World · East Asia & Pacific · 1 hr ago
NSW HSC English exam gives students questions they could adapt to prepared essays
More than 60,000 students began NSW’s 2026 HSC exams with English Paper 1 on October 13.
The Higher School Certificate is a series of exams for students in New South Wales, Australia.
Students had expected a difficult essay question based on an extract from their prescribed text.
Instead, teachers and students said the questions were accessible and suited prepared responses.
The exam included short questions on unseen texts and an essay about human strength and vulnerability.
Students said they could apply what they had prepared to the questions.
The NSW Education Standards Authority reported one disruption: Rosebank College in Five Dock was evacuated for about 20 minutes, and students received their full exam time.
HSC exams continue until November 5.
More than 60,000 students sat the first 2026 HSC exams, including English Paper 1, on October 13.
Students said the English essay question could be adapted to prepared responses.
The essay asked students to examine how their prescribed text explored assumptions about human strength and vulnerability.
The NSW Education Standards Authority reported one significant disruption: Rosebank College was evacuated during the exam.
- Who
- More than 60,000 HSC students sat the first exams of 2026.
- What
- Students took English Paper 1 and said its essay question could be adapted to prepared responses.
- When
- October 13, 2026.
- Where
- Across New South Wales, including Strathfield Girls High School and Rosebank College in Five Dock.
- Why
- The essay asked students to examine assumptions about human strength and vulnerability in their prescribed text.
This story does not have two clearly opposing sides.
More than 60,000 students sat the first HSC exams of the year, including English Paper 1.
Rosebank College in Five Dock was evacuated.
Students returned to the exam and received the full time to finish.
HSC exams are scheduled to continue until this date.
- Students sitting exams
- More than 60,000
- Exam
- English Paper 1
- Essay value
- 20 marks
- Prescribed text studied by Spiers' students
- The Crucible
- Evacuated school
- Rosebank College, Five Dock
What people are saying
It was a really good exam
The good answer will be that basically The Crucible explores the complexity between the two – there is no such thing as showing strength without having shown vulnerability first.
I could draw on my own feelings and experiences to answer the question.
It wasn’t anything out of the blue. It’s just new text, new questions.
Sources
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