The changes come as Queensland moves away from the Overall Position (OP) rating system towards the nationally adopted Australian Tertiary Admission Rank system from 2020.

The shift prompted a change in the Queensland Certificate of Education (QCE), which is the formal statement of student achievement in Year 11 and 12 used for higher education and career entry after school.

That in turn prompted a review of Queensland’s secondary school curriculum, resulting in five new subjects being offered for Year 11 and 12 students from this year.

The new general subjects are design, engineering, food and nutrition, literature and psychology.

A sixth, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultural studies, may also be offered in 2019 and is currently being considered by authorities, sources have told Brisbane Times.

While marks for these subjects would not have been considered under the outgoing OP metric, they will count toward ATARs from 2020.

Education Minister Grace Grace said the new subjects were not a sign Queensland’s high school curriculum was stale.

“Look, I think it is exciting,” Ms Grace said.

“We are entering a new system of education outcomes where the OP system is going and the new ATARs system is being introduced.

“With that, comes new curriculum opportunities.”

Ms Grace said new subjects in the curriculum were important for students and teachers.

“I think we always have to have continual improvements in classrooms to keep teachers and students engaged,” she said.

“I think Queensland does that extremely well.”

The new subjects were assessed by the Queensland Curriculum and Assessment Authority.

QCAA chief executive officer Chris Rider said school subjects reflected wider changes in the community.

“That’s why we regularly review syllabuses,” Mr Rider said.

“The new QCE system has been an opportunity to take a fresh look at every subject.”

The syllabus investigation in Queensland has been underway for at least a decade, prompted by more students staying to complete Year 12 before deciding on a university course, TAFE, apprenticeship or other career move.

That prompted a recommendation to previous education minister John-Paul Langbroek for major changes to Queensland's high school education, subsequently put in place by the incoming Palaszczuk government.

In 1982, just under 40 per cent of Queensland’s high school students finished Year 12.

In 2018, more than 90 per cent of Queensland students completed Year 12 , or more than 50,000 students.

Mr Rider said this was one reason a progressively wider cross section of subjects was being offered.

Design

“This typifies a 21st-century approach to learning," Mr Rider said.

“It offers huge scope for critical and creative thinking, communication, collaboration, teamwork as students apply design thinking in response to problems and challenges.

“This mirrors approaches to teaching and course offerings at universities.”

Engineering

“Here students apply science, maths, engineering and technology skills in projects to solve social and technical problems,” Mr Rider said.

“That could mean designing and building a temporary structure to house displaced people during natural disasters such as floods or cyclones.

“We want to give students a practical grounding for careers in engineering and related fields such as architecture, aerospace, mining and environmental projects.”

Food and Nutrition

This is a food science, nutrition and food technology subject.

“It should support students’ progress to university and rewarding jobs in the science, technology, engineering and health industries," Mr Rider said.

Psychology

“We have introduced this subject is because it’s so popular interstate,” Mr Rider said.

“We should get impressive enrolments too. The topics in the syllabus are fascinating — the role of the brain, human consciousness and sleep, emotion and motivation.”

Literature

This is an offering distinct to the current English or drama subjects.

“Here students will do in-depth studies of novels, plays, poetry, films and other literary texts,” Mr Rider said.

“They’ll explore how these texts reflect or challenge ways of thinking, and use their imaginations to create texts of their own.”