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Assessments in language B

As a language B educator, your goal with assessments is to test students’ written, oral, and listening communication of the target language. The language B course includes external (Papers 1 and 2) and internal  (Individual Oral Activity) assessments. In this section, you will find a comprehensive overview of internal and external assessments along with some tips and tricks for you and your students!

What’s included inside:

Internal assessment overview

The internal assessments include an Individual Oral Activity (IOA) that makes up 25% of the total grade for both SL and HL students. These assessments are designed for students to showcase their analytical and critical thinking skills. In the HL course, the IOA is based on a literary extract. In the SL course, the IOA is based on a visual stimulus. Here is an overview of how the IOA is structured for both HL and SL courses:

External assessment overview

The external assessments in language B include two papers that makeup 75% of the total grade for both SL and HL students. These papers assess productive and receptive skills through writing, listening, and reading. The chart below shows the structure and weightage of language B external assessments.

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The table below summarizes the weightage and duration of the different assessment components:

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Each component represents a percentage of the total grade. The total marks and exam length vary in the HL and SL courses.

Assessment objectives

Five key assessment objectives are covered across the internal and external assessment components of the language B course. You will find the assessment objectives and their component alignment in the table below:

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Disclaimer: This guide has been produced independently of and not endorsed by the IB. Toddle’s resources seek to encourage sharing of perspectives and innovative ideas for classroom teaching & learning. They are not intended to be replacements for official IB guides and publications. Views and opinions expressed by the authors of these resources are personal and should not be construed as official guidance by the IB. Please seek assistance from your school’s IB coordinator and/or refer to official IB documents before implementing ideas and strategies shared within these resources in your classroom.