Understanding the Individual Oral (DP IB English A: Language and Literature: HL): Revision Note

The Individual Oral (IO) gives you the opportunity to connect what you study in your course to the world around you. It encourages you to think about how the texts you analyse relate to real-world issues and ideas. 

This section is designed to help you understand the structure and expectations of the Individual Oral on your IB Diploma English A: Language and Literature (HL) course. It consists of:

• How the Individual Oral is assessed

• Core skills assessed in the Individual Oral

• Choosing your texts for the Individual Oral

• Top tips

How the Individual Oral is assessed

The IO is the only internally assessed component of your IB Diploma English A: Language and Literature course.

Overview

• The IO is internally assessed but externally moderated:

  • You will present the oral to your teacher, who will assess your work

• It is completed during your course, usually in the second year

• It is worth 20% of your overall grade for Higher Level (HL) students

• You will deliver a 10-minute oral presentation, followed by a 5-minute discussion with your teacher

• You will analyse:

  • One literary text

  • One non-literary text (for example, an article, advertisement, speech)

• You must refer to:

  • A specific extract from each text

  • The wider text as a whole 

• You must explore a global issue and show how it is presented in both texts

• The global issue must be:

  • Relevant on a global scale

  • Clearly defined and focused
    

You are required to focus on only one global issue connecting your work and body of work. Remember, your global issue is the aspect which will give your IO cohesion and coherence so you must refer to it continually throughout your presentation. 

• For your IO, you must select a focused global issue and explore how two specific extracts and the works or work and body of work they are taken from address it

• The IO is not comparative:

  • There is no requirement that your extracts and works or work and body of work should be compared and contrasted

• Your presentation should not be a commentary: 

  • It should be a focused exploration into the connections between the global issue and the extracts and works or work and body of work

• The global issue is the lens through which your works or work and body of work should be explored:

  • Therefore the focus is not simply on your global issue but instead on how the presentation of your global issue in the works or work and body of work is presented

• The extracts should be used as a starting point into your discussion of your global issue:

  • Try to ensure there is a balance between your extracts and to the work or body of work from which it comes

Core skills assessed in the Individual Oral

The IO assesses many of the same skills as Paper 1 and Paper 2 though with a stronger focus on your oral communication skills. Your IO should be based on the following prompt:

There are four assessment criteria at HL.

Choosing your texts for the Individual Oral

Selecting the right text is one of the most important decisions you will make in preparing for your Individual Oral. For this task, you must select a focused global issue and explore how two specific extracts and the works or work and body of work they are taken from address it.

Here are some important things to consider when selecting your texts: 

• Your extracts must be continuous: there cannot be an interruption or an ellipsis in your extract

• The source of the extracts must be clearly stated, including the names of the works chosen and the names of the authors

• An extract may be a complete text in itself, for example a whole poem or an advertisement

• An extract may not, however, include more than one text, even if each text is extremely short:

  • For example, you cannot include two poems as part of a literary extract or two posters or cartoons in a non-literary extract

• If the extract is from a literary text which is part of a larger work studied, such as a short story, or if it is a complete text which is part of a work studied, such as a poem, you should discuss relevant aspects of the broader work as a whole

Body of work

Through the Individual Oral, you will explore clear connections between the works or texts you have studied and wider global or local contexts. The task is not comparative and therefore there is no requirement that the extracts and works or work and body of work should be compared and contrasted.

Using your teacher

As you begin preparing for the Individual Oral, your teacher will provide guidance to help you get started.

• They will support you in choosing suitable texts and identifying a global issue to explore

• The Individual Oral is usually completed towards the end of the first year of your course or at the beginning of your second year:

  • This gives you enough time to develop your knowledge of the texts before preparing for the assessment

• This assessment gives you the opportunity to develop important skills such as self-management and independent thinking

• Your teacher will guide and support you but you will be expected to take responsibility for shaping your ideas and preparing your analysis

• Your teacher can make sure that the extracts you choose are of an appropriate length

Top tips

• Avoid reading from a script:

  • Do not memorise your notes as this can make your presentation rushed and sound unnatural 

• Vary your pace:

  • This helps convey meaning and keeps your presentation engaging

• Emphasise key words:

  • Use intonation to highlight important ideas

• Use inclusive language:

  • Using the pronoun “we” can make your presentation more inclusive

  • For example, “In this photograph we see…”

• Use precise and appropriate language:

  • Aim to present in a formal academic tone

• Ensure your global issue is given a central focus throughout:

  • Your teacher will reward responses where the global issue is clearly defined and consistently developed

• Focus on one issue only:

  • Trying to cover multiple issue will weaken your analysis

• Ensure your global issue is not too broad or too narrow:

  • It should be specific enough to analyse but broad enough to apply to both texts