IB English Literature SL
IB Literature Standard Level course is a two-year diploma program.
The IB Lit SL curriculum focuses on the detailed study of nine literary works. These are selected considering different origins, genres, and periods (Time & Space). Through fruitful comparison, students in the Eng Lit SL course develop their understanding of the connections between texts (Intertextuality) and develop their role as both readers and writers (Readers, Writers, and Texts).
The IB Literature SL course explores Literature in less depth and breadth than the HL course but is much more focused on Literature than the Eng LangLit courses. This diploma subject requires developing useful analytical skills, clear use and understanding of language, and knowledge and understanding of various literary genres and their features.
Course Structure and Content
The Standard Level course requires students to study nine literary texts.
At the end of this program, all English Literature SL students sit papers 1 and 2. Paper 1 offers a choice of two unseen literary texts for analysis. Each text has a guiding question as an entry point for the analysis. SL students must complete this paper in 75 minutes. Paper 2 is a comparative essay of two literary works. The paper offers four questions and should be completed in 1 hour 45 minutes. SL students also complete the Individual Oral, which consists of two parts: a 10-minute prepared response by the student, where the student presents two extracts (one of these extracts must be written originally in English, and the other must come from a work in translation) examining how a global issue of their choice is shown in both extracts and the works as a whole. This part is followed up by a 5-minute Q&A led by the teacher.
