How to Find QCAA Syllabuses, Formula Books and Past Papers
Key takeaways
- Every senior subject’s syllabus is on the QCAA website under Senior secondary, then Senior subjects. It sets out Units 1 to 4 across Years 11 and 12 and every assessment your child will sit.
- Use the unit content as a checklist. Everything listed can be assessed, from simple familiar questions through to complex unfamiliar ones.
- The formula book is allowed in the assessments, so students should know which formula fits which kind of question before the exam.
- Past papers come with their marking guides, including the multiple choice and question and response books. Most students never use them.
- Sample assessment instruments use the same marking rubric schools use, so you can see what separates a high mark from a low one.
In this video
- 0:00 Finding the senior syllabuses on the QCAA website
- 0:30 What the syllabus covers
- 1:32 Using the unit content as a checklist
- 2:04 The calculator list and formula book
- 2:35 Past papers and marking guides
- 3:37 Sample assessment instruments
- 4:38 Sample marking schemes
- 5:38 How other subjects compare
The QCAA (Queensland Curriculum and Assessment Authority) publishes the syllabus, formula book, past papers and sample assessments for every senior subject. This walkthrough shows where each one sits on the QCAA website and how to use it, with General Mathematics as the example.
Where do you find the QCAA syllabus for a senior subject?
Watch this part from 0:00
Go to the QCAA website at qcaa.qld.edu.au and choose Senior secondary. From the menu on the left, open Senior subjects to reach the syllabuses. You can filter the list by subject.
Every subject is set out in much the same way, so these steps work for any subject your child takes.
What does the syllabus tell you?
Watch this part from 0:30
The syllabus is a PDF of everything that is in scope for assessment in that subject. It covers Units 1 to 4, which run across Year 11 and Year 12.
It also lists the assessments your child will sit. In General Mathematics that is three internal assessments and one external assessment, which is the big one. The rationale section explains why the subject is designed the way it is, if that interests you.
Use the unit content as a checklist
The most useful part is the content for each unit. Unit 1, for example, shows what will be covered in roughly the first semester. Everything listed there can be assessed, so treat it as a checklist and make sure each point has been covered.
Each point needs to be covered at every level of difficulty the syllabus uses: simple familiar, complex familiar and complex unfamiliar.
The syllabus also shows how long each topic is expected to be taught for. In General Mathematics it allows about 3 hours of class time for Pythagoras and about 9 hours for perimeter and area. You can scroll through and see this for the full two years.
Which calculators and formulas are allowed in QCAA assessments?
Watch this part from 2:04
The QCAA website has a calculator list that sets out which calculators can be used in the assessments.
The formula book is allowed in the assessments too. Students still need to know what every formula in it is for. Plenty of students open the formula book and have no idea what they are looking at. In an exam, a student who doesn’t know which formula to use is likely to pick the wrong one, so learn the formula book well before the exam.
Where can you find QCAA past papers and marking guides?
Watch this part from 2:35
Each subject page also has notes on subject changes for the external assessment, plus subject reports, which are less useful for exam practice. The past papers are the part to use.
Each past paper comes with its marking guide. In General Mathematics the 2025 papers are there with their marking guides, and Paper 1 on its own is a full practice exam covering different parts of the course. The papers include the multiple choice section and the question and response book, so students practise both multiple choice and extended answers.
Attempt a couple of past papers and see how you go. Some papers were written for an earlier version of the syllabus, but a lot of the content is still relevant.
Past papers are underused. Most students don’t know about them, so a student who works through them is a step ahead of everyone else.
What are QCAA sample assessment instruments?
Watch this part from 3:37
Sample assessment instruments are practice versions of each assessment. There is one for each of the three internal assessments and one for the external assessment.
In General Mathematics, internal assessment 1 (IA1) is a problem-solving and modelling task, or PSMT. Its sample instrument uses the same rubric schools use to mark the real task, so you can read exactly what separates the marks. In the Formulate criterion, for example, a response that earns 3 or 4 marks has several statements, and they are justified. A response that earns 1 or 2 has a single statement.
Reading the rubric this way makes it much clearer how the assessment will be marked.
How do sample marking schemes help?
Watch this part from 4:38
The sample marking scheme goes a step further. For General Mathematics IA3, which is an exam, it shows sample answers and how the marking criteria were applied to each one, so you can see how the marks were allocated.
The QCAA used to publish marking schemes for the assessments themselves, which walked through example responses and the marks they earned. The sample assessment instruments are still there to use.
It comes down to understanding the marking criteria. A student who understands the criteria and reads the task sheet carefully is in a good position to get good results.
Does every senior subject work the same way?
Watch this part from 5:38
Yes. Every subject follows much the same layout on the QCAA website. English, for example, has its own unit objectives and subject matter, and sets out the criteria students are assessed against. Once you know where things sit for one subject, you can find them for any subject your child takes.
Frequently asked questions
Are QCAA syllabuses and past papers free?
Yes. The syllabuses, formula books, past papers, marking guides and sample assessments are all on the public QCAA website, so any student or parent can open them.
Can students use the formula book in QCAA exams?
Yes, the formula book is allowed in the assessments. Students should still know what each formula is for before the exam, because a student who doesn’t recognise the right formula is likely to choose the wrong one.
Are older QCAA past papers still worth doing?
Yes. Some papers were written for an earlier version of the syllabus, but a lot of the content is still relevant. Use the current syllabus as the checklist for what is in scope.
Want help with senior assessments?
KeirEd’s QLD Programs are small online classes in Maths, English and Science for Queensland students in Years 7 to 12, including senior QCE subjects. A qualified teacher takes a weekly live class of 7 or fewer students.
Planning subjects or targets? The QCE ATAR calculator estimates a Queensland ATAR from your subjects and expected marks.
