The key word critically is often added to the key words: analyse or evaluate. The BOSTES website clearly defines the key word critically as:

Add a degree or level of accuracy depth, knowledge and understanding, logic, questioning, reflection and quality to

What the HSC PDHPE markers are looking for is for you to be critical in your assessment of the topic asked about. To be critical does not mean you have to be negative, but it does mean you need to question information to determine how accurate it is and often requires you to compare it against something else. Overall, this questioning and comparing is to achieve one thing – to add a depth of accuracy.

The key word critically is used in both the syllabus to guide your study and will be used in your HSC PDHPE exams to indicate that you need to add depth of accuracy to your answer. An example from the HSC PDHPE syllabus is

  • critically analyse the importance of the five action areas of the Ottawa Charter through a study of TWO health promotion initiatives related to Australia’s health priorities

If we remember that analyse is to identify the components and the relationship between them, then this dot point is asking you to draw out and relate the five action areas with two health promotion initiatives, but to do so drawing upon research, results, and reviews of the initiatives. You should ask questions such as:

  • Did the Ottawa Carter action areas improve this health promotion?
  • Would the initiative have achieved the same results without using the five action areas?
  • Could things have been done better? if so, how?
  • Are there sections of the five action areas that could have been improved upon or that were neglected completely?

If you are critical in your study of the health promotion initiative, this will help you to be critical in your answering of any HSC PDHPE exam questions that use the key word critically.

For example, if the HSC PDHPE exam asked you to critically analyse the Close the Gap health campaign, or to use the five action areas of the Ottawa Charter to critically analyse the Close the Gap campaign, you will need to know details about this campaign. You will need to link the campaign with the five action areas and relate the results of the campaign back to the action areas and whether they could be improved through better use of the action areas. An understanding of the latest Prime Ministers Report on Close the Gap (2016), would prove helpful in doing this.

Now it is time for you to use the key word critically to answer some practice HSC PDHPE  exam questions. Below is where it occurs in the HSC PDHPE syllabus.

Health Priorities in Australia

Factors Affecting Performance

Sports Medicine