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IB Diploma — Studies in Language and Literature
- 2027–28
- Language A: language and literature (English) — Higher Level
- Group
- Group 1 — Studies in Language and Literature
- Level offered
- Higher Level (HL)
- Teaching hours
- HL: 240 hours
- IB syllabus
- Current DP syllabus, first examined 2021
Course description
Language A: language and literature explores the complex and dynamic nature of language, and both its practical and aesthetic dimensions. The course examines the crucial role language plays in communication, in reflecting and shaping experience, and in constructing meaning, as well as the role of individuals themselves as producers of language.
Through close analysis of a wide range of text types, literary forms and media, students consider their own interpretations alongside the critical perspectives of others, exploring how such positions are shaped by cultural belief systems and how meaning is negotiated for texts.
Course structure
- Readers, Writers and Texts
- Time and Space
- Intertextuality: Connecting Texts
Students who should consider this course
This course suits students who enjoy close reading, discussion and writing about language, literature and media across a range of cultures and periods, and provides a strong foundation for further study or careers in literature, communications, journalism, law, education and the humanities more broadly.
Assessment at a glance
| Component | SL % | HL % |
|---|---|---|
| Paper 1 — Guided textual analysis (external) | 35 | 35 |
| Paper 2 — Comparative essay (external) | 35 | 25 |
| HL essay — written coursework (external, HL only) | — | 20 |
| Individual oral (internal) | 30 | 20 |
External examinations
External assessment consists of a guided analysis of unseen non-literary passages (Paper 1) and a comparative essay on two literary works (Paper 2), sat in the November examination session. HL students additionally submit a 1,200–1,500 word HL essay as externally assessed coursework.
Subject presentation
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Year 10 Subject Selection Kiosk — IB DP Language and Literature 2027–28 (English Department). Image-only slides (course outline, overview, links to previous study, assessment in practice, text types) are shown in the slide viewer.
Text transcript of the slides (4 slides)
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Course outline
- In this course, students study a wide range of literary and non-literary texts in a variety of media.
- By examining communicative acts across literary form and textual type alongside appropriate secondary readings, students investigate the nature of language itself and the ways in which it shapes and is influenced by identity and culture.
- Approaches to study are wide-ranging and can include literary theory, sociolinguistics, media studies and critical discourse analysis among others.
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Studies in language and literature — aims
- Engage with a range of texts, in a variety of media and forms, from different periods, styles and cultures.
- Develop skills in listening, speaking, reading, writing, viewing, presenting and performing.
- Develop skills in interpretation, analysis and evaluation.
- Develop sensitivity to the formal and aesthetic qualities of texts and an appreciation of how they contribute to diverse responses and open up multiple meanings.
- Develop an understanding of relationships between texts and a variety of perspectives, cultural contexts, and local and global issues.
- Develop an understanding of the relationships between studies in language and literature and other disciplines.
- Communicate and collaborate in a confident and creative way.
- Foster a lifelong interest in and enjoyment of language and literature.
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Assessment objectives
- Know, understand and interpret: a range of texts, works and/or performances and their meanings and implications; the contexts in which texts are written and/or received; elements of literary, stylistic, rhetorical, visual and/or performance craft; features of particular text types and literary forms.
- Analyse and evaluate: ways in which the use of language creates meaning; uses and effects of literary, stylistic, rhetorical, visual or theatrical techniques; relationships among different texts; ways in which texts may offer perspectives on human concerns.
- Communicate: ideas in clear, logical and persuasive ways; in a range of styles, registers and for a variety of purposes and situations.