I am an online ESL teacher from Australia. Recently a new student signed up to my class. He just started high school (Year 7) in NSW, Australia. His parents want him to improve his writing skills, so he is taking extra classes with me. I am teaching the student online. 

I’ve taken a look at the student’s high school syllabus and this is what it says:

""The organisation of outcomes and content for English 7-10 (High School years) highlights the role and connection that Understanding Texts and Creating Texts have across all areas of English. The organisation of outcomes and content reflects the essential knowledge, understanding and skills that students are expected to learn, including the study of a wide range of literature.

The knowledge, understanding and skills described in the outcomes and content of each focus area provide a basis for students to successfully progress to the next stage of learning. Focus areas should not be interpreted as hierarchical or time bound, as instructional priorities will be informed by learner needs

English 7–10 focus areas:
The focus areas for each stage support students’ growing knowledge and understanding in the areas of:

Reading, viewing and listening to texts
Understanding and responding to texts
Expressing ideas and composing texts
English 7–10 builds on the foundational skills developed in the earlier years to support the growing knowledge, understanding and skills in the areas of Reading, viewing and listening to texts, Understanding and responding to texts and Expressing ideas and composing text.

The 3 focus areas of the English 7–10 Syllabus: Reading, viewing and listening to texts; Understanding and responding to texts; and Expressing ideas and composing texts. The first focus area is surrounded by a rectangular box titled Understanding texts. The third focus area is surrounded by a rectangular box titled Composing texts. The second focus area is elongated, so as to be included in both rectangular boxes.

Engaging with texts is central to the study of English. In Years 7–10, texts should be understood to mean any written, spoken/signed, nonverbal, visual, auditory or multimodal communication.

The forms, features and structures of texts evolve over time for the purpose of communicating effectively with a range of audiences. Sometimes a number of elements from different types of texts can be included in a single text, resulting in a hybrid text.

Students undertake essential content, and work towards course outcomes, by engaging meaningfully with a range of texts. Teachers select texts based on their understanding of what students need to learn at particular points in time. A well-chosen text enables students to study features within and between texts that can enhance their knowledge, understanding and experience of how texts represent the world. Texts should be selected that either support or extend students’ reading.


Text selection
As the focus of learning in each Stage, students are required to engage meaningfully with:

at least 2 works of extended prose (including at least one novel)
at least 2 collections of poetry
at least 2 films
at least 2 drama texts (including at least one Shakespeare play in Stage 5)
a range of types of texts inclusive of short prose, visual, spoken, multimodal and digital texts.
Across each stage, the selection of texts must give students experiences of:

a range of fiction and non-fiction texts that are widely regarded as quality literature
a range of texts by Australian authors
a range of texts by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander authors
a range of quality texts from around the world, including texts about intercultural and diverse experiences (might include literature by authors with diverse backgrounds and experiences, including authors with disability)
a range of cultural, social and gender perspectives, including from popular and youth cultures
texts chosen by students for personal interest and enjoyment.
Teachers should preview the texts that they select to use as a part of students’ learning. This allows teachers to identify potential areas for targeted teaching.


Text complexity
Text complexity may vary in:

ideas or knowledge
structure
vocabulary
sentence complexity
levels of meaning or subtlety
modal elements.
Most texts combine simple, predictable, moderately complex and highly complex features. The selection of texts should provide opportunities for students to engage with features of texts that provide appropriate levels of challenge


The importance of language in English:
Students’ knowledge and understanding about language will grow and deepen as they engage with increasingly complex texts across a range of modes. Students continue to develop their understanding of how language use at word, sentence, paragraph and whole text-level, is determined by context, audience and purpose. Students’ knowledge of their first language will support this development.

The development of students’ vocabulary and background knowledge can be supported by their teachers engaging them in rich discussion and analysis of a range of texts, including those widely regarded as quality literature. This can support students’ comprehension and has the potential to expand their ideas and experience of both their own world and the world of others. As students deepen their knowledge of language, they can apply new understanding to purposefully communicate their ideas, with increasing confidence and efficacy. Through knowledge and understanding of language, students can appreciate, reflect on and enjoy texts that are widely regarded as quality literature.""