ICAS English

Find out more about the English skills assessed at each year of schooling, download the ICAS - English assessment framework
Buy past ICAS papers including English
Download English practice questions
Hints and tips for participating in ICAS

The International Competitions and Assessments for Schools (ICAS) – English assess reading and language skills in a range of contexts. The following aspects of texts are assessed and reported: reading for meaning in literary texts, reading for meaning in factual texts, textual devices, syntax and vocabulary. The questions require students to locate, identify, interpret, infer and synthesise information in and about texts.

Students read a variety of texts which narrate, describe, explain, argue, persuade and review. The types of texts include extracts from novels, short stories, poems, play scripts, transcripts of interviews, letters, diary entries, advertisements, webpages, reports and explanations, opinion pieces and reviews. These texts may include tables, diagrams, maps and other visual information.

The texts which students read will increase in complexity from Paper A to Paper J, moving from simple texts dealing with familiar subjects and topics to complex texts incorporating abstract concepts and sophisticated language structures.

To find out more about the English skills assessed at each year of schooling in ICAS go to the ICAS - English assessment framework .

See ICAS test details for practical information including test dates, entry fees and year levels assessed in your country.

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