
• Students who want to explore and communicate ideas through image.
• Students who have an appreciation and understanding of artists and their aesthetics, or would like to develop one.
• Students looking to build on their own artistic practice and perspective,
• Students who would benefit from a solid understanding of the Arts Industry.

ART PRACTICE (PHOTOGRAPHY) ENABLES YOU TO:

• Develop your own photographic practice.
• Build a theoretical knowledge of photographs and the creative process,
• Process black and white and colour film.
• Work with digital photography.
• Use a range of relevant digital software.
• Create a folio of work that can be used for prospective employers or to gain entry into further study.
• Realise and communicate ideas in artworks.

Maths Methods is designed to prepare you for study at university in courses which require a high level of mathematical knowledge and skills. This course includes calculus which is often required knowledge for science and engineering degrees. Other areas include architecture, computer science, business, or economics. Studying Maths Methods develops your analytical thinking skills and is application based making it relevant in solving real world problems.

Maths Methods focuses on the development of the use of calculus, probability and statistical analysis in problem solving. The study of calculus provides a basis for an understanding of the physical world involving rates of change, functions, their derivatives, and integrals in modelling physical processes. Studying statistics and probability in Maths Methods develops the ability to describe and analyse phenomena involving uncertainty and variation.

MATHS METHODS IS FOR:  

•  Students who have a natural aptitude for maths.
• Students who enjoy the challenge of solving more difficult problems.
• Students who are systematic in problem solving.
• Students who require higher level maths as a pre-requisite for Science/Engineering courses.

MATHS METHODS ENABLES YOU TO:  Use Calculus to solve many non-linear problems.

• Apply other higher level maths skills to practical and application-based problems.
• Expand your Statistics and Probability skills through Discrete and Continuous Random Variables and the Normal Distribution.
• Use Technology – You will use a CAS calculator to check your answers, graph and interpret information, and to investigate mathematical problems.

Theatre Studies takes you on a creative journey to experiment with conventions, contexts and characters to create theatre that is relevant to you and the world you live in. Explore scripts in a range of theatre styles from premodern times to today. Practical in nature, you will work as an actor, director and designer to creatively and imaginatively produce theatre for audiences. Theatre Studies also has theoretical components for you to develop the language needed to participate in the theatre.

Dedicated to pre-modern and modern theatre styles, our course commences with the exploration of Ancient Greek Theatre, Comedy of Manners and Realism. To strengthen your understanding, you will select a monologue in your preferred theatre style and may perform as an Actor/Director or undertake Design for that scene. To engage with Modern theatre styles, we work practically with Musical Theatre, Epic Theatre and Theatre of the Absurd. To finish off the year, you will work collaboratively to plan, develop and present a whole class performance to an audience. Along with this, you will study two live performances a year.

THEATRE STUDIES IS FOR:

• Students who attend and regularly engage with live theatre performances.
• Students with an interest in designing for theatre performances.
• Students who are passionate in developing characters to perform to an audience.
• Students that want to work collaboratively with others in creating meaningful and innovative theatre.
• Students who wish to pursue this area of interest at a tertiary level.

THEATRE STUDIES ENABLES YOU TO:

• Identify different Theatre Styles and understand their influence on theatre today.
• Conduct dramaturgy to inform how we interpret scripts and make creative decisions.
• Use the Elements of Theatre Composition to shape and make meaningful theatre.
• Work collaboratively in a production team through the three stages of the Production Process: Planning, Development and Presentation.
• Discuss, analyse & evaluate performances using correct theatre terminology and expression.
• Prepare for auditions which lead to further study or a role in a production.

Visual Communication Design (VCD) allows you to become familiar with the design process. You become immersed in the context in which design happens and through this discover the use of type and imagery. You are involved in job briefs that may cover visual, environmental or industrial design.

Explore the way visuals can be used to convey ideas. Learn how to communicate via a visual language and create a range of projects that can influence the thinking of their intended audience. Drawing is a large part of this subject, and within it you will be study a range of drawing skills which mean you can not only complete the subject successfully but prepare yourself for work in the field.

VCD provides an introduction to the communication, industrial and environmental design fields. You will create design solutions using technical drawing methods to convey visual information and ideas. Type and imagery are selected and manipulated, adhering to copyright, to create design outcomes suitable for print and screen-based presentations. The six stages of the design process are established and applied when creating visual communications in response to a brief.

VCD IS FOR:

• Students fascinated by the way visuals speak to an audience.
• Students who love drawing.
• Students that want to head into the field of design.
• Students who are curious about the visuals that they see on a daily basis.

VCD ENABLES YOU TO:

• Work in the field of design, or undertake further study in this area.
• Develop as a practitioner in this area by placing you in the process designers go through.
• Enhance your technical drawing abilities and skills of analysis.
• Both respond to, and create your own briefs to prepare you for work in this area.