Individual oral commentary and discussion (part 2

detailed study)
Choice of works for part 2
All works must be chosen from the prescribed list of authors (PLA) for the language being
studied. Each work must be from a different literary genre (two genres at SL and three genres at
HL).
At HL one of the genres studied must be poetry.
he re!ised lists are based on the language A" prescribed book lists (P#Ls) but with two changes
that may affect teachers.
he PLA for all languages is a list of authors$ not specific titles.
he PLA is not di!ided into part % and part &. 'nstead$ authors are listed alphabetically
under literary genres.
't is the teacher(s responsibility to ensure that$ as well as meeting other re)uirements$ the works
chosen ha!e sufficient comple*ity of style and content suited to close analysis.
The internal assessment task
Part % is assessed orally and marked internally. here is a distinct difference between the formal
oral tasks re)uired of students at SL and at HL. he following tables gi!e an o!er!iew of the
differences in the criteria
Standard level
+riterion ,arks
A-nowledge and understanding of the e*tract ".
#Appreciation of the writer(s choices ".
+/rgani0ation and presentation 1
2Language 1
Total 30
i!her level
+riterion ,arks
A-nowledge and understanding of the poem 1
#Appreciation of the writer(s choices 1
+/rgani0ation and presentation of the commentary 1
2-nowledge and understanding of the work used in the discussion 1
E3esponse to the discussion )uestions 1
4Language 1
Total 30
The individual oral commentary
SL and HL students are both re)uired to undertake an indi!idual oral commentary that in!ol!es
presenting a formal literary analysis on an e*tract from one of the works studied in part %. 4or SL
students the ".5minute oral commentary is the whole of their part % assessment. 4or HL students$
the ".5minute oral commentary is immediately followed by a ".5minute guided discussion on
one of the other part % works.
Selectin! e"tracts
he suggested length is %.6&. lines. Students only ha!e around ". minutes for their commentary
7and around two minutes of this will be taken up with subse)uent )uestions7so it is important
that the e*tract is not o!erly long. An 8e*tract9 may also be a complete poem. A poem with fewer
than %.6&. lines may be entirely acceptable$ pro!iding it is of sufficient comple*ity. iming for
the preparation (%. minutes) begins once the e*tract has been selected.
E*tracts should be rich in detail and significance and gi!e students e!ery opportunity to show
their:
knowledge and understanding of the work
ability to analyse language$ structure$ techni)ue and style.
he e*tracts should also be of a similar le!el of difficulty and different from those used for
classroom practice.
't is highly ad!isable to number the lines in each e*tract. he most commonly used numbering
system is to number e!ery fifth line. his gi!es students a handy way of referring to the te*t to
support their analysis$ and it helps '# moderators to follow the student(s commentary more
easily.
#um$er of e"tracts
't is essential that students do not know in ad!ance which e*tract they are likely to get for their
oral commentary. Please see the 8'nternal assessment9 sections for SL and HL in the Language
A: literature guide (4ebruary %."")$ which gi!e the acceptable minimum number of different
e*tracts to use in relation to the number of students in the class.
%uidin! &uestions
he purpose of the guiding )uestions is to point students towards significant features of the
e*tract. ;uestions should not gi!e too much information to the student because this would make
it difficult for the student to show their independent understanding.
<eneric guiding )uestions are gi!en in the sub=ect guide$ and some more are listed here.
Howe!er$ teachers are urged to pro!ide guiding )uestions that are specifically suited to the
e*tract$ which could mean creating their own )uestions$ or adapting the generic )uestions. 't is
also highly ad!isable to pro!ide one )uestion to elicit knowledge and understanding and the
other )uestion to elicit analysis of the writer(s choices. his will help students to meet the
re)uirements of the descriptors.
Students are not obliged to respond to the guiding )uestions$ which are there as prompts. Any of
the following )uestions may be used for SL students. 4or HL students$ only the poetry )uestions
are rele!ant.
'rose( #ovel and short story
How does the e*tract show the attitudes and emotions of the central character(s)>
'n what ways does the use of language re!eal underlying tensions>
How is the significance of the setting of the work re!ealed in the e*tract>
How are the central ideas of the work con!eyed through the e*tract>
'n what ways does the e*tract foreshadow subse)uent de!elopments in the work>
How is the e*tract pi!otal to the structure of the plot>
'rose other than fiction
How does the point of !iew influence our attitude to the ideas being con!eyed in the
e*tract>
'n what ways is the e*tract central to the work as a whole>
How is diction used to influence the reader>
How is a strong sense of place con!eyed in the e*tract>
'n what ways are rhythm and balance important elements in con!eying the writer(s point
of !iew>
?hat does the e*tract re!eal of the writer(s attitude towards the sub=ect matter>
'oetry
?hat use has the writer made of repetition to con!ey meaning and@or emotional effects>
How does the use of a persona contribute to the dramatic force of the poem>
How is symbolism used to con!ey meaning>
'n what ways does the final line@stan0a change your understanding of the poem as a
whole>
'n what ways does the poet use repetition to underline key ideas>
How is rhythm used to complement the thought and feeling of the poem>
)rama
How are gesture and action used to con!ey the state of mind of the character(s)>
How is language used to show contrasts between the characters>
'n what ways does the e*tract show or hint at de!eloping conflict in the play>
How does the e*tract re!eal the time and place of the action in the play>
?hat does the e*tract re!eal of the relationship between A and B>
'n what ways is the e*tract significant in re!ealing a key idea of the play>
Conductin! the individual oral commentary
#ote( he oral commentary may only be conducted once for each student.
Essentials
A )uiet room for conducting the oral and a nearby room for the %.5minute preparation
period
Super!ision during the preparation time (for HL students$ the preparation time is for the
commentary$ not for the discussion)
<ood5)uality recording e)uipment$ preferably digital
A method of pro!iding the student with an e*tract so that neither the teacher nor the
student knows which e*tract is being selected (it is recommended that the teacher places
each e*tract separately in a blank en!elope and allows each student to choose their own
en!elope)
+lean copies of e*tracts with conte*tual information remo!ed and with lines numbered
(the title of a poem can remain)
)urin! the oral commentary
he student must be allowed to talk without interruption for up to C minutes.
Subse)uent )uestions must be put to the student. hese should gi!e the student an opportunity to
co!er aspects they ha!e missed (or ha!e handled incompletely) in their commentary.
'f a student does not manage to speak for the full C minutes$ ". minutes should still be used$ with
the teacher asking )uestions.
he focus of the task is detailed comment on the e*tract$ not the whole work. Some
conte*tuali0ation is important to show understanding of how the e*tract is related to the work as
a whole$ but the main part of the commentary should be detailed literary analysis of the e*tract
itself.
*ollowin! the oral commentary
?here more than one teacher is conducting and marking the orals it is essential that time is spent
on standardi0ation before final marks are awarded.
he mark submitted for each student is an a!erage of the mark awarded for the two internal
assessment tasks. ?hen these marks are submitted$ students will be selected randomly by the '#$
and the recordings of their indi!idual oral commentaries (and HL discussions) must be sent in for
moderation$ complete with the e*tract used and Form 1/IARF$ which itemi0es the marks awarded
for both tasks.
The + discussion
Choice of work for discussion
HL students study three works in part %. he oral commentary is based on poetry$ so the
discussion must be based on one of the other two works. 'n order to ensure full co!erage of the
part % works$ it is essential that students do not know on which work the discussion will be based
until after they ha!e completed their oral commentary.
Conduct of the discussion
he teacher(s role is to gi!e the student e!ery chance to show his or her ability to engage in an
independent literary discussion. he ideal is an authentic literary e*change between the teacher
and student$ but prepared )uestions will be needed to get the discussion started.
he )uestions are likely to be related directly to the work under discussion$ so the e*amples
gi!en here (and in the sub=ect guide) are intended to show the types of )uestions that should
prompt an independent response from the student.
'rose( #ovel and short story
o what e*tent do you feel the writer is trying to persuade you to think about an issue or
idea in a particular way>
How well do you think the writer handles the transition between one time and another>
?hich character do you feel the writer relates to most closely> ?hat makes you think
that>
?hat sort of techni)ues does the writer use to get you interested in the story and the
characters> 2o you think they are successful>
+hoose one part of the no!el that you found particularly challenging$ e*citing or mo!ing.
?hat do you think prompted that response>
)rama
2o you think the writer is particularly sympathetic towards one of the characters> ?hat
makes you think that>
How well do you think the writer manages to use the stage to establish a strong sense of
setting>
?hat is your opinion about the closure in the last section of the play> 2o you find it
satisfying or frustrating>
?hat do you feel is the central conflict in the play> How important are the underlying
reasons for the conflict>
How clearly is the writer able to con!ey a meaningful idea while keeping an audience
entertained>
'rose other than fiction
'n what ways does the writing produce a strong sense of the author>
2o you feel that the style of writing is well matched to the ideas that the writer is trying
to con!ey>
How well does the work organi0e the e!ents or ideas> 's there an effecti!e di!ision within
and between sections>
?hat aspect of the work do you find most con!incing>
+an you identify some of the features of the writer(s techni)ue that you find to be
particularly effecti!e>
Are there some ideas or opinions put forward in the writing that you feel particularly
sympathetic or antagonistic towards> ?hat do you think prompted such a strong
reaction>
As indicated by the le!el descriptors for this section of the assessment task$ the aim of the
discussion is to gi!e students an opportunity to show their knowledge and understanding of a
second part % work and to demonstrate their ability to engage in independent critical literary
discussion. 4or e*ample$ to attain full marks in criterion 2: knowledge and understanding of the
work used in the discussion$ the student needs to show 8e*cellent knowledge and understanding
of the content and the implications of the work discussed9. 4or criterion E: response to the
discussion )uestions$ the student is re)uired to gi!e 8persuasi!e and independent responses to the
discussion )uestions9.
Essentials
he discussion lasts for ". minutes and must follow the oral commentary with no break in the
recording.
he discussion must be based on one of the two works other than poetry studied in part %.
he student must not know beforehand which 8other work9 is going to be chosen.
he discussion should be allowed to de!elop as naturally as possible$ although the teacher needs
to ensure that it stays focused on the nominated work and prompts the student to e*plore
implications and to gi!e personal e!aluation.
,arkin! the individual oral commentaries (and + discussion)
here are separate criteria for the SL indi!idual oral commentary and for the HL indi!idual oral
commentary and discussion. eachers are re)uired to use these criteria to mark the students(
work. E!ery commentary must be recordedD these recordings are used not only as possible
samples for the '# moderator$ but also to help the teacher establish the correct le!el descriptors$
and for internal moderation.
-sin! the assessment criteria
Please note the following changes from language A".
At SL criteria A and # (knowledge and understanding of the e*tract$ and appreciation of
the writer(s choices) are weighted$ being worth ". marks each$ compared with 1 marks
for presentation and language.
At HL the si* criteria are each worth 1 marks.
SL (criterion 2) and HL (criterion 4) language descriptors are the same.
he marks for the commentary and the presentation are added together and then di!ided by two$
and these are submitted to the '#. At that point the school will be asked to send a randomly
selected sample of recordings for e*ternal moderation. ,arks for the oral presentation are
moderated through those pro!ided for the oral commentary.
Form 1/IARF must be completed for each of the students whose commentary samples are
selected. his form can be downloaded and includes space for the teacher(s comments in support
of the marks awarded for both the presentation and the commentary. hese are sent to the '#
along with the recordings and the e*tracts.