ib language and literature review

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Sat / act prep online guides and tips, the best ib english study guide and notes for sl/hl.

International Baccalaureate (IB)

Are you taking IB English and need some help with your studying? No need to reread all the books and poems you covered in class! This study guide is for IB English A students (students in IB English A: literature SL/HL, IB English A: language and literature SL/HL, or IB English literature and performance SL ) who are looking for additional guidance on writing their commentaries or essays.

I've compiled this IB English study guide using the best free materials available for this class. Use it to supplement your classwork and help you prepare for exams throughout the school year.

What's Tested on the IB English Exams?

The IB English courses are unique from other IB classes in that they don't have a very rigid curriculum with exact topics to cover. Instead, your class (or most likely your teacher) is given the freedom to choose what works (from a list of prescribed authors and a list of prescribed literature in translation from IBO) to teach. The exams reflect that freedom.

On the exam for all English A courses, you're asked to write essays that incorporate examples from novels, poems, plays, and other texts you've read. You're also asked to interpret a text that you've read for the first time the day of the exam.

The exact number of questions you'll have to answer varies by the course , but the types of questions asked on each all fall into the two categories listed above.

What's Offered in This Guide?

In this guide, I have compiled materials to help teach you how to interpret poetry and how to structure your essay/commentary. I've also provided notes on several books typically taught in IB English SL/HL.

This should be most of the material you need to study for your IB exam and to study for your in-class exams.

How to Interpret Poetry Guides

Many people struggle the most with the poetry material, and if you're one of those people, we have some resources specifically for making poetry questions easier.

Here is a full explanation of how to interpret poetry for the IB exam with term definitions, descriptions of types of poems, and examples. We also have tons of poetry resources on our blog that range from explaining specific terms all the way to complete, expert analyses of poems you should know.

Here are some resources to get you started:

Imagery defined
Everything you need to know about Point of View
The 20 poetic devices you should know
Understanding allusion
A crash course on Romantic poetry
Understanding personification
Famous sonnets, explained
An expert guide to understanding rhyme and meter, including iambic pentameter
The eight types of sonnets
Expert analysis of "Do not go gentle into that good night" by Dylan Thomas

This is another great resource with poetry terms defined on "flashcards" , and you can test yourself on the site by clicking "play."

How to Write Your Essay Guide

If you're not sure how to write your essay, here's a guide to what your essay should look like for the IB English SL/HL papers. This guide gives advice on how you should structure your essay and what you should include in it. It also contains a few sample questions so you can get a better idea of the types of prompts you can expect to see.

IB English Book Notes

Based on the list of prescribed authors and literature from IBO, I picked some of the most popular books to teach and provided links to notes on those works. What's important to remember from these books is key moments, themes, motifs, and symbols, so you can discuss them on your in-class tests and the IB papers.

Adventures of Huckleberry Finn
A Farewell to Arms
Animal Farm
All the Pretty Horses
A Streetcar Named Desire
Anna Karenina
As I Lay Dying
Brave New World
Crime and Punishment
Death of a Salesman
A Doll's House
Don Quixote
Dr. Zhivago
Frankenstein
Great Expectations
Heart of Darkness
Lord of the Flies
Love in the Time of Cholera
Love Medicine
One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich
Romeo & Juliet
Sense and Sensibility
The Awakening
The Bluest Eye
The Great Gatsby
The Picture of Dorian Gray
The Stranger
The Sun Also Rises
Waiting for Godot

The Best Study Practices for IB English

Hopefully, this guide will be an asset to you throughout the school year for in-class quizzes as well as at the end of the year for the IB exam. Taking practice tests is also important, and you should also look at our other article for access to FREE IB English past papers to help you familiarize yourself with the types of questions asked by the IBO (and I'm sure your teacher will ask similar questions on your quizzes).

Make sure you're reading all of the novels and poetry assigned to you in class, and take detailed notes on them. This will help you remember key themes and plot points so you don't find yourself needing to reread a pile of books right before the exam.

Finally, keep up with the material you learn in class, and don't fall behind. Reading several novels the week before the IB exam won't be much help. You need to have time and let the material sink in over the course of the class, so you're able to remember it easily on the day of the IB exam.

What's Next?

Want some more study materials for IB English? Our guide to IB English past papers has links to every free and official past IB English paper available!

Are you hoping to squeeze in some extra IB classes ? Learn about the IB courses offered online by reading our guide.

Not sure where you want to go to college? Check out our guide to finding your target school. Also, figure out your target SAT score or target ACT score .

Want to improve your SAT score by 160 points or your ACT score by 4 points? We've written a guide for each test about the top 5 strategies you must be using to have a shot at improving your score. Download them for free now:

As an SAT/ACT tutor, Dora has guided many students to test prep success. She loves watching students succeed and is committed to helping you get there. Dora received a full-tuition merit based scholarship to University of Southern California. She graduated magna cum laude and scored in the 99th percentile on the ACT. She is also passionate about acting, writing, and photography.

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Free IB Language A: Literature Resources!

What do i need to memorize for the ib language a: literature exam, how should i study for the ib language a: literature exam.

Published January 16, 2024

Everything You Need to Get a 7 on IB Language A: Literature

Hey, no worries if you're in a last-minute cramming session for IB Language A: Literature! We totally get it, and trust me, we've all been there too! So, if you're wondering how to ace the IB Language A: Literature exam when you're running out of time, here are some awesome resources and IB Language A: Literature exam tips created by fellow students that will help you cram like a boss.

This ULTIMATE IB Language A: Literature Study Guide - pretty much everything you need to know for the exam, written by a former IB Language A: Literature student!

IB Language A: Literature Flashcards

Our Favorite Additional Site for IB Language A: Literature

The exam is broken down into FOUR components (THREE for SL) - here is a breakdown of what you’ll need to know and what to expect from each section:

For paper 1 of the IB Language A: Literature exam, you'll analyze unseen texts in a limited time, 2 hours and 15 minutes for HL and 1 hour and 15 minutes for SL students. The paper includes a few texts of different genres, and you will need to write a commentary on one or more of these texts. The exam tests your ability to understand and analyze language, style, and thematic elements. It's important to practice analyzing various types of texts to prepare for the different styles and content you might encounter in the exam.

To ace paper 1, of the IB Language A: Literature exam, you should start by quickly reading all the texts to choose the one you understand best; one that you can explain in detail super easily. Focus on the main themes and how the text uses structure to prove its point. Then, you should organize your essay with a clear introduction, body, and conclusion. In your analysis, support your points with examples from the text. Manage your time to finish without rushing, and make sure to be clear and to the point so you don’t run out of time!

Then, for paper 2 of the IB Language A: Literature exam, you'll write essays comparing texts you've studied. This paper typically lasts 2 hours (1 hour and 45 minutes exactly for both HL and SL students). You'll be asked to write essays comparing and contrasting themes, characters, or other aspects shared between the texts. It's key to know your studied texts well and understand their themes and literary techniques.

But don’t sweat; you can ace this if you follow these steps: Start by carefully reading the questions and choose the one you can answer best. Plan your essay, focusing on a clear comparison between the texts. You also need to use specific examples from the texts to support your points, what good is an essay without any evidence? Make sure to write clearly and organize your essay with a good structure, with a clear beginning, middle, and end. It is also SUPER important to keep an eye on the time to ensure you complete your essay without rushing.

If you’re in HL, lucky you! You'll write a 1,200-1,500 word essay on one of the texts you've studied in class. This essay is an independent, critical study where you analyze a specific aspect of the text. You won’t have to write it during an exam period, you will work on it during class. First, pick a topic that interests you, such as a theme, character, or stylistic feature, and explore it in detail. You should show a clear understanding of the text and support your analysis with detailed examples. This essay is your chance to dive deep into a text and present your own insights!

For the Higher Level Essay in IB Language A: Literature, pick a part of a text you like and know well. Plan your essay by deciding what you'll write about and how. When writing, keep your ideas clear and use parts of the text to back up your points. Stay on the topic you've chosen. After writing, check your essay to make sure it's clear and doesn't have mistakes. This essay is a chance to show what you think about the text, so take time to explain your points well!

Finally, both HL and SL have to complete an oral assessment about your analysis of a literary work in relation to a global issue. The assessment lasts about 15 minutes, including a 10-minute presentation and a 5-minute Q ‘n A with your teacher. You'll choose a specific extract from the literary work and connect it to a global issue, showing how the text addresses this issue. It's important to select an extract that allows for a deep analysis and to be clear about how it relates to the global issue, otherwise, you’ll be grasping at straws.

It may seem like a lot, but you can easily ace this section! First, practice discussing your chosen text and global issue clearly, making sure that you are within the time limit each time. During the assessment, be clear and focused in your presentation. You spent so much time researching this topic; you know what you are doing! Listen to any questions from your teacher and answer them thoughtfully, showing off your knowledge. Stay calm and confident, and you’ve got this in the bag!

Stary by thoroughly understanding the course requirements and syllabus, so you know what texts you'll be studying and what the exam will cover. As you read the assigned texts, make sure to actively engage with them by underlining or highlighting important quotes, themes, and literary devices. Take detailed notes on characters, settings, and plot developments to aid your analysis later on.

Next, focus on analyzing the themes and literary devices used in the texts. Look for symbolism, motifs, and imagery and consider how these elements contribute to the overall meaning of the text. This deep understanding will be crucial for your essays.

Practice writing essays that analyze the texts. Structure your essays using the PEE (Point, Evidence, Explanation) or PEEL (Point, Evidence, Explanation, Link) format for each paragraph. Ensure your arguments are clear and well-organized, and practice writing under timed conditions to improve your time management skills.

Then, set aside specific time limits for each section of the exam during your practice to get accustomed to the exam's format and pace. Review past exam papers to understand the types of questions that may be asked. Seek feedback from your teacher or peers to refine your writing and analysis skills. Make sure to go over the IB Language A: Literature exam review and your IB Language A: Literature online IB notes to ensure success.

Prior to the exam, revise your notes and key concepts, making sure you can recall important quotes and examples from the texts. Also, work on your language skills by practicing grammar, vocabulary, and writing style to ensure your responses are clear and well-articulated.

Everything You Need To Get A 7 in IB Theatre

Hey there! This article is all about our tips for how to study for the IB Theatre exam to get a solid 7. I'll break down the tricks, and IB Theatre test prep so with the right strategies and IB Theatre resources, nailing the exam is totally doable! Free IB Theatre Resources!! Hey, no worries if you're in a last-minute cramming session for IB Theatre! We totally get it, and trust me, we've all been there too! So, if you're wondering how to ace the IB Theatre exam when you're running out of time, here are some awesome resources and IB Theatre exam tips created by fellow students that will help y...

Hey there! This article is all about our tips for how to study for the IB Language A: Literature exam to get a solid 7. I'll break down the tricks, and IB Language A: Literature test prep so with the right strategies and IB Language A: Literature resources, nailing the exam is totally doable! Free IB Language A: Literature Resources! Hey, no worries if you're in a last-minute cramming session for IB Language A: Literature! We totally get it, and trust me, we've all been there too! So, if you're wondering how to ace the IB Language A: Literature exam when you're running out of time, here are...

Mastering the IB Exam: Top Study Tips for Preparing and Achieving Success in the IB Diploma

Preparing for the International Baccalaureate (IB) exams can feel like a daunting task. With a wide range of subjects, in-depth content, and a unique assessment style, it's no wonder students often find themselves seeking effective study strategies. In this article, we'll guide you through the essential steps to effectively prepare for your IB exams. From understanding the exam format and syllabus to developing a study plan that works for you, we cover it all. We’ll also share tips on how to manage your time, tackle challenging subjects, and maintain a healthy balance between studying and rela...

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Ultimate Guide To IB English – Language A: Literature HL Exam

What’s covered:, ib hl vs sl: what’s the difference, how do hl papers/exams work, how are the ib english sl papers/exams scored, how does the ib english hl exam affect my college chances.

IBDP, which stands for The International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme , is a common high school diploma alternative to the AP system, a system very popular here in the U.S. The IB system is much more internationally accepted, and considered a lot more rigorous in academics and exams.

The exams can be a hard spot for IB for many students, and one of its flagship subjects, English Literature, is considered difficult and its exam is no different. Hopefully this guide can break down the exam into some digestible information and make it easier for you to approach the examination.

All IB classes/courses have two versions, higher level (HL) and standard level (SL) . The most prevalent difference between these two versions is mostly the amount of coursework expected, as well as some key differences to what’s being provided to the student as learning material.

Language A is separated by not only the difficulty of exams but, there are different kinds and options for reading material for the class. Reading material matters here because the exams are based on reading material.

HL papers for the Literature exam are divided into two components:

Paper 1 is a 2 hour and 15 minute long essay-based examination that requires you to analyze unseen texts.
Paper 2 is a 2 hour and 15 minute long examination that will require you to answer questions based on the required texts for the course, and questions can be picked based on which texts you chose to read.

This paper is a bit more difficult for most students because the questions are based on unseen excerpts as opposed to the reading materials you’ve read during the two year curriculum. These unseen texts are hard to prepare for, but based on the type of student you are, you might find this more approachable as they’re concise and require more reading between the lines. For these texts it’s important to get to the motive and theme of the text as soon as possible, as opposed to understanding the actual context. Skim reading and breaking down sections into groups based on common themes is a common hack for this paper.

Ideally you’d want to have a general plan before you step into paper 1. The plan should detail your approach to reading the exam and its texts. Breaking the texts down to the following subcategories would be useful for literature analysis:

Contextual and Content
Author Motives

By breaking the text down like this, you can identify the purpose of the excerpt and hence answer any question that involves the analysis of the literature pretty easily, because your plan has already been executed as you were skimming or reading.

This plan should make paper 1 much more manageable, but some practice goes a long way. Make sure to use previous examinations and specimen papers to your advantage and practice older questions to perfect your skills.

Paper 2 can be considered a little easier given that you’re aware of the texts that will be used for the examination, and you can choose which questions you wish to solve out of the provided options. These options make it even easier to implement the plan as described previously! Paper 2 is only as difficult as you come underprepared so study those texts and provide literature!

The texts refer to readings that have been assigned from a board at IBO, and these selections are sent to schools all over the world. The way the paper is designed, no matter which option you choose to read for a text, there will be an exam question that pertains to your selection. There will also be numerous generalized questions that can refer to many texts and be pretty-opened.

There’s ample time to create answers that are more concrete and proofed compared to responses in paper 1, therefore the grading expectations for this paper are less lenient than paper 1. Understanding your provided reading material is key to excelling in this paper, so making sure to come in prepared is the key difference of passing and failing this paper.

Both papers are scored out of 20 points, and are based off a rubric/criterion chart that can be used to pick a score based on performance.

The criteria can be clearly seen in the diagram above, with level 1 being the weakest performance in each criteria, up to 5 being the strongest.

You should study the criteria thoroughly because it shows you what the grader is looking for in a good, well-written essay/response.

The scores out of 20 are then used along with your performance in internal assessments to determine a grade out of 7 for the class . The table below, called a grade boundary table, is used by graders to determine this score out of 7.

To calculate your grade, you would take the total score on both papers (which is out of 40) and your internal assessment grades, a total isn’t as clear here as it’s based on what your teachers would decide. Divide your earned points by the number of available points to score, and multiply the decimal by a 100.

Read Early

Given that paper 2 is completely dependent on how well you’re prepared by understanding your literature options, read earlier and get a head start. The sooner you understand your text, the earlier you can analyze prior to the exam. By getting this over with, when the exam rolls around you’re already done with the prep work required to solve the prompts and questions.

By reading earlier you may also notice the text you chose isn’t quite suited for you, or you simply don’t enjoy reading it. The extra time from starting it earlier, gives you a chance to swap our selections if required.

Exam Stress Management

A more general, but equally as important tip! Managing stress during exam season can be difficult, but a couple healthy practices can make it easy! Start by telling yourself exams are not as important as schools make them out to be! They are not going to decide our future, and certainly have less impact on your chances of college admission than you’d think! Understanding this can remove a lot of stress off you, which funnily enough might make you even perform better due to feeling less inclined to exceed those expectations that were previously placed on you!

In short they do not! Scores don’t mean much when it comes to college admissions, but showing the will to be in a hard class like English Literature HL is more important. Colleges are inclined to favor students with a set of more difficult classes as opposed to high scores and other metrics.

A nifty tool, CollegeVine’s admissions calculator , takes all factors that do matter in college admissions, ranging from extracurriculars, GPA, and standardized test scores, along with a lot more, and provides you with your unique chances of getting into a college/university of your choosing.

7 key concepts for English A: Language and Literature for the IB Diploma

Brad Philpot

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Thinking conceptually about non-literary texts and literary works can be hard. Here are some ideas from author Brad Philpot to get your learners thinking about the seven key concepts: communication, creativity, perspective, representation, identity, culture and transformation.

For more great advice from author Brad Philpot, take a look at our English A: Language and Literature for the IB Diploma Coursebook

English A: Language and Literature for the IB Diploma Poster

Bring these seven key concepts to life on your classroom wall!

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Communication

How do writers ‘speak’ to readers through texts? To what extent is a text a vehicle for communicating a writer’s message? Can we ever really be certain of an artist’s intent? Is it fair to say that the study of language and literature is really a study of communication arts? By studying the art of communication, we are exploring relationships between readers, writers and texts.

Why do writers write? Why do artists create? How do writers make creative choices to construct meaning? Where does creativity come from? And what’s the reader’s role in creating meaning? Creativity is a defining characteristic of human beings. By analysing works of creativity, we are studying what it means to be human.

Perspective

How do texts offer readers new perspectives on life? How can a character give us a window into a world? How do narrative techniques shape the reader’s understanding of a story? How is it possible for readers to have contradicting interpretations of a text? By exploring ‘perspective’, we are exploring diversity and developing our ability to show empathy.

Representation

Can fiction represent reality? How are characters ‘fair’ representations of people? By studying texts and literary works, we engage in a dialogue about how the world works and how the world could be.

To what extent is a text an expression of a writer’s identity? Do readers like characters who are thinly veiled versions of themselves? Do strong characters challenge readers to be someone different? By analysing texts, we are really analysing who we are and what we want to become.

To what extent is a text a product of culture or tradition? How do texts and literary works express the values and beliefs of a society? To what extent can texts shape cultural values? To understand a text is to understand the time and place in which it was written and read.

Transformation

How can the reading of a text be transformative for the reader? How can words change the world? How do readers write about texts? How do readers rewrite texts? By studying the transformation of texts, we are studying the evolution of humanity.

Concepts, language and literature

As author, Lynn Erickson has said: “concepts are universal, timeless, abstract and move students towards higher levels of thinking.” As you analyse non-literary texts and literary works, try to make abstractions, find connections and think conceptually.

For more great advice from author Brad Philpot, take a look at our English A: Language and Literature for the IB Diploma Coursebook .

IB Language and Literature 2.0

Group 1 english higher and standard level, how to improve your score in ibdp language a: paper 1.

Whether you are a standard or higher level Language and Literature student, or a Literature-only student, Paper 1 tests your ability to analyse unseen texts. If you are a standard level student, you will have to analyse one text out of a choice of two. If you are a higher level student you will be given the same two texts but you will have no choice: you must write an analysis of both texts. The texts will be unconnected – the topics and text types will be different – and you are not required to compare or contrast at all. You will essentially complete the same exercise twice. This is to reflect the greater number of lessons you will have had to explore a wider range of texts types, and the greater ability you should have when approaching texts by yourself. HL students will be given more time: 2 hours and 15 minutes compared to 1 hour and 15 minutes at standard level. All students will be given an optional guiding question that will focus your attention on important elements of the text, providing you with a ‘way in’ and helping you structure a worthwhile analysis. There are 20 marks available in this exam and this page will help you get as many of them as you can.

If you are on the Literature-only course, you will have to read three literary genres (at standard level) and four at higher level. These genres are: prose fiction, poetry, drama, and prose non-fiction. You will be asked to respond to unseen passages from any two of these genres. If you are an HL student you will have to write about both; SL students can choose which literary genre they prefer to tackle from the two given. All other requirements of this paper, such as time and number of marks, are the same as those on the Language and Literature course.

Whichever course you are on, there’s no doubt that paper 1 is a challenging exam. It represents 35% of your grade at SL and 25% at HL. It will be impossible to predict the topics and exact texts that may appear in this exam paper. The range of possible text types available in the Language and Literature exam is wide, as illustrated by the examples given in the IB syllabus guide. However, that doesn’t mean you can’t prepare for likely text types. In the past, advertisements, speeches, opinion pieces, infographics, magazine articles, news reports, and travel writing have frequently appeared on this paper. Less common examples have been letters, movie posters, cartoons, and even texts from the past, such as an extract from Samuel Pepys’ diary – he was an eyewitness to the Great Fire of London in 1666! Moreover, the IB subject guide is explicit in that you are not meant to exhaustively memorise features of different text types just in case one appears in your exam. Instead, you can learn approaches that are transferable to any text you are given and learn to recognise patterns of language that can help you analyse a text, ascertain its purpose and intended audience, and evaluate its success.

Language and Literature Text Types

Literary genres.

(Literature course only)

Select a text type by clicking one of the buttons (above), or scroll down the page, to find explainers and key conventions, along with sample texts and responses. All these answers would score highly if produced in this exam; sometimes even 20 out of 20. Where you think certain answers fall short, this is worth discussing. How could the answers be improved or altered to more completely address the different criteria? Whatever you think, it is important to note that these responses demonstrate only one possible approach each time. Alternative responses can be equally valid. Discuss the responses with your classmates and teacher as you go through the course, and revise before your assessments and exams. Once you have read and written a few sample responses, you’ll be able to find strategies that work for you and will allow you to succeed in Paper 1, whatever text you may encounter.

The world of advertising is enormous, a classroom study of this text type might easily make up a good chunk of your course – and you’ll still have only scratched the surface of what this wide and varied genre has to offer. Unsurprisingly, advertisement texts have been extremely popular in Paper 1. They tend to be persuasive and you can easily learn a few key features to look out for. Studying the language of advertising claims and investigating issues like representation are interesting in their own right, and improving your media literacy when it comes to analysing images and knowing when you’re being manipulated or conned is an important aim of the IB Lang and Lit course. Advertising can be extremely creative too, and striking the balance between recognising effective writing and being skeptical about the things you read can make the difference between a good answer and a great one in Paper 1. Take a look through some of these examples to find common patterns of analysis that you can apply to your analysis of adverts you encounter:

Sample Responses:

Uniqlo Selfless Selfie
Chevrolet 2007
Tasmanian Caves

Try for yourself:

The Incredible Shrinking Man
A Bad Watch
Chevrolet 1947
Patek Philippe Watches

Key Features of advertisements

Problem and benefit: also called ‘benefit and need’ , the success of any advert depends upon appealing to the desires of its readers.
Image: a major component of modern advertising, images often tell visual narratives , or employ tactics such as ‘shock value’ or ‘sex sells.’
Slogan and copy: as the image is so important in ads, text is kept to a minimum. Slogans should be short, catchy, memorable and should have a relationship with the image; this is called anchoring . Look for typographical features such as bold fonts, underlined words and the like.
Association: ads sell products… but also sell values . You should be alert to the abstract concepts that the advert is associating with its product and brand. Understand that objects, settings, people and so on are symbolic .
Testimonial: adverts often include the satisfied quotations of customers who already used the product and are delighted with their purchase. Some ads feature celebrity testimonials.
Advertising claims: favourites include the use of weasel words, scientific claims, vague language , or bandwagon claims. There are many more for you to look out for, and you might also keep an eye out for jargon which sounds impressive, but doesn’t communicate meaning.
Persuasion: adverts are always persuasive. Even ads that are not trying to sell you a product or service might be asking you to think something, change your behaviour or help someone. Look out for any and all kinds of persuasive devices in advertising.

Charity Appeals

A sub-category of advertising, charity appeals attempt to recruit you on behalf of a good cause and often ask you to donate either time or money. They are extremely persuasive, and often rely on similar methods to conventional advertising and persuasive speaking, tending to have more copy than conventional adverts. Take a look at the sample analyses to different charity appeals here and notice the elements they have in common:

The Smith Family

Try for Yourself:

Cold Weather Alert
Pink Rickshaws
Save the Bees
Adopt a Polar Bear
Modern Slavery

key features of charity appeals

Persuasive: the purpose of charity adverts is to make the reader take action, probably in the form of money or time. Adjacent to this is the need to raise awareness of social problems. Therefore, look out for all kinds of persuasive rhetorical features in charity appeals.
Pathos: charity ads are likely to be more emotive than regular adverts. By appealing to emotions such as anger, pity, guilt , sympathy , and so on, charity adverts make it more likely that you will want to respond.
Hard-hitting: like conventional advertising, charity appeals rely on visual elements to impact the viewer. An effective approach is to use hard-hitting shock tactics to spur the reader of this text type into action.
Credibility: charity appeals need to be even more trustworthy than regular persuasive texts. Look for information that suggests your donations will make a positive change, perhaps in the form of facts and statistics .
Metonymy: social problems like hunger and poverty are too large for one person to help solve; so charity ads often introduce you to a single individual who represents all those who your donation goes towards helping.
Direct address: charity ads will often address the reader with the word ‘you’, striving to make a strong connection. If a person in the advert is making eye contact with you, this is a kind of visual direct address .

Recruitment Campaigns

Frequently associated with wartime propaganda, recruitment campaigns can be used in a variety of contexts to encourage people to support a cause. A hybrid category of advertising and persuasion, recruitment campaigns would traditionally have been waged with pamphlets, leaflets, brochures and posters. Increasingly, this text type is being driven online, although certain traditional features survive; in particular, you can look out for webpages being formatted in three parts, as if folded into a brochure. Take a look at a couple of these responses to recruitment texts, then have a go at writing your own:

Further Education
Be The Change
Fridays For Future
Third Force Collective

key features of recruitment campaigns

Persuasive: the purpose of a recruitment campaign is to persuade you to sign up to a cause or join an organisation. Recruitment drives are almost certain to use direct address and imperatives .
Visuals: can be wholly visual, but likely to have some accompanying text ( multi-modal ).
Slogans: text may be minimal or in the form of slogans which are designed to be catchy . Pay attention to typography , fonts and emphasised words.
Pathos: the core of a campaign is often emotional , aiming to elicit feelings such as patriotism and duty on one hand, or guilt if one is not to sign up.
Card-stacking: a common feature of recruitment drives is they often fail to show the downsides of joining up! Ignoring parts of the argument that don’t fit your agenda is called card-stacking .
Simplification: along with a host of other fallacies , recruitment campaigns reduce complex issues to simple solutions. They may also invoke stereotypes .
Symbolism: elements of the text will connote concepts that are integral to the writer’s message. Look out for metonymy , where an individual is made to stand for the whole.

Learning the features of persuasion – and how persuasion and propaganda overlap – form a part of your lang and lit course. So if you happen to be given a persuasive speech in your final Paper 1 exam, you can count yourself lucky. Persuasive speeches are organised around clear formal frameworks, such as appeals to logic and emotional appeals, and also provide a chance for individual speakers to express themselves stylistically. Check the formal features of persuasive speeches opposite and, if you want to learn more, visit the course page for this unit of study . Then browse these sample responses to see how to put your learning into practice:

Chicken Tikka Masala
I Have a Dream
The Pleasure of Books
Eulogy for Mahatma Gandhi
Eulogy for Sir Edmond Hillary

key features of speeches

Ethos: the speaker establishes his or her credibility and may allude to a moral, social or spiritual leader with whom the audience cannot disagree.
Logos: clear, reasonable arguments, facts and statistics and quoting experts in the field are all ways of establishing a logical appeal.
Pathos: emotive language and imagery are ways of helping the audience empathise with the feelings of other – often vulnerable – people.
Persuasive: the speaker attempts to make his or her listener think in a certain way, believe something or take action .
Direct address: the speaker tries to draw closer to the listeners by addressing them as ‘you’ – look out for the use of ‘we’ or ‘us’ to include the speaker and listener on the same side – and be wary of attempts to compliment the listener .
Modality: modal verbs are small but important words (such as ‘must’, ‘need’, ‘should’ , ‘might,’ and so on) that reveal the speaker’s degree of certainty and strength of feeling. You can study modality here .
Rhetorical devices: all kinds of rhythmical, structural, auditory and linguistic tricks can be employed by a skilled speaker. They are too many to list here, but rhetorical strategies can be studied and learned.
Logical Fallacies: also called ‘argumentation fallacies.’ Common fallacies in speeches are glittering generalisations , simplification and slippery slope .

Opinion Columns

Often printed in newspapers or magazines, and sharing many of the features of persuasive speeches , the opinion piece is usually a thoughtfully considered argument about a controversial topic in which the writer takes a side or proposes a solution. Unlike other forms of text for mass consumption, the opinion piece does not pretend to be straight or unbiased. Although it may contain elements of concession or acknowledge the other side of the issue, the purpose of an opinion piece is to express an opinion in a convincing, persuasive or powerful way. An Op-Ed is a special type of opinion piece, normally shorter, which derived its name from its position op posite the ed itorial page. The op-ed carries the official position of the news institution on a topical issue of the day.

Learning Foreign Languages
Political Correctness
What’s Wrong With McDonalds?
PC Language Saved My Life
I h8 txt msgs
The Secret Power of Music
Zoos Are Prisons For Animals
Water on Mars

Key features of opinion columns

Perspective: as an expression of a personal viewpoint, the first person is most commonly adopted for opinion pieces. Look out for ‘we’ instead of ‘I’ – a clever way of implying the viewpoint is commonly held.
Solid Arguments: an opinion piece might open your eyes to the reality of an issue, providing facts , statistics and information to help convince you of the writer’s viewpoint. Expect to see opinions backed up by studies, research or evidence of some kind. Keep an eye out for assertion , though, where a writer presents an opinion as if it were a fact.
Anecdotes: sometimes a writer will relate a small story from his or her personal experience in order to demonstrate a thoughtful approach to the topic at hand. You may find the opinion piece begins with this story, which acts as a kind of hook into the main article.
Structure: the writer of an opinion piece is not trying to keep you in suspense and the opinion is often obvious from the title or first few lines of the article. The rest of the article should support or develop the writer’s point in a number of ways. The ending should be strong and certain, perhaps reiterating the writer’s position.
Register and tone: you should be especially alert to the writer’s choices in this regard. Opinion pieces are often formal , but the writer may adopt an irreverent tone , be passionate , conversational, friendly , challenging , even sarcastic depending on the tactics used to convince you of a particular opinion.
Concession: although similar in many ways, opinion pieces are not quite the same as persuasive speeches, so the writer is not necessarily trying to change your opinion. In this case, you might find concessions to the other side of the argument or even an acknowledgement that the writer’s opinion is flawed in some way.

Comic Strips

You might study a graphic novel such as Persepolis or Maus as part of your literature course; you may also be presented with a comic strip or cartoon in Paper 1. Students enjoy comics and cartoons because they are engaging and colourful – but make no mistake. This text type can be as subtle and sophisticated as any novel (just check out the list of features opposite). If you want to become an expert in the comic book form, you might like to read Understanding Comics: the Invisible Art by Scott McCloud. Don’t forget to check out one or two of the examples below, which demonstrate how this text type might be analysed in an exam:

Science Tales: Climate Change
You Have A Question, Calvin?
The 21st Century
First Dog on the Moon
Science Tales: Fracking
A Walk in the Woods

Key features of comic strips

Purpose: comic strips are often humorous; their primary purpose is to entertain . Nevertheless the strip may make a serious point about a local or global issue.
Structure: comics and cartoons are drawn in square boxes called panels , arranged in sequence and read in a linear fashion. The white space between the panels is called gutters .
Exposition: text that tells the story is presented as captions .
Speech and thought bubbles: so you can read the internal and external dialogue of the characters.
Mechanics: spatial mechanics is the use of space within and between each frame. Temporal mechanics is the way time can be slowed down, sped up or stopped.
Artistic style: comics are drawn purposefully and with intention. Are the pictures crisp, heavy, weighty, light, cartoony, realistic, bright, dark? Can you tell whether the artist used pencil, pen and ink, or brush? Words that describe mood and tone can be useful when analysing graphic weight ( shading and contrast ) and saturation ( brightness ).
Emanata: items such as dots, lines, exclamation marks or onomatopoeia that depict action, emotion or sound.
‘Cartoonification’: how realistic are the images in the cartoon or comic strip? Realism is measured on a spectrum from photorealistic or lifelike to simplified .
Punchline: especially apparent in four-panel comic strips, the joke is revealed in the last panel.

Satirical Cartoons

Often presented as a single image, some cartoonists focus on topical issues of the day. They attempt to comment on individuals (celebrities and politicians make good targets for political cartoonists) and public figures in a humorous or pointed way. Satirical cartoons may also be called editorial cartoons or political cartoons .

sample responses:

Children Playing

try for yourself:

Kal Kallaugher Cartoons
Genetically Engineered Children

key features of satirical cartoons

Purpose: satirical or political cartoons aim to satirise ; this means they ridicule, lampoon or criticise a specific target which may be a person, group of people or a particular decision or viewpoint.
Irony: meaning when one’s actions contradict one’s words. Look out for people in cartoons saying one thing and doing another.
Caricature: people are simplified , exaggerated or distorted for effect. An element of caricature may be synecdoche , whereby a part of something is made to stand for the whole.
Symbolism: objects, icons and even colours have specific associations. Sometimes items are labelled in the text to help the reader make associations.
Allusion: the cartoon may refer to historical or political events outside the text. The success of an allusion depends on the reader’s ability to recognise it.
Tone: scathing, sarcastic, pointed , or critical are some of the words you might use to describe the tone of satirical cartoons.

Magazine Articles

A wide ranging and popular text type, magazine articles differ from news articles in that they are not reporting recent events, but rather discussing events, issues, trends and topics that have a general, contemporary appeal. Increasingly, magazine articles are published online, as producers can reduce costs such as printing and distribution, and collect revenue through both subscriptions and advertising. There are many sub-categories of magazine article, such as the celebrity article, scientific article, interview and so on. Topics of a magazine article are wide, in truth it’s possible to write about anything and publish it as an article; more common topics include fashion, entertainment, food, sport, and lifestyle.

Fashion Show
Broken Watches
Pitchforks and Plutocrats
India’s Soul Food

Key features of Magazines

Headline: bold text that reveals the topic of the article and should provide a hook for the reader.
Images: photographs of people and places are common features of magazine articles. They are almost always posed , not natural, and are often as prominent as the copy.
Layout: look out for box-outs, bullet points, ears and other kinds of layout features.
Entertainment: although they might be topical and current, most magazine articles are designed to entertain. Information may be displayed in an appealing way, using pull quotes and subheadings .
Buzzwords: being up-to-date, relevant and current means some articles make use of buzzwords and words that are popular at the time of publication.
Interactive Features: increasingly, articles that would traditionally have been printed in magazines are being published online. In this case, look out for interactive features such as embedded videos , hyperlinks and tabs .
Embedded interviews: experts on or participants in the topic at hand are often interviewed and quotations are used throughout the article. In the case of celebrity articles , the whole piece could be the write-up of an interview (see below).

Often published in weekend magazines, and now increasingly online, interviews are the write-up of a conversation between a journalist (the interviewer) and an interviewee, normally a celebrity, expert in a field, or person in the public eye. Interviews are written to entertain or divert, but also fulfil the purpose of satisfying a reader’s curiosity for information: whether about how a famous writer works, how an individual became successful, or simply the lifestyle of the rich and famous. When reading an interview, the focus is normally on the interviewee’s thoughts and opinions. But look out for authorial intrusion , something you may have come across in your literary studies, where either directly or indirectly the writer of the article makes their opinions known as well.

Celebrity Big Brother
Jimi Hendrix
Minoli Salgado
Bernie Ecclestone
Grub Street

key features of interviews

Question-Answer: a recognisable feature of interviews in this format, which presents the questions asked and responses using quotations (direct speech).
Register: as a record of a spoken conversation, a written interview is likely to contain examples of language that is more like speech. Look out for colloquialisms, idioms, contractions and even jokes .
Quotation: as an alternative to the question-answer format, you might see interviews written up as a magazine article. In this case you will see a mixture of direct quotation and indirect free speech .
Topics : the interview may be focused on one issue or may range across various topics. Look out for the interviewer asking leading questions to take the conversation in a particular direction.
Perspective : the interview presents a one-sided view on a topic or person, so is likely to be highly subjective . The interviewee may use assertive statements which present opinions as if they are facts.
Them-and-us: celebrity interviews tend to put interviewees on a pedestal. Look for ways in which the text creates a divide between celebrities and ‘us’, the reader, or represents the interviewee as special in some way.

It’s difficult to imagine modern life without digital communication. Following the development of the internet, readers have been empowered to both consume and produce written and visual content at the same time. A popular form of online text type is the blogpost, normally shortened to ‘blog.’ In many ways, blogs have a lot in common with magazine articles and opinion pieces; but instead of media institutions deciding what we should read about, independent reader-writers decide the topics for themselves. For this reason, blogs can be quirky, niche , and carry counter-cultural messages. Have a look at a couple of these responses to the ‘blog’ text type:

Swamp Water
Leadership Blog

key features of blogs

Viewpoint: blogs normally represent the interests and opinions of an individual, so are normally first person .
Purpose: Blogs are guided by individual interests or concerns so the purpose is flexible . A blog might seek to inform readers about an area of interest, topic or movement. They may also discuss an event or issue. Blogs might even function like an online diary, describing the day’s events and reflecting on an experience.
Diction: depending on the topic, writers of blogs could employ a specialist vocabulary or use technical terms .
Visuals: blogs may illustrate the text with cartoons, images or photographs (perhaps illustrated or taken by the writers themselves).
Structure: again dependent on the individual text, but you can look out for chronological and linear structures with subheadings, clear connectives or other features helping organise the text.

Information Texts

Again, this is more a category of writing than a text type. Informational text range from cookbooks to technical manuals, encyclopaedias to public service announcements. Informational texts are meant to appeal to your head rather than your heart. There may be some overlap between information texts and scientific articles. Moreover, infographics are a highly visual form of information text which you can study in detail (below). Take a look though one or two of these sample responses to see how you might analyse informational texts of different kinds.

Encyclopaedia Britannica
Ethical Coffee
Frank Fenner Foundation
Joseph Rowntree Foundation

Key features of information texts

Neutral language: aiming to inform above all else, the register should be formal or semi-formal, the language accessible and the tone neutral.
Diction: some informational texts are aimed at particular readers and employ technical terms or specialist language – watch out for jargon, which may not communicate clearly.
Layout: these kinds of texts normally have a clear, easy to understand layout. They might use box-outs, lists, bullet points, page dividers and other organisational features to help guide you step-by-step through the text. Some informational texts are non-linear .
Facts and Statistics: presented in all kinds of ways: percentages; graphs; charts or numbers. Look for credible sources that are cited.
Typography: look for fonts, capitalisations, bold or italicised words, underlined words, or other features that help emphasise key points.
Images: often in the form of diagrams , images should reinforce the written text or be broken into step-by-step guides. They may be simplified .
Information: although this goes without saying, you should differentiate between general information and specific details .

Infographics

Short for information graphic , these little visual texts are designed to summarise and present complex information, knowledge and data. They might be posted on a wall, be printed in a magazine or textbook, be a feature in a magazine or, increasingly, spread online. Some brilliant designers work on creating infographics , and the best examples of this text type are almost works of art in themselves. Once you’ve studied the key features of infographics, try your hand at analysing one or two of the samples below.

Thunderstorms
The Benefits of Cycling
How are ICC Judges Elected?
Physical Activity

key features of infographics

Audience: normally infographics are designed to reach as wide an audience as possible. As always look out for technical language that might indicate a niche audience.
Simplification: the main purpose of infographics is to simplify complex knowledge or data. Look out for all kinds of simplification techniques including summary , bullet points , images with captions and more.
Illustrations: they say a picture is worth a thousand words and nowhere is this more true than in infographics. Icons are simplified images that symbolise certain ideas from the text.
Copy: infographics are multimodal, meaning there will be some brief text included. Look out for headlines , labels and snippets (brief chunks of text).
Structure: good infographics are little visual narratives that tell a simple story, so look out for structural elements that help you decode the sequence of events.
Design: infographics are supposed to be eye-catching. Colour, typography, font and other design features should combine to help you get information and also engage your interest.

Scientific Articles

A sub-category of magazine articles and sharing features with information texts (above), general interest scientific articles can be drawn from publications such as National Geographic, New Scientist, Cosmos, Nature and more. There’s an interesting investigation to be had in the study of language and literature into the tension between science and the arts and, by reading though the sample papers below, you’ll notice how these two disciplines are not necessarily as different as you might think:

A Question of Time
The Silence of the Bees
Journey of a Lifetime
Artificial Intelligence
Mission to Mars

key features of scientific articles

Informative: the purpose of scientific writing is to share knowledge, so look out for informative features such as facts and statistics and clear explanations . Some articles will also simplify concepts for a more general readership.
Diction: inevitably, writing about science and nature will involve using a specialist vocabulary of technical and precise terms .
Comparisons: some scientific concepts are quite abstract or complex, so writers of scientific articles might use similes and comparisons to make them easier for a wider readership to visualise.
Visuals: photographs, diagrams, charts and graphs are all likely to accompany and illustrate scientific concepts. Look out for more examples of simplification .
Credibility: research, authoritative sources , and quotations by experts make far-out concepts more credible.
Structure: look out for both linear and non-linear structures and layouts, depending on the content. A text might provide a timeline or historical overview . Boxouts, summaries, explainers, glossaries can all help communicate complicated ideas.

News Reports

Newspaper front pages and reports belong to broadly three categories: tabloid, broadsheet and online, each of which have their own particular conventions. You can study the news media in more depth by visiting the courses on journalism , bias , euphemism and the impact of technology on the news.

UK Weather Report
Disappearing Town

Key Features of News Writing

Masthead: a strip across the top of a newspaper front page containing the name of the newspaper, the date of publication and the price . Tabloid papers from the UK are called ‘red-tops’ because of the red colour of the masthead.
Headline: the choice of words in a headline is essential to the tone and angle of the story. There are many techniques involved in creating headlines and you should definitely learn: slammer; pun; alliteration; elliptical headlines (which only include the keywords).
Visuals: all newspapers make use of photographs to accompany stories. Tabloid papers are dominated by images while broadsheet papers tend to use smaller photographs. Look out for pictures of people’s faces, which reveal emotion and create bias.
Copy: the main text of the article. Features you should be on the look out for are: sensationalism; vague language; emotive language and euphemism .
Embedded interviews: you can expect to find witness recounts, expert opinions and statements from authority figures in almost all newspaper reports.
Bias: all kinds of bias exist in newspaper reports, from selection bias (the choice of what content to include and what to exclude) to name-calling , to the use of certain facts and statistics and more.
Figurative Language: anyone who still thinks the news is purely factual needs to go back to the start of the course ! News reports are a rich source of metaphor, simile, hyperbole, sensationalism , and exaggeration, often distorting reality in some way.

Descriptive Passages

Although descriptive writing is a major part of literary fiction, non-fiction writers may also write with the purpose of having you visualise a scene, event or person. Many forms of writing can be descriptive: autobiographies, travel articles, letters, diaries and blogs might all feature descriptive passages to one degree or another. Read through a sample response, then try your hand at analysing a descriptive passage:

sample Responses:

What is Poverty?
The People of the Abyss
Summer in the Sierra

Key features of descriptive passages

Diction: the aim of descriptive writing is to help you visualise what’s in the writer’s head, so vague language is not helpful. Descriptive writing employs concrete language in precise ways.
Imagery: as writing which is drawn from direct experience, description always involves imagery. Humans perceive the world vividly using our visual sense – but don’t forget about other ways of perception: sensory images can also be auditory, tactile, kinaesthetic , and even olfactory (the sense of smell).
Figurative Comparisons: similes, metaphors, and personifications are commonly found in descriptive writing.
Modifiers: the function of adjectives and adverbs are to describe.
Perspective: one of the most important features. For example, a piece from an outsider perspective will contain very different thoughts and feelings to a piece written from an insider’s point of view .

Arguably the most personal text type as the intended reader is usually… the writer him or herself. Almost since the advent of the written word, diaries have been kept by individuals to record daily events, reflect on personal experiences and try to make sense of the complex issues of society. A freeform text type, they tend to be more stylistic than formal, with each writer employing their own particular uses of language which reflects the way they see the world. That’s not to say you can’t prepare yourself for any eventuality – take a look at one or two of the responses below:

Oaxaca Journal
African Diary
Journal of a Disappointed Man

Key features of diaries

Viewpoint: as one of the most personal text types, diaries are written in the first person and always express thoughts and feelings.
Perspective: diaries are written to be private as the reader and writer are the same person. Confessional is a particular form of diary writing that reveals a secret.
Structure: diaries function as records of the day’s events and are largely chronological . Look out for flashbacks when the writer begins at the end, then goes back to explore how and why an event happened.
Register and tone: most diaries are written in an informal or semi-formal register, using language the writer feels comfortable with. Look out for language which reveals the attitude of the writer ( tone ): it is not uncommon for diaries to be thoughtful and reflective, scathing and caustic… or anything in between.
Colloquialism: the writer might write as if he or she is talking and may use figures of speech in an original or entertaining way.

It’s not often you’ll read a text that has a particular individual reader in mind, but letters are exactly that. Letters need reading carefully to discover the relationship between writer and reader and to uncover the purpose behind the writing. Here are ways to respond if you should encounter this text type:

Dire Predictions
Letter from the Front
An Eminent Letter

Key features of letters

Name and address: formal letters are posted to the recipient, so they normally contain both the sender and receiver’s address , allowing the recipient to reply. The sender’s address is traditionally placed on the right hand side, with the date below it.
Purpose: people send letters for all kinds of reasons; to complain, to seek advice, to connect with a loved one or even to pass gossip. The purpose of this text type is completely flexible .
Register: letters can be formal or informal depending on the purpose and relationship between the sender and receiver. The tone can vary widely too: compare a formal letter of complaint with an intimate letter between lovers.
Salutation: a direct address to the recipient. Depending on context, they can vary from the formal ‘Dear…’ or even ‘To whom this may concern…’ to a quick ‘Hi…’
Sign off: you can tell a lot about the relationship between the reader and the writer from the way the letter ends. Formally, ‘yours sincerely’ is used if the recipient’s name was used and ‘yours faithfully’ is used when the writer does not know the name of the receiver. Non-conventional sign-offs can be used for a variety of reasons; check the end of the letter to see if the writer expects a reply.

Travel Writing

This kind of writing is less a text-type and more a category of writing. Travel writing can be as recognisable as a Lonely Planet or Rough Guide recommendation for a trip to a foreign country or city. Or it might take the form of an article, describing the experiences of the writer in a strange place, accompanied by photography, maps, or diagrams. It’s possible for Travel Writing to be ‘literary’ in tone and mood, full of imagery, vivid descriptions, and figurative language, recreating the characters and situations the writer met along the way like a novelist. Common themes in travel writing include the search for the self or one’s roots; curiosity about other people; the desire to be informed; the search for a religious, spiritual or abstract experience. If you want to find out much more about this genre, you can visit the course page for this unit of study . Or, simply browse this selection of Paper 1 materials from the category of Travel Writing:

Cycling Tips
Travel Tales
Long Enough in Jo’burg
A Fish with Hair
The Mangyan of Mindanao

Key Features of Travel Writing

Viewpoint: travel writing often documents the personal experiences of someone exploring a new place or country so is often first person.
Perspective: an outsider’s perspective is common when reading travel writing, particularly if the destination is new, exotic or remote. Alternatively, the piece might be written from an insider’s perspective and is inviting you to visit or share an experience in a different part of the world.
Structure: look out for chronological timelines, past – present structures or a linear journey of discovery. Guidebooks will have clear headings and subheadings and will probably include box-outs and the like.
Information: travel writing often seeks to be informative and can present you with facts and figures, names and dates, historical or architectural or geographical information and more.
Description: if the writer is trying to make the destination tantalising, or to help transport the reader, you might find examples of visual imagery, vivid description , even figurative comparisons , helping you visualise a far-off place.
Visuals: photographs, maps , or floor plans of famous locations are all visual features that you might encounter in travel writing, particularly guidebooks.

Advisory Texts

Since the 5th century BC, people have been giving each other advice in writing. Chinese general Sun Tzu wrote his advice on bamboo strips – now you can buy his collected works, The Art of War, in a bookstore. Newspapers and magazines feature advisory sections (in Britain, the writers of these columns are known as Agony Aunts or Agony Uncles ). Elsewhere, institutions such as the medical practice, health services and even governments like to give advice. This means that advisory texts can take many forms: columns, articles, letters, posters or infographics are all text types that can give advice in one form or another. See for yourself by reading the sample responses to the papers listed here:

Self-help Guide
Letter of Advice

key features of advisory texts

Tone: authoritative, reasonable, commanding or trustworthy. Look out for opinions presented as if they are facts .
Tense: the imperative tense (also called the command tense) can be recognised by the position of the verb at or near the start of the sentence.
Modality: modal verbs such as ‘must’, ‘will’, ‘should’ and ‘ought’ transmit strength of feelings.
Credibility: expert sources, research and scientific evidence might be used to establish credibility.
Register: official advice will be formal and persuasive ; friendly advice will be delivered in a reassuring or intimate way. Sometimes, advice will include a warning .
Structure: look for cause-and-effect structures, step-by-step guides or linear structures that are easy to follow.

Texts for Children

More a category of writing rather than a text type, texts produced for young people have distinctive features of their own that you may want to keep an eye on.

Tiktok and the Nome King
Enid Blyton
The Monkey Fiddle
Word of the Year

key features of texts for children

Allegory: like symbolism , in children’s stories characters and objects often stand for things greater than themselves. The Wizard of Oz is a good example of allegory.
Diction: it would be unusual for children’s texts to contain too much difficult vocabulary, although stories and rhymes often use synonyms .
Visuals: look out for colourful visuals, vividly drawn people and places.
Fable: a particular type of children’s writing that anthropomorphises animals, who stand in for human characters.
Didactic: some texts for children are designed to teach a lesson or moral. You can look out for didactic messages in children’s texts.

Prose Fiction

(Literature students only)

Most novels and short stories fall into the category of prose fiction; if you’ve studied at least one novel on your course, you’ll most likely be aware of this most popular. of literary forms.

Literary fiction allows us to inhabit invented characters, hear their voices and see the world through their eyes. It is an important method for crafting empathy between people who are different. Literature is not concerned with transmitting information, but with the complex nuance of ideas and values that individuals hold dear.

Good fiction should move us with new ideas and unexpected happenings, challenge the preconceptions. we hold about the world and surprise us with new perspectives on what we thought we already knew. While prose fiction is normally read in long form, the constraints of the Paper 1 exam mean that some of these properties are captured in short passages extracted from longer works. Take a look at the materials below and try analysing one or two passages of prose fiction for yourself:

The Lieutenant
The Sympathiser
Jamrach’s Menagerie
The Public Image
The Suitcase

key features of prose fiction

Setting: at its most basic, where the novel takes place simply forms the backdrop to the novel. But great authors use setting for much more than simple backdrop. Setting contributes in a major way to the atmosphere of a passage, can create conflict with the characters, incite action , be symbolic , or even, through pathetic fallacy , reflect the emotional state of the characters in the story.
Characters: the invented people who inhabit the world of the story. You should learn to analyse character using any or all of the STEALS methods: speech and dialogue; thoughts; effect on others; action; looks and appearance; symbolism. Look out for dynamic characters who learn and develop as opposed to static characters who don’t change.
Conflict: a major driver of tension in stories of all kinds is the conflict between the protagonist and antagonist , be that a person or an antagonistic force. Four types of conflict are: conflict with the self ; conflict with another person ; conflict with the environment ; conflict with society .
Perspective: one of the most important choices an author has to make is who is narrating the story: who’s point of view are we getting? There are only three possibilities: the point of view of a character in the story ( first person ); the point of view of the reader ( second person , rarely used in prose fiction); the point of view of an outside narrator ( third person ). Look out for effects created by subdividing third person into omniscient; limited; objective .
Plot: at its simplest – what happens in the passage. You will likely encounter actions , movements , or events that are unexpected to you or the narrator. Take note of these moments in the passage and learn how tension is created.
Symbolism: a crucial component of all literary genres, in prose fiction a symbol is likely to be an object, colour, weather condition, sound, or some other clearly definable feature of the text that stands for an idea other than itself. Symbols that mean the same thing across different texts are called universal symbols (think a flower signalling beauty or a snake symbolising evil) while a symbol that appears frequently throughout a passage becomes a motif .

Poetry functions very differently to prose. While some narrative poems do tell stories ( Charlotte Mew is a great example of a poet who tells little stories), and may use elements such as setting, other poems are more likely to present the thoughts and emotions of a speaker in a reflective, moving, dramatic or lyrical way.

Although the ambiguities of poems can be challenging, you can train yourself to unlock their secrets. Be methodical, especially if you see a poem in your Paper 1 examination. Read the poem three times: your first reading should give you an understanding of the poem’s overall ideas and the thoughts and feelings that it suggests. Second time through, try to clearly identify these thoughts and feelings and where, precisely, they begin and are developed in the poem. On third reading, look at the language in more detail, identifying the choices made by the poet to express their ideas and create effects. Keep notes at each stage of your reading.

Take a look at the poems here, and read through one or two of the sample answers. Then choose an unseen poem and have a go at writing your own response to this literary genre:

The Bat by Ruth Pitter
Elephant Riding by Jan Kemp
Two Trees by Don Paterson
To My Nine Year Old Self by Helen Dunmore
The Banished Gods by Derek Mahon
Blaze by Christine West

key features of poetry

Speaker: don’t make the mistake of thinking the writer of poem is communicating directly with you in every poem. Just as prose writers invent characters, so too might a poet craft a speaker (or persona ) to speak in their stead. Listen to the voice of the speaker in your mind and try to hear the tone of the language: to misunderstand tone of voice is to misunderstand the meaning of the poem.
Diction: poems are made of words , and no feature is more important than a poet’s choice of words. Also called lexis , words have denoted meanings and also have connotations : deeper meanings and associations . If you write about poems, spend some time paying attention to the meaning and implications of individual words.
Figurative language: ‘why don’t poets just say what they mean?’ is a question I hear asked by frustrated students. Well, they do, but they might be using figurative language instead of literal. Learning to recognise a simile , metaphor , symbolism , or use of personification will help you get under the skin of most poems you’ll encounter.
Imagery: every poem you read will create images in your mind. These images might be visual , but don’t neglect other sensory perceptions too: auditory, tactile, kinaesthetic (and even occasionally olfactory or gustatory images) help to bring the experience of the poem to life in your mind. If you don’t know what these words mean, you can find out here .
Form and Structure: even before you read a word of a poem, the way the lines are structured on the page should make a visual impression. Is the poem written in regular stanzas , taking you through the speaker’s thoughts as if on a tour through rooms in a house? Or is the poem written in free verse , following natural patterns of speech? Whether or not you learn any unusual or specific forms during your poetry study, you should be able to recognise stanzaic form , blank verse (unrhymed iambic pentameter), and analyse the properties of a sonnet , should you encounter one.
Sound effects: poems are meant to be read aloud, not just looked at, and some of the most powerful effects of poetry come from the sounds of the words. Alliteration (repeated letters at the start of words) consonance (repeated letters at the start and within words) and assonance (repeated vowel sounds) are employed in almost every poem you’ll come across. Onomatopoeia might also crop up from time to time.
Oppositions, contrasts and juxtapositions: much of the tension in poetry comes from clashing opposing forces together and seeing what happens. Whether light vs dark, noise vs silence, movement vs stillness, hot vs cold – whatever opposing forces you can think of – try to recognise when poets are making you think through use of contrast .

Prose Non-fiction

Diverse in form, prose non-fiction includes travel writing, biography, autobiography, memoir, essays, letters and more. Whatever the form, non-fiction always has its roots in real (rather than imagined) events, people and places. Despite this, the writing can be just as ‘literary’ as any other genre and all the key features that apply to prose fiction might just as easily be found in prose non-fiction passages. On the right are some important features common in this literary genre.

Once you have reviewed this literary form, practise your analytical skills by reading a sample response to a non-fiction passage, then have a go at analysing a new passage for yourself:

Driving Over Lemons
Prospero’s Cell

key features of prose non-fiction

Perspective: this genre is most often dominated by the perspective of a single person, probably the writer of the passage. If the form is travel writing you can look out for the outsider’s perspective .
Discovery: the theme of many prose non-fiction passages, the writer may be on a journey of discovery about an event, place, family, history, or another person. Just as likely is the theme of self-exploration and self-discovery whereby the writer examines an aspect of his or her own character, personality or transformation. You might look out for a moment of realisation in the passage, called epiphany .
Truth and veracity: linked to the concept of discovery, the writer of prose non-fiction is often searching for the truth about something, somewhere or someone – even if the object of that search is his or her own self.
Tone: it’s almost impossible to explore any literary genre without commenting on aspects of a writer’s tone of voice , and the same is true of literary non-fiction. Ranging from serious or tragic to self-deprecating and even outright funny, the tone of a piece reveals the writer’s attitude towards his or her subject matter.

A unique literary form in that scripts are not directly read by a reader, but interpreted and performed in front of an audience. Dramas have a particular visual and auditory appeal in that they are seen and heard rather than read and imagined. Common types of play are comedies (involving the disruption of equilibrium, mistaken identity, farce, and misunderstanding); tragedies depicting the downfall of an anti-hero and the terrible consequences of irreversible mistakes; documentary theatre tells stories based on or inspired by real-life events.

Try for yourself;

Where It All Begins
Absent Friends
Campbell of Kilhmor

Key features of drama

Characters: drama on stage is people in action. Who are these people? Where do they come from, where are they going, what do they want? You can often use the same STEAL methods to analyse characters in drama as you use in other literary genres, such as prose.
Dialogue: a good part of any play script is people speaking, either to each other (two characters in conversation is a duologue) or to themselves/the audience (monologue). What characters say – and the way they say it (tone of voice) – should form a large part of any drama analysis. Performances based on transcripts of real conversations, news, or interviews is called verbatim drama .
Action: what characters do is just as important as what they say. Look out for characters who’s actions contrast with their speech. A small, repeated gesture made by an actor in performance is called stage business.
Proxemics: this is the name given to the method of directing how close or far apart a how close or far apart actors stand on stage. For example, standing close might convey familiarity or intimacy – too close might create tension or confusion. The arrangement of characters on stage that considers the audience point of view is also called blocking .
Stage directions: play scripts are unique in that they are meant to be read not by the audience, but by the actors, producers, and directors of the play. For this reason, stage directions help clarify important actions, tone of voice, or details of what the set should look like. Which leads to…
Staging / setting: the action plays out against a backdrop presented on-stage. The setting is, of course, the background to the drama, but it may also shape the characters (mould) or reflect the characters (mirror). Pay attention to interior or exterior spaces, or the tension between private and public, which may affect how the characters express themselves.
Costume and props : what the characters wear is part of appearance, which is a characterisation method. Look out for costume changes, or items of clothing that give insight into a character’s status or concerns. Items that can be held or moved around the stage are called props (short for theatrical property). Certain items of costume or props might have symbolic meanings.

IB English A: Literature and IB English A: Language and Literature

Who loves textual analysis and Paper One? Andrew and Dave do! Whether you are taking IB English A: Literature or IB English A: Language and Literature, we all have to write Paper One. This means we need to read critically, explore authorial choices, and consider their implications and how they shape meaning. Confused? No worries.

This page is organized as follows:

Quick tips for all students can be found at the top.
Language and Literature text types with sample responses come next.
This is followed by some critical visual analysis skills for Lang/Lit.
Literature videos for all forms come after that.

Paper One – Quick Tips and Tricks For All Students

We get it. sometimes you don't have the time to watch lots of videos and sort through lots of documents. if that describes you, then andrew and dave highly recommend checking out the videos below. they are short, sweet, and have loads of critical tips and tricks to help you succeed on paper one..

Need 10 ideas on things to include in your Paper One? Watch this video and learn what’s essential.

Document: Ten Tips for Paper One

Need 10 ideas on things to AVOID in your Paper One? Watch this video and learn what must be left out on exam day..

Document: Ten Pitfalls to Avoid for Paper One

How many times have you heard your teacher tell you to use more voice when you write? What does that even mean? Watch this video to find out.

Document: Adding Voice to Academic Writing

Having trouble with your introductions and conclusions? Watch this video to learn how to start and finish strong.

Document: Sample Intro and Conclusion

It’s not enough to just identify features. We need to consider how authors make choices to shape meaning. Check out this video on Criteria B.

Document: Discussing Reader Effect

You understand how to discuss reader effect, but what about evaluation? This is an important part of Criteria B. Watch this video and master Paper 1!

Document: Adding Evaluation

Language and Literature - Countdown to Paper One!

Do you have a summative assessment or mock exam coming up? Are you busy cramming content at the last minute for either the November or May examination sessions? If you are a Language and Literature student and this describes you, then you have come to the right place! Each of the following TEN text types has CLOSE READING and SAMPLE RESPONSES WITH EXAMINER COMMENTS. There are also documents with text type conventions and various other resources you need to achieve academic success. Watch the videos. Master the content. Crush Paper One!

TEXT TYPE 1: WEBSITE

Document: Conventions

Document: Stimulus Text

Document : Student Response

TEXT TYPE 2: SPEECH

Document: More Conventions

Document: Student Response

TEXT TYPE 3: LETTER

TEXT TYPE 4: PRODUCT REVIEW

TEXT TYPE 5: COMIC

LINK: BoW Grant Snider

TEXT TYPE 6: FILM REVIEW

TEXT TYPE 7: BROCHURE

TEXT TYPE 8: PSA

TEXT TYPE 9: TRAVEL WRITING

TEXT TYPE 10: TABLOID COVER

More Nonliterary Text Types:

Wow, that was quite a playlist! But…there’s more to learn. Don’t worry! Dave and Andrew LOVE nonliterary text types. Political cartoons? Check. Film, photos, and documentaries? Yes, please. Opinion articles and advertisements? You betcha. If those sounds interesting, that’s because they are. Check out the nonliterary text types below and rest assured that your Paper One exam performance will be one that you can celebrate.

Political Cartoons

Andrew and Dave LOVE political cartoons. They are self-contained commentaries on an important current event or key aspect of society, and they’re humorous. Look out for colors, symbols, and other hidden ideas lurking in the subtext. Remember: just like literary authors, cartoonists make a series of choices in their work intended to shape meaning. Look carefully. Pay attention and learn their moves. Ace Paper One.

Let’s learn the basics. Learn these terms so you can apply them to any political cartoon you encounter!

Document: Cartoon Terms

Document: Cartoon of Cartoon Terms

We’re just warming up! Now that you’ve learned some basic terms, let’s apply them to more cartoons.

Nice! You’re getting the hang of this cartoon stuff. Time to put your ideas to writing. Check it out!

Document: Cartoon and Sample Writing

Document: Sentence Stems for Analysis

Time to put it all together. Watch the video, examiner the cartoon, read the student response, and listen to the examiner scoring. Crucial information here!

Document: Full Student Response

Advertising

They’re everywhere. On our phones, on billboards around the city, on our computer screens every time we visit a new site. Advertisers work to cut through the clutter, grab our attention, and subtly influence us to make a choices to buy, buy, and buy some more. Accordingly, Dave and Andrew believe it’s essential to show students the tips and tricks companies use to manipulate our attention and persuade us to act. So, check out these videos. Not only will you improve your Paper One performance, but you will also be a more skilled and savvy consumer who is attuned to the features our favorite brands employ in their ads.

You’ve got to start somewhere. Learn the key terms and what to look for in advertisements. Oh, there’s a cool mnemonic to help you remember this stuff as well. Watch this first!

Document: Features of Advertising

Document: Mnemonic for Deconstructing Ads

So these tips and tricks work for public service announcements as well? Nice! Check out this piece from UNHCR, apply the skills, and watch your Paper One confidence soar.

Document: 15 Techniques of Advertising

Document: More Tools of Persuasion

OK, we’ve explored some ads and other persuasive texts. Time to put it all together in writing and see if we can build some academic paragraphs. Notice how the student links references, features, and ideas in writing.

Document: The Model Paragraph

Opinion Articles

There’s a lot going on in our world, and people generally have some strong reactions to current events. Whether they agree with public policy and sentiment or not, writer’s of opinion columns implement a series of choices in their work to maximize their persuasive effect. A close cousin of speeches, these short and complete texts pack a punch. Look carefully at how they’re structured, how they use rhetoric, and how they end with a bang. Learn this stuff. It’s Paper One gold.

OK, so you’re starting to see a trend, right? Yes, that’s right – each text type has a set of terminology needed to discuss specific elements in an academic way. Learn the terms. Improve your Paper One.

Document: Persuasive Elements in Opinion Articles

Now that you’ve got some basic skills and some terms under your belt, let’s apply them to three different opinion articles and see what we can do.

Time to put it all together and produce a piece of writing. Notice how the student combines terms, ideas, and precise references to the text as they crush this Paper One. Study their moves. Notice their approach. Watch. Learn. Master.

Document: Paper One Student Sample (clean)

Document: Paper One Student Sample (highlighted)

Photography

The ability to read images is crucial for Language and Literature success. As you know, may of the texts we explore are multimodal, meaning they have both text and image. So, we need to be savvy and understand how to read photographs, analyze them, and make meaning. Like other text types, there are some basic terms and approaches to close reading that will open up some important analytical doors for you. Watch these videos and improve your visual analysis!

Who likes Andrew and Dave’s silly mnemonics for analysis? Yes, they’re cheesy. Yes, they help. Check out this video and learn the basics of deconstructing photographs.

Document: Analyzing Photographs

Nice, you learned the acronym for deconstructing images! Now let’s apply this strategy to multiple photos and determine the attributes of this great Body of Work from Philip Jones Griffiths.

Website: Body of Work – Philip Jones Griffiths

Films, Documentaries, and Series

Who doesn’t love a good film or Netflix series? Quick confession: Andrew and Dave have a media problem. Sure, we have vibrant reading lives, but we love to watch filmmakers and camera crews work their magic. There’s so much to talk about! Whether you are looking a camera angle, camera distance, audio tracks, visual tracks, or graphics tracks, Andrew and Dave have you covered.

Yep, you guess it. Next text type, new set of terms. Check out the documents below and match some of the ideas to the iconic series Squid Game. Don’t worry – we didn’t pick the gory shots for analysis.

Document: Key Terms for Analyzing Film

Sure, the thumbnail says “Individual Oral” but it just as easily could have said “Paper One.” Remember: these assessments are close cousins! Watch this video to learn what to look for in documentaries.

I’m sorry…you’ve got to listen to this recording! Listen to our student destroy these screenshots from Breaking Boundaries on Netflix. If you haven’t seen David Attenborough talk us through this documentary about climate change, check it out! It’s must watch stuff.

Document: Student Recording

Document: Recording Transcript

Document: Student Notes and Planning

Literary Text Types

Regardless of the course you are enrolled in, we’re all studying literature. How is prose fiction different than prose nonfiction, and how should you approach these texts? What about drama and poetry? Are there any special skills and tips to learn? We’ve got the answers to these questions and more down below. Watch the videos. Read the documents. Become a better critical reader and writer.

Prose Fiction

What’s prose fiction? Think novels. Think short stories. Think “imaginative” writing. It’s one of the cornerstones of the course for a reason, and Andrew and Dave just love the power of story. It’s complex, it teaches us about the human condition, and it fosters empathy. Learn how to be a close reader of prose fiction and let your knowledge shine when you write your Paper One.

Not sure what to look for in prose fiction? No worries. This video explore the key aspects to look for and shows you how to find them. Use the document and watch the video!

Document: SCASNI acronym for annotating fiction

OK, you know the terms and what to look for in a short prose fiction passage. Now lets close-read an assessment passage, outline our thinking, and consider how authors make choices to shape meaning.

Document: SCASNI applied to a Paper One Text

You’ve read closely, you’ve annotated, and you’ve got your thesis and rudimentary outline ready. Let’s check out this sample paper and examiner comments and see what we can learn.

Document: Paper One – Full Student Response

Prose Non-Fiction

Sure, we all love pure story, but this course requires that students read and analyze prose nonfiction texts as well. So what exactly is this stuff anyway? Think memoirs. Think travelogues. Think philosophy and other insightful texts that present factual information in an entertaining and literary way. Andrew and Dave love this stuff, and so do our students. Check out these three great 2-video sets – they’ll show you how to read carefully and write powerfully.

How do writers combine the scientific and the literary to convey information? Check out this video and watch Andrew and Dave break it down.

Document: Assessment Text (clean)

Document: Assessment Text (annotated)

Learn about the human heart, its beauty, and how modern doctors can still learn from traditional methods in this cool text that is a former Paper One Assessment.

Let’s read this excerpt from a great memoir and see what we can learn.

Now that the reading portion is out of the way, let’s take a look at this student response and listen to Andrew and Dave discuss the strengths and weaknesses. Lots to learn here.

Document: Student Response (clean)

Document: Student Response (highlighted)

Nice work with that close reading. Let’s look a piece of student writing, discuss strengths and weaknesses, and use this as an opportunity to make your writing better.

Let’s see how Dave and Andrew’s student took the ideas from the reading and demonstrated their understanding and analysis under timed Paper One conditions.

Document: Student Response (clean and highlighted)

Document: Three Different Styles of Introductions

Wipe that dirty look off your face and have some confidence – poetry can be fun! Sure, Dave and Andrew understand that it’s abstract, it’s full of deep thinking, and it’s complex, but that’s what makes it so interesting! Maybe you’ll learn to love it if you have the tools? That’s where IB English Guys come into play. Check out the videos and document below. You’ll find poetic terminology, close reading strategies, and sentence stems to guide your writing. Watch. Learn. Master. You’ve got this!

Don’t be fooled by the “Individual Oral” thumbnail. As you’ve probably noticed, the IO and Paper One skill sets are close cousins. Check out this video and learn the basics of breaking down poetry.

Document: Poetic Terms

Document: Sample Poem with Annotations

Yes, poetry has a lot of moving parts. Is there an acronym or some other trick to remember how to analyze these things? Yep. Dave and Andrew have you covered. Check out the video and check out the docs. Some good stuff here.

Document: How to Read a Poem

Document: Acronym for Analyzing Poetry

Document: Words to Describe Mood and Tone

Document: Maya Angelou Poem For Analysis

Great! You’re getting the hang of this poetry stuff. Let’s dig a bit deeper and do some close reading and thinking. Time to learn how to put it all together and arrive at the thesis.

Document: Mary Oliver Poem for Analysis

Document: Mary Oliver Poem (fully annotated)

Check out this former IB Exam where we break down a great poem.

Document: Poem – “Tyre Shop” by Bob Orr

Check out the full student response and compare your work.

Document: “Tyre Shop” – Full Student Response

Andrew and Dave love drama. But, you’ve got to remember to pay attention to the stage directions. What can you see and hear on stage? What props do you notice? How are costume and staging used for effect? So many things to explore! It’s important to learn the basics for now, but stay tuned for more content in the future. Our students love drama, and so will you. Immerse yourself in this text type and enjoy!

Seriously? More terms to learn for another genre? Yes, but don’t despair! Drama provides some great opportunities to flex your brain muscles and show your teacher – and the examiner – that you can think and analyze with the best.

Document: Dramatic Terms

Document: Annotated Passage

Coming Soon!

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IB English Paper 1 Explained

Ace your IB English Paper 1 exam with the #1 IB English Resource for 2022 as Voted by IB Students & Teachers

IB English Paper 1 is one of those nerve-wracking experiences that everyone has to endure. It's especially scary because you have no idea what you'll end up writing for your final exam–and your grades depend on it!

The best preparation you can do is be acutely aware of the exam structure and proven strategies that have worked for past IB7 graduates.

If you want to fully wrap your head around the IB English Paper 1 guided analysis, then this quick guide is for you.

Meet your instructor Jackson Huang, Founder of LitLearn. His mission is to make IB English as pain-free as possible with fun, practical lessons. Jackson scored an IB45 and was accepted to Harvard, Amherst, Williams Colleges, and full scholarships to University of Melbourne & Queensland.

Photo of LitLearn instructor Jackson Huang

What is a Paper 1 exam?

In a Paper 1 exam, you are given two mysterious, unseen texts . Each text is between 1-2 pages in length.

For SL students, you're in luck! Your task is to write a guided analysis on just one of the two texts. Total marks: 20. You have 1 hour and 15 minutes.

For HL students, you're in less luck… Your task is to write two guided analysis essays–one on each of the texts. Total marks: 40. You have 2 hours and 15 minutes.

The mystery text types you'll get for Paper 1 depend on whether you're in IB English Language & Literature or IB English Literature.

For IB English Literature , Paper 1 text types belong to four neat categories (hooray!):

Fictional prose (e.g. short stories, extracts from novels)
Non-fiction prose (e.g. scientific articles, extracts)
Dramatic plays

For IB English Language and Literature , your text types could be… really… anything. Be prepared to be surprised. Typically, at least one of the text types will include some visual element like an image, photo, or cartoon. Here's the (non-exhaustive) list of Lang Lit text types:

Magazines, blogs, articles and editorials
Speeches, interview scripts, radio transcripts
Instruction manuals, brochures
Comic strips, political cartoons
… and the list goes on…

What do I write in a guided analysis?

For each Paper 1 text, the IB English Gods pose a short, open-ended question.

This question is called the guiding question , and your essay must focus on answering this guiding question using analysis (we'll explain “analysis” in a second).

Examples of guiding questions:

How does the writer characterize the protagonist's state of mind?
How and to what effect do textual and visual elements shape meaning?
How is narrative perspective used to create meaning and effect?

Even though you're technically allowed to choose your own focus and ignore the default guiding question, it's highly recommended that you go along with what's given… unless you really don't know how to answer it, or you're super confident in your Paper 1 skills.

Now, what are we supposed to do with the guiding question?

Guiding questions always ask you to explain how and why certain language or visual choices are used to build one or more central ideas .

And so the vague instruction "Answer the guiding question" actually translates to something very specific:

Explain how and why the writer uses specific language to build their central idea(s).

This sentence pretty much sums up not just IB English Paper 1, but the gist of analysis and IB English overall.

Writing Deep, Insightful Analysis

If you want to get a high score on Paper 1 (and every IB English assessment in general), you must know how to write deep, insightful analysis.

After helping numerous IB English students at LitLearn, we've found that weak analysis is the #1 reason students struggle in IB English.

Biggest Mistake

The main mistake you're likely making is that your analysis doesn't dig deep enough .

Students make the mistake of only touching the surface-level meaning of the texts. For example, common mistakes include:

only recounting the plot
mentioning techniques and ideas without digging into the how and why
not identifying the most relevant techniques for analysis.

The diagram below shows the difference between surface-level meaning, deep analysis, and deeper analysis.

Shallow and deep meaning in IB English Paper 1 analysis

If you're unsure about how to write strong analysis for IB English, or you're not confident in what to look for in your texts, then you should watch this free 7-minute video lesson from Learn Analysis: Analysis Foundations.

Learn Analysis

No sign up or credit card required.

Essential Techniques you need to know

So how do we write strong analysis that scores highly on Criterion B?

First things first, we need to know how to analyze the major literary and visual techniques (visual for Lang Lit), so that we can quickly find and analyze them under exam stress.

If you're cramming for Paper 1, here are the 7 most important techniques and concepts that you should know for IB English Paper 1. They apply to all text types in Lang Lit as well as Literature:

Tone, atmosphere and mood
Diction and voice
Metaphor, simile, and personification
The 4 main types of imagery
The 3 types of irony
Juxtaposition and contrast
Grammatical and structural techniques

There's a bunch more, but these 7 categories make a great starting point. The first step is to learn their names and definitions, and flashcards are an excellent way to do this.

Of course, memorizing isn't enough. We also need to know the common effects and purposes behind each of these core techniques, so that we can build a mental library of the most common ways to deeply analyze each technique. If you don't study each technique in detail, it's much harder to invent deep analysis on-the-spot during an exam.

We go deep into each of the techniques in Learn Analysis . Here are just a couple of them to get you started.

Level 1 Techniques

Your One Mission in Paper 1

Let's quickly recap what you need to do in a Paper 1.

You need to discuss the characters, themes and plot of a chosen literary text, OR the visual and stylistic elements (diagrams, headings, titles, images) for a non-literary text.
You then need to explain how and why these aspects were achieved by the writer or artist.

These two points are helpful as a basis for understanding, but they won't help you get concrete words onto the exam page. What we need now is a practical guide to writing an actual essay:

Deciding on a good thesis
Choosing the right points
Choosing the right structure

A Practical Guide to Writing a Paper 1 essay

An IB English Paper 1 essay boils down to 3 separate parts:

An introduction paragraph : contains a thesis and an outline of your points
A body (usually 3 paragraphs) : contains your points
A conclusion : wraps up the essay

Choosing a thesis

The thesis or subject statement is a single sentence in the introduction of the guided analysis that states how the writer achieves their overall purpose.

This is also the main argument that you are trying to prove in your essay, and it's typically related to the guiding question . The examiner can usually judge the strength of your analytical skills JUST from your subject statement alone, so it needs to be well-written!

Choosing the right essay structure for IB English Paper 1

Every text works best with a specific paragraph structure. Finding this match isn't always easy, but it's also one of the most important things to get right in your Paper 1 guided analysis.

You can organise your essay by:

ideas or themes
sections (sequential, e.g. stanza by stanza for poems)
the ‘Big 5'
and probably a whole host of other acronyms that English teachers love to invent.

Criterion C for IB English Paper 1 is Organisation . It's worth a whole 5/20 marks, so it's definitely in your best interest to choose the most appropriate structure for your essay.

Pro Tip: I recommend students to stay away from the Big 5 . Sure, it's useful as a memory device to tell you what elements to look for in a text, but it's not a good essay structure for analysis.

Why? Because analysis is about examining the causal interplay between techniques, stylistic choices, audience, tone, and themes. The Big 5 and SPECSLIMS artificially silo these components in your discussion. Heed my advice or pay the price! (notice that rhyme?)

So in my opinion, there are only two types of structure that are most conducive (yep, another new vocab, omnomnom) to getting a 7. Ideas/themes and Sections . Take this as a hot tip and run with it. If your teacher is forcing you to use other structures, then you'll need to know why this is recommended.

We go into much more depth and explain it all inside Learn Analysis.

Pro members only

Writing body paragraphs: Why and How

Once you've chosen the best structure for your essay and decided on a strong thesis as your central argument, the rest of the essay needs to revolve around proving this argument.

How do you prove this subject statement? You do it by looking at individual points. These smaller points support smaller, more specific aspects of the overall thesis.

The idea is that each body paragraph, or point, aims to prove a separate, smaller aspect of the bigger thesis. It's like a jigsaw puzzle : You must piece together smaller, more manageable pieces to build the bigger argument (i.e. the thesis).

In reality, this translates into writing 2, 3 or 4 points, each of which fits snuggly it its own paragraph or multiple paragraphs (depending on the complexity of the point).

In each point, you must include:

Quotes, references to images, titles, headings, or visual elements. This is the evidence.
Analysis of language and literary techniques. Use specific quotes from the text and explain how and why they are used by the writer to shape his/her message.

Obviously, this is a quick summary of how to write a high-quality body paragraph. We dive deeper into the specific details of how to structure a body paragraph in the guided analysis.

Planning ahead

Ironically, the most important part of IB English Paper 1 is not the analysis itself (well it is, but not really). The part you have to get right the first time is the plan. Most students do not know how to plan effectively, or get flustered in the exam and don't plan, or don't even try to plan because they think they're above it. Big mistake!

Before you even begin writing, you should plan out your essay in sufficient detail. You will lose track of time, thought and sanity if you do not have a clear road map of every part of your essay before you begin writing.

You can learn how to annotate and plan quickly & efficiently using the flowchart method, which we demonstrate inside Learn Analysis and Paper 1 .

In the Pro lesson below, we go into detail on exactly how to plan a Paper 1 essay effectively and efficiently under exam conditions.

How do I practice for Paper 1?

Most students think that doing a lot of practice papers is the best way to improve in Paper 1. However, there's a much more efficient, targeted method to study for Paper 1.

We work our way up from the smallest, most manageable chunks of analysis to the full Paper 1 exam. It's a good idea to reserve real IB English past papers for 2 months before your final exam so that you don't run out of past papers--they are the best preparation for the final exam. Also, if your analysis skills aren't already strong, doing real past papers is a waste of an excellent exam prep resource.

Questionbank

Quote analysis exercises with exemplar IB7 solutions

Short guided analysis exercises with exemplar IB7 solutions

1 hour practice exams with detailed markschemes or video solutions

IB past paper solutions: Exemplar essay plans and full essay responses

Questionbank

Paper 1 Practice Exams

Past Paper 1 Solutions

Paper 2 Guide

From Struggling to Succeeding in IB English

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Guide To IB English Language & Literature

Table of Contents

1 1-to-1 IB English Tuition
2 Overview of IB English Language & Literature
3 Curriculum Review
4 Objectives of IB English Language and Literature Curriculum
5 Standard Level (SL) vs Higher Level (HL)
6 Assessment
7 Expert's Opinion
8 Visit Prep Zone @ Orchard
9 Our Success Stories
10 IB English Trial Class Registration

IB English Language and Literature, one of the most studied courses from among various subject groups (there are 6 groups altogether), is offered as part of Studies in Language and Literature (Group 1) and focuses on study of both literary and non-literary texts.

While the course is designed to help students develop an appreciation for the language’s intricacies through textual analysis, it is also meant to enable them to express their own ideas distinctly both on paper and in spoken English in a wide variety of styles, registers and contexts. The course is offered at Standard Level (SL) and Higher Level (HL).

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Overview of ib english language & literature.

The course comprises four elements – two relate to the study of language and two to the study of literature. The structure of the course demands that a certain number of texts be read in translation by both SL and HL students. These texts are chosen to represent a variety of views and milieus to help contribute to the development of the students’ global perspective.

Part 1 covers range of topics to enhance students’ understanding of language in specific cultural contexts.
Part 2 is related to language used in mass communication.
Part 3 needs students to evaluate literary texts in the contexts in which they were written and read.
Part 4 involves critical study of literature.

Through these essential components, the course aims to expose students to various ways in which language choices, text types, literary forms and contextual elements all effect meaning.

Sections	SL	HL
Part 1 and Part 2	Fewer topics are covered at SL than at HL level for these two parts	More topics are covered at HL than at SL level for these two parts
Part 3	Includes study of two works. One of the works is a text in translation from prescribed literature in translation (PLT) list	Includes study three works. 1 or 2 of these works are texts in translation from the prescribed literature in translation (PLT) list
Part 4	Constitutes study of two works chosen from the prescribed list of authors (PLA)	Constitutes study of three works chosen from the prescribed list of authors (PLA)

Curriculum Review

IB English Language and Literature syllabus is carefully designed to encourage students to engage with a variety of text types, from different periods and styles, and understand the constructed nature of meanings created by the language through its relationship with different perspectives and cultural contexts.

HL students read 6 works and SL students read 4 works from a representative selection of literary genres, periods and settings. Some of the texts are studied in translation – HL students read 1-2 works in translation, while SL students read one work in translation.
HL and SL students study and learn to critically analyse a range of non-literary texts
The recommended number of class hours for HL students is 240, while standard level study requires a minimum of 150 class hours.
Students learn to interpret a variety of texts by paying attention to the features of specific text types and literary forms including elements of literary, stylistic, rhetorical, visual, and performance work.

Objectives of IB English Language and Literature Curriculum

Allow students to think conceptually about literary and non-literary works
Encourage students to assess how the writer’s choice of language, structure, style and technique create meaning and influence readers
Get the students to efficiently support their critical analyses and ideas with solid and relevant examples
Help students evaluate relationships among different texts and present the comparative analyses in clear, logical, and persuasive ways
Develop students’ writing and speaking skills – skills to express their ideas effectively both in written and oral format

Standard Level (SL) vs Higher Level (HL)

IB English Language and Literature assessment includes external and internal exams at both SL and HL levels.

Standard Level

The external assessment which accounts for 70% of the final grade includes Paper 1 (Textual analysis) and Paper 2 (comparative essay). The internal assessment, on the other hand, comprises individual oral (IO) assessment based on one literary and one non-literary text. The IO is worth 30% overall.

Higher Level

The external assessment comprising Paper 1 (textual analysis), Paper 2 (comparative essay) and a Written Task (based on literary texts studied) makes up 80% of the final grade. The internal assessment includes individual oral (IO) response based on one literary text and one non-literary text and represents 20% of the final grade.

% refers to weightage towards final grade

Standard Level (SL)

External assessment – 3 hours, 70%.

Paper 1 – 1 hour 15 minutes, 35% Students analyse and respond to one of the two non-literary texts, each of which comes furnished with a guiding question.
Paper 2 – 1 hour 45 minutes, 35% Students pick 1 out of the 4 questions designed to elicit a comparative response/ essay based on the two works that they studied over the IB English course.

Internal Assessment – 15 minutes, 30%

Students prepare a 10 minutes oral response related to one literary text and one non-literary text in connection on with a global issue of choice.
5 minutes of Q&A session with the teacher focusing on a common global issue

Higher Level (HL)

External assessment – 4 hours, 80%.

Paper 1 – 2 hour 15 minutes, 35% Students analyse and respond to two non-literary excerpts from different text types; the texts come furnished with guiding questions. Students write about two different text types individually rather than comparatively.
Paper 2 – 1 hour 45 minutes, 25% Students pick 1 out of 4 questions designed to elicit a comparative response/ essay based on the two works that they studied over the IB English course.
Essay – Written Coursework, 20% Consists of generating a 1200 – 1500 word essay based on one literary work or a non-literary body of work studied

Internal Assessment – 15 minutes, 20%

Expert's opinion.

IB English Language and Literature course does not follow a very rigid curriculum, and the schools (international) in Singapore are given the freedom to choose what works they want to incorporate in the syllabi for the course. However, the works need be selected from a list of prescribed authors and a list of prescribed literature in translation from IBO.
While the reading list may vary from one school to another, the focus is always on including a range of oral, written, creative and analytical activities, designed to motivate students to respond in different ways to the texts, topics and concepts studied in school.
All International schools in Singapore offer IB Language and Literature at both SL and HL.
One common question asked is how English Language and Literature different from IB English Literature. Well, unlike IB English Language and Literature, which focusses on a large variety of both literary and non-literary texts, IB English Literature curriculum only includes literary texts. Most of the popular International schools in Singapore, such as United World College, Tanglin Trust School, St. Joseph’s International School, etc. offer both IB English Language and Literature different and IB English Literature at SL as well as HL.

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English Language & Literature

IB English: A Complete Guide

Charles Whitehouse

In this comprehensive guide, we will explore IB English A, an integral part of the International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme . IB English A focuses on the analysis and appreciation of literature. Its aim is to enhance students' analytical and communication skills while introducing them to diverse literary texts from various cultures and time periods.

Throughout this guide, we will delve into the two options: within IB English A: Literature and IB English A: Language and Literature . We will discuss their objectives, assessment methods, and the distinctions between SL and HL study options.

Whether you are currently enrolled in the course or considering it for the future, this guide will provide valuable insights and strategies for success in IB English A.

Why Study IBDP English A?

Studying IBDP English A offers many benefits for students who want a comprehensive understanding of language and literature. The two courses are an important part of the IBDP and provides a rigorous exploration of various literary works from different cultures, time periods, and genres. By engaging with texts from diverse origins, students develop critical thinking skills, broaden their perspectives, and cultivate empathy for different viewpoints.

IB English also emphasises intercultural understanding, encouraging students to appreciate the richness and complexity of human expression across different linguistic traditions.

Another advantage of taking IB English A is the development of strong communication skills in both writing and speaking. Through analysing texts, comparing works, and creative writing exercises, students learn to express their ideas effectively using appropriate language and stylistic devices.

Class discussions and presentations also require students to communicate their thoughts clearly and consider the needs of diverse audiences. These communication skills are not only valuable for academic success but also essential in professional and social settings beyond the classroom.

Assessment in IBDP English A encourages independent research and collaborative learning. Internal assessments include written tasks that allow students to explore literary topics creatively while developing their research skills.

External assessments consist of examinations that assess analytical abilities and the capacity to engage with unfamiliar texts under time constraints. By navigating these different assessment formats, students develop important skills such as adaptability, self-discipline, and resilience.

Considering these advantages, it is clear that IBDP English A provides a valuable educational experience for students who want to deepen their understanding of language, literature, and culture. This course offers not only subject-specific knowledge but also a range of transferable skills that contribute to personal growth and success in future endeavours.

The IB English Literature Syllabus

The IB English Literature course , available in the IB Diploma Programme , offers students a comprehensive exploration of literary works from diverse cultures and historical contexts. Throughout the course, students engage with various texts that include novels, plays, poems, and other literary forms.

The course aims to develop students' critical analysis, interpretation, and evaluation skills, while enhancing their appreciation for the artistic qualities of literature. By studying books like " Pride and Prejudice " by Jane Austen, "One Hundred Years of Solitude" by Gabriel Garcia Marquez, and "Hamlet" by William Shakespeare, students gain insights into different cultural perspectives and time periods.

Divided into Standard Level and Higher Level, the course accommodates students with varying interests and proficiency levels in literary studies. HL students explore additional texts such as "Beloved" by Toni Morrison, "The Great Gatsby" by F. Scott Fitzgerald, and "A Doll's House" by Henrik Ibsen, delving deeper into specific aspects of literary analysis.

The course structure comprises four parts: Works in Translation, Detailed Study, Literary Genres, and Options. Students explore works like "Like Water for Chocolate" by Laura Esquivel, "Foe" by J.M. Coetzee, and "Wide Sargasso Sea" by Jean Rhys, among others, to deepen their understanding of literature from different perspectives, genres, and time periods.

By immersing themselves in these texts, students develop critical thinking skills, improve their reading and writing abilities, and broaden their cultural awareness. The IB English Literature course nurtures a lifelong appreciation for literature, while providing students with essential skills applicable to various academic and professional pursuits.

Through the exploration of diverse texts, students cultivate empathy, creativity, and a deeper understanding of the human experience across different cultures and time periods. Ultimately, this course equips students with valuable skills and knowledge that contribute to their personal growth and success in the wider world.

The IB English Language & Literature Syllabus

The IB English Language & Literature course invites students on a captivating journey of exploration, diving into the intricacies of language and literature. This course, available at both SL and HL, offers students a chance to delve into a diverse range of texts from different cultures, time periods, and genres.

In Part 1 of the course, students analyse an array of non-literary texts such as advertisements, speeches, opinion columns, and social media posts, gaining insights into their language features and persuasive techniques.

Part 2 immerses students in classic literary works from around the world. Texts like "To Kill a Mockingbird" by Harper Lee, "1984" by George Orwell, and "Pride and Prejudice" by Jane Austen allow students to explore themes, styles, and historical contexts, fostering a deeper appreciation for the power of literature.

For HL students, Parts 3 and 4 offer an even more enriching experience. In Part 3, students examine texts from various literary periods written by authors from diverse cultural backgrounds. They might delve into works like "One Hundred Years of Solitude" by Gabriel Garcia Marquez or "The Handmaid's Tale" by Margaret Atwood, analyzing how these texts reflect societal values and perspectives.

Part 4 delves into the dynamic relationship between language and power dynamics within society. Through texts such as "Animal Farm" by George Orwell or "The Color Purple" by Alice Walker, students explore how language can be used to challenge or reinforce existing power structures.

By engaging with these thought-provoking texts, students develop critical thinking skills, expand their cultural awareness, and cultivate a deeper understanding of the complexities of language and literature. The IB English Language & Literature course empowers students to become active global citizens who appreciate the beauty of language and its profound impact on society.

Have a look at our comprehensive set of IB Resources that include IB Study Notes and IB Practice Questions , developed by expert IB teachers and examiners!

Should You Choose English Lit Or English Lang & Lit?

When considering the IB English A, students face a significant decision: choosing between English Literature and English Language & Literature. It is important to understand the distinctions between these courses in order to make an informed choice based on interests and academic goals.

English Literature focuses primarily on the critical analysis of literary works from diverse time periods, genres, and cultural backgrounds. Here are the pros and cons of choosing English Literature:

Emphasis on analyzing and interpreting literary texts.
Opportunity to explore the historical and cultural contexts of literature.
Development of strong skills in essay writing and oral presentation.
In-depth study of renowned literary works.
Limited exposure to non-literary texts.
Less emphasis on the use of language in various contexts.
Potential for a narrower focus on literature alone.

On the other hand, English Language & Literature combines language and literature studies. It involves analysing both literary and non-literary texts, including advertisements, speeches, and news articles. Consider the pros and cons of choosing English Language & Literature:

Investigation of the dynamic relationship between language and society.
Examination of various modes of communication across cultures.
Critical thinking about how language shapes our understanding of the world.
Exposure to a broader range of texts, including both literary and non-literary sources.
Less intensive study of individual literary works compared to English Literature.
Potentially less emphasis on close textual analysis and interpretation.
Reduced focus on the historical and cultural contexts of literature.

When making a decision between the two courses, students should consider their personal interests, strengths, and career aspirations. If passionate about delving into the depths of literature and analyzing specific works in detail, English Literature may be the ideal choice. Conversely, if interested in exploring the multifaceted role of language in society and a broader range of text types, English Language & Literature may be more engaging.

Ultimately, both courses offer valuable opportunities to explore language, literature, and culture. Students should carefully weigh the pros and cons of each course and choose the IB subject that aligns best with their academic journey and passions .

Is IB English Hard?

The question of whether IB English is hard is subjective and can vary depending on the individual student's strengths, interests, and level of commitment. While IB English can be a challenging IB subject , it also offers valuable opportunities for personal growth, intellectual development, and a deeper understanding of language and literature.

IB English requires students to engage with complex texts, analyse them critically, and express their ideas effectively through writing and oral presentations. The coursework may involve studying a variety of literary works, exploring different genres, and considering texts from diverse cultural and historical contexts. This can be demanding, as it requires students to develop strong analytical and interpretive skills, as well as a solid understanding of grammar, vocabulary, and literary devices.

Furthermore, class discussions and assignments may tackle complex themes and issues, requiring students to think critically and engage in meaningful dialogue. This can be intellectually challenging, as it demands a willingness to explore different perspectives and consider the broader social and cultural implications of texts.

However, it is important to note that the difficulty of IB English can vary for each individual. Some students may naturally excel in literary analysis and find the coursework more manageable, while others may find certain aspects more challenging. It is essential for students to be proactive, dedicated, and willing to invest time and effort into their studies in order to succeed in IB English.

While the mean grades achieved in IB English Literature HL (4.87) and IB English Language & Literature HL (5.13) in 2021 provide insight into the overall performance of students, it is important to remember that these statistics do not solely reflect the level of difficulty of the courses. They are an indication of the average achievement, but individual experiences may differ.

Number of IB English A SL & HL candidates and mean grades in 2021

IB English Literature Vs A-Level English Literature

In order to make informed decisions about academic pathways, it is important to compare IB English Literature with another prominent international curriculum, A-Level English Literature . By understanding the key differences between these rigorous programs, students can better determine which course aligns with their interests and goals.

One significant difference lies in the course structure. IB English Literature takes a holistic approach, exploring works from diverse genres, time periods, and cultures. Students analyse texts critically and appreciate their global significance. In contrast, A-Level English Literature primarily focuses on British literature and its historical development. Students delve deeply into specific literary movements, examining the contextual influences. Thus, while both courses emphasise literary analysis, their content coverage differs significantly.

Assessment methods also provide a basis for comparison. The IB English Literature course employs a combination of internal assessments (such as written tasks) and external assessments (such as essays and oral presentations). These varied evaluation tools aim to develop well-rounded individuals capable of effective expression across different formats. In contrast, A-Level English Literature assessments primarily consist of written examinations that assess analytical skills and comprehension of prescribed texts. Both curricula demand critical thinking, but they employ different assessment formats.

An expert A-Level English tutor said:

"As an A-Level English tutor, I tell students that A-Level English focuses deeply on British books, while IB English covers a wider range of books from all over the world. If students like learning about different cultures and histories through literature, IB English might be better for them. It's important for students to think about what kinds of books they enjoy when they choose their course."

Considering these distinctions, students should reflect on their academic preferences when choosing a course. Those who enjoy exploring diverse literary landscapes and developing versatile communication skills may find IB English Literature more suitable. Meanwhile, those with a strong interest in delving deeper into British literature may opt for A-Level English Literature.

For a further in-depth comparison for all subjects, read IB Vs A-Levels - A Comprehensive Guide .

What Level Of English Should You Choose In The IB?

When considering IB English, one crucial decision students face is whether to pursue the Standard Level or Higher Level course in either English Literature or English Language & Literature. This choice significantly impacts the depth and breadth of their study in the subject. Understanding the differences between SL and HL in both English Literature and English Language & Literature can help students make an informed decision based on their language proficiency, interests, and academic goals.

In English Literature, both SL and HL provide students with an opportunity to explore and analyse a range of literary works from different genres, time periods, and cultural contexts. However, HL requires students to study a more extensive selection of texts and engage in more in-depth analysis and interpretation. HL students tackle complex themes, develop advanced analytical skills, and demonstrate a deeper understanding of the literary works studied.

In English Language & Literature, both SL and HL offer a combination of language and literature studies. SL covers a diverse range of texts, allowing students to explore how language is used and manipulated to convey meaning in different contexts. HL expands on this foundation by examining a wider variety of texts and delving deeper into the relationship between language and power dynamics within society.

The decision between SL and HL in either English Literature or English Language & Literature should be based on individual strengths, language proficiency, interests, and academic aspirations. HL is suitable for students with a strong command of English, a passion for literature, and a desire for more extensive and in-depth study. SL provides a solid foundation for students who want to develop their language and analytical skills while exploring a range of texts.

It is worth noting that HL entails a more demanding workload with additional requirements, such as an extended essay and a study of works in translation. Students should carefully consider their capabilities, commitment, and time management skills when deciding whether to pursue HL.

By carefully considering these factors, students can choose the level and course (English Literature or English Language & Literature) that best aligns with their goals for success in the IB English program.

IB English A SL & HL grade distributions in 2021

IB English Lit and English Lang & Lit Grading System And Exam Format

Both IB English Literature and Language & Literature aim to develop critical thinking skills, a deep understanding of literature, and effective communication. The assessment process includes internal and external components designed to evaluate language proficiency, literary analysis, and communication skills.

The grading system in both IB courses uses a numerical scale ranging from 1 (lowest) to 7 (highest). Each level corresponds to specific descriptors reflecting abilities in reading comprehension, written expression, oral communication, and analytical thinking. Attaining a high grade signifies a strong command of the English language and excellence in literary analysis and creative expression.

While both courses share similarities in their grading system, the exam format differs. In IB English Literature, written examinations include Paper 1 (Literary Commentary) and Paper 2 (Comparative Essay) , which are externally assessed. These exams test critical analysis skills by analysing unseen texts and comparing works studied throughout the course.

In contrast, the exam format for IB English Language & Literature includes Paper 1 (Textual Analysis) and Paper 2 (Essay Writing) , which are also externally assessed. Paper 1 focuses on analysing unseen texts, while Paper 2 requires students to produce well-structured essays that demonstrate their understanding and interpretation of the texts.

Navigating the complexities of the grading system and exam format may initially seem challenging. However, understanding these components enhances students' chances of success in IB English Literature and Language & Literature.

How To Study And Get A 7 In IB English?

After understanding the significance of achieving a desirable grade in IB English, it is important to explore effective strategies that can lead students towards excellence, with the ultimate goal of obtaining a 7 – the highest level of mastery and understanding.

To maximize their chances of success, students can employ various revision techniques and tips. A systematic approach to preparation is crucial, starting with the creation of a study schedule that allocates specific time for reading, writing, and oral assessments. This ensures an organized structure and helps maintain balance across different components of the course.

Regular practice with past exam questions is invaluable, as it familiarizes students with the format and expectations of the examination, and allows them to refine their skills.

Developing strong analytical skills is another key aspect of successful revision. In-depth analysis of texts throughout the course enables students to identify literary techniques and themes used by authors, enhancing their understanding and appreciation of the works. Engaging with secondary sources, such as critical essays, participating in group discussions and seeking guidance from teachers or professional IB tutors , can provide alternative viewpoints and deepen comprehension.

Mastering written expression is vital for achieving high scores in Paper 1 and Paper 2 examinations. Consistent practice in composing well-structured essays under timed conditions improves time management during exams and allows for valuable feedback from peers or instructors. Utilizing a varied vocabulary, constructing coherent arguments, and incorporating relevant textual evidence are essential components of producing sophisticated essays that earn top marks in IB English.

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Overview Of the IB English Literature Internal Assessment

The internal assessment is a vital part of the IB English Literature program, offering students an opportunity to showcase their analytical and interpretative skills beyond the exams. Comprising 30% of the final grade, the Individual Oral Commentary (IOC) requires students to provide a detailed analysis of a passage from one of their studied works, demonstrating a deep understanding of literary devices and their connections to form, meaning, and context.

To excel in the IOC, students are advised to practice extensively, engaging with passages from each work studied. Mock IOCs and guidance from teachers are valuable, but self-directed practice is also crucial. By honing analytical skills and improving oral expression, students gain confidence in discerning significant features within texts and articulating their observations effectively.

Through diligent preparation, persistent practice, and a commitment to growth, students can attain success in the internal assessment, contributing to their overall achievement in the IB English Literature program.

Overview Of the IB English Language And Literature Internal Assessment

Within the vast landscape of IB English Language and Literature, the internal assessment stands as a significant component. This crucial element allows students to deepen their understanding and appreciation of literary and linguistic works.

The internal assessment aims to foster independent exploration and critical thinking, encouraging students to actively engage in their intellectual journey. It consists of two main components: the Individual Oral Commentary and the Written Task 1. The oral presentation involves analyzing an unseen passage from a studied text, while the written task requires creating a creative piece inspired by course materials.

Evaluation criteria encompass understanding and interpretation, analysis, language use, and presentation skills. Students must demonstrate comprehension, identify literary techniques, support arguments with evidence, and effectively communicate ideas.

By embracing the challenges and meeting the standards of the internal assessment, students can progress towards mastery in the IB English Language and Literature program.

Top Resources For IB English Preparation

Preparing for the International Baccalaureate (IB) English course can be overwhelming due to the abundance of available resources. However, focusing on the most valuable ones can greatly enhance your preparation and set you up for success. This list provides an overview of essential resources that will guide you through your IB English journey. By utilizing these resources, you can improve your understanding of the subject, develop important skills, and increase your chances of achieving academic excellence.

1. Official IB materials:

Past papers: Reviewing past papers provides insight into the structure and style of questions, allowing you to practice under timed conditions.
Examiner reports: These reports highlight common errors and areas where students often struggle, offering guidance for targeted revision strategies.
Subject guides: Subject guides outline what is expected from students in terms of knowledge and skills development.
Assessment criteria: Familiarise yourself with the assessment criteria to understand how your work will be evaluated.

2. Online platforms:

IB Prepared: A comprehensive platform designed by experienced educators offering study guides, exam-style questions, video tutorials, and more.
Kognity : An interactive digital textbook that combines engaging content with automated assessments, providing instant feedback on your progress.
InThinking : A subscription-based service that grants access to detailed resources created by experienced IB teachers across all subjects, including English.

3. Revision guides and textbooks:

" IB English A: Language and Literature " by Rob Allison and Brian Chanen: This comprehensive guide covers the entire IB English A Language and Literature syllabus, providing in-depth analysis of texts, practice activities, and exam-style questions.
" IB English A: Literature Course Book " by David James and Nic Amy: This course book offers a thorough exploration of literature texts, including analysis, discussion questions, and guidance for written tasks.
"IB English A: Language and Literature Skills and Practice" by Hannah Tyson and Mark Beverley: This workbook focuses on developing essential skills for IB English, such as essay writing, textual analysis, and oral presentations.

4. Literary analysis websites:

Shmoop : This website provides in-depth analysis and explanations of complex texts studied in the course, helping you better understand the literature.
SparkNotes: SparkNotes offers study guides, summaries, and analysis of literary works, supporting your comprehension and interpretation of texts.

5. Study groups with peers: Collaborating with classmates through study groups allows for deep discussions about texts, fosters critical thinking skills, and provides a supportive learning environment.

6. Private tutors: Hiring a private IB English tutor can provide personalized guidance and support tailored to your specific needs, helping you improve your understanding, skills, and exam performance.

These resources cover a range of materials, including practice papers, study guides, textbooks, online platforms, literary analysis websites, and private tutors. By incorporating these top resources into your study routine, you'll gain valuable insights, receive targeted feedback, and have access to comprehensive materials tailored to the IB English curriculum. Maximise your preparation and excel in your IB English journey with these essential resources.

Exploring Career and University Opportunities With IB English

Embarking on the English journey as part of the IB curriculum not only enriches your understanding of language and literature but also opens up a world of career and university opportunities. The skills and knowledge gained from studying IB English can be applied to various fields and pathways, giving you a competitive edge in the ever-evolving global landscape.

1. Publishing Professional : With strong literary analysis and communication skills, you can pursue careers as editors, literary agents, or content creators in the publishing industry. You will contribute to shaping and promoting literary works for publication.

2. Journalist: The critical analysis and effective communication skills developed in IB English make you well-suited for journalism careers. You can work as a reporter, editor, or news writer, delivering informative and engaging stories to the public.

3. English Teacher : IB English provides a solid foundation for becoming an English teacher or online tutor . You can inspire and educate future generations, sharing your passion for literature and language with students.

4. Advertising and Marketing Specialist: The persuasive writing and audience engagement skills cultivated in IB English are valuable in the advertising and marketing industry. You can create compelling content and develop effective communication strategies to promote products or services.

5. Public Relations Professional: Leveraging your strong oral and written communication skills, you can excel in public relations roles. You will manage communication and build relationships between organisations and their target audiences.

6. Content Writer: The ability to analyze and interpret texts acquired in IB English opens doors to content writing roles. You can create impactful written materials for various platforms, including websites, blogs, and social media.

University Degrees:

1. English Literature : IB English prepares you for degrees in English literature, where you can explore the rich literary tradition and analyze diverse texts from different time periods and cultures.

2. Comparative Literature: Studying IB English provides a strong foundation for pursuing degrees in comparative literature, allowing you to examine the connections and contrasts between various literary works and traditions.

3. Creative Writing: With the skills developed in IB English, you can pursue a degree in creative writing, honing your craft in writing poetry, fiction, or plays.

4. Linguistics : IB English complements studies in linguistics, where you can delve into the scientific study of language, its structure, and its role in communication.

5. Translation Studies: The exploration of language in IB English provides a strong foundation for studies in translation, preparing you for a career as a professional translator or interpreter.

6. Humanities and Social Sciences: The skills and knowledge gained in IB English complement various disciplines within the humanities and social sciences, offering a solid academic background for degrees in fields such as history, sociology, psychology, or political science.

The skills developed in IB English, including critical thinking, analysis, research, and effective communication, are highly valued by universities and employers alike. Whether you choose a career directly related to literature and language or pursue other fields, IB English equips you with transferable skills that are applicable across diverse industries. By embracing the opportunities provided by IB English, you can carve a path towards a fulfilling career and gain admission to reputable universities around the world.

What Is A Good IB English Literature Score?

A good IB English Literature score is typically achieved by earning a grade of 5 or higher. This indicates a strong performance in the subject and exceeds the average HL grade, which is 4.87. Scoring 5 or above reflects a solid understanding of literary concepts, effective analysis, and the ability to articulate ideas coherently.

To attain such a score, students should demonstrate proficiency in areas such as literary analysis, critical interpretation, and effective written communication. Achieving a good score in IB English Literature showcases a strong command of the subject and contributes to a successful overall performance.

What Is A Good IB English Language & Literature Score?

A good IB English Language & Literature score is typically achieved by earning a grade of 6 or higher. This reflects a strong performance in the subject and exceeds the average high-level (HL) grade, which is 5.13. Scoring 6 or above signifies a solid understanding of language, literature analysis, and effective communication skills. It demonstrates the ability to critically analyze texts, interpret their meaning, and express ideas coherently.

To attain a good score in IB English Language & Literature, students should showcase proficiency in areas such as textual analysis, language features, and writing techniques. Achieving a score of 6 or higher showcases excellence in the subject and contributes to a successful overall performance.

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Literature and performance

The literature and performance course aims to explore the relationship between literature and theatre. The main focus of the course is the interaction between the literary skills of close reading, critical writing and discussion and the practical, aesthetic and symbolic elements of performance.

The course is organized into three parts, each focussed on a different aspect of literature and performance. Together, the three parts of the course cover the critical study of literary texts, the exploration of chosen approaches to a text, and the realization of texts in performance. Students engage with a wide variety of textual genres to explore the concept of transformation, examining the ways in which the contexts of production and reception shape meaning.

Key features of the curriculum and assessment models

Available at standard level only
Standard level study requires a minimum of 150 class hours
A minimum of five literary works must be studied, covering all the main literary genres
An understanding of how language, culture and context determine the construction of meaning is developed through the exploration of texts from a variety of cultures, periods, genres and in translation
Students develop strong oral and written powers of expression, and a range of performance skills
Students are assessed through a combination of formal examinations, written coursework, performance and oral activities
The formal examination comprises two essay papers, one requiring the exploration of issues involved in dramatizing a novel, and the other a comparative response to poetry studied
Students also produce written coursework based on a critical analysis of a play they have studied and performed, a performance based on their transformation of literature studied, and an oral presentation

Learn more about literature and performance in a DP workshop for teachers .

Introducing the new DP Literature and Performance course 2022

You can now . This overview is intended for all teachers, students and coordinators who are interested in introducing the new DP Literature and Performance course to their schools.

Literature and performance subject brief

Subject briefs are short two-page documents providing an outline of the course. Read the standard level (SL) and/or higher level (HL) subject brief below.

Latest curriculum updates

This subject is reviewed by the IB regularly to ensure the latest educational research is applied. Please keep up to date with the latest subject updates for Literature and performance .

Open access
Published: 01 May 2024

The effectiveness of virtual reality training on knowledge, skills and attitudes of health care professionals and students in assessing and treating mental health disorders: a systematic review

Cathrine W. Steen 1 , 2 ,
Kerstin Söderström 1 , 2 ,
Bjørn Stensrud 3 ,
Inger Beate Nylund 2 &
Johan Siqveland 4 , 5

BMC Medical Education volume 24 , Article number: 480 ( 2024 ) Cite this article

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Virtual reality (VR) training can enhance health professionals’ learning. However, there are ambiguous findings on the effectiveness of VR as an educational tool in mental health. We therefore reviewed the existing literature on the effectiveness of VR training on health professionals’ knowledge, skills, and attitudes in assessing and treating patients with mental health disorders.

We searched MEDLINE, PsycINFO (via Ovid), the Cochrane Library, ERIC, CINAHL (on EBSCOhost), Web of Science Core Collection, and the Scopus database for studies published from January 1985 to July 2023. We included all studies evaluating the effect of VR training interventions on attitudes, knowledge, and skills pertinent to the assessment and treatment of mental health disorders and published in English or Scandinavian languages. The quality of the evidence in randomized controlled trials was assessed with the Cochrane Risk of Bias Tool 2.0. For non-randomized studies, we assessed the quality of the studies with the ROBINS-I tool.

Of 4170 unique records identified, eight studies were eligible. The four randomized controlled trials were assessed as having some concern or a high risk of overall bias. The four non-randomized studies were assessed as having a moderate to serious overall risk of bias. Of the eight included studies, four used a virtual standardized patient design to simulate training situations, two studies used interactive patient scenario training designs, while two studies used a virtual patient game design. The results suggest that VR training interventions can promote knowledge and skills acquisition.

Conclusions

The findings indicate that VR interventions can effectively train health care personnel to acquire knowledge and skills in the assessment and treatment of mental health disorders. However, study heterogeneity, prevalence of small sample sizes, and many studies with a high or serious risk of bias suggest an uncertain evidence base. Future research on the effectiveness of VR training should include assessment of immersive VR training designs and a focus on more robust studies with larger sample sizes.

Trial registration

This review was pre-registered in the Open Science Framework register with the ID-number Z8EDK.

Peer Review reports

A robustly trained health care workforce is pivotal to forging a resilient health care system [ 1 ], and there is an urgent need to develop innovative methods and emerging technologies for health care workforce education [ 2 ]. Virtual reality technology designs for clinical training have emerged as a promising avenue for increasing the competence of health care professionals, reflecting their potential to provide effective training [ 3 ].

Virtual reality (VR) is a dynamic and diverse field, and can be described as a computer-generated environment that simulates sensory experiences, where user interactions play a role in shaping the course of events within that environment [ 4 ]. When optimally designed, VR gives users the feeling that they are physically within this simulated space, unlocking its potential as a dynamic and immersive learning tool [ 5 ]. The cornerstone of the allure of VR is its capacity for creating artificial settings via sensory deceptions, encapsulated by the term ‘immersion’. Immersion conveys the sensation of being deeply engrossed or enveloped in an alternate world, akin to absorption in a video game. Some VR systems will be more immersive than others, based on the technology used to influence the senses. However, the degree of immersion does not necessarily determine the user’s level of engagement with the application [ 6 ].

A common approach to categorizing VR systems is based on the design of the technology used, allowing them to be classified into: 1) non-immersive desktop systems, where users experience virtual environments through a computer screen, 2) immersive CAVE systems with large projected images and motion trackers to adjust the image to the user, and 3) fully immersive head-mounted display systems that involve users wearing a headset that fully covers their eyes and ears, thus entirely immersing them in the virtual environment [ 7 ]. Advances in VR technology have enabled a wide range of VR experiences. The possibility for health care professionals to repeatedly practice clinical skills with virtual patients in a risk-free environment offers an invaluable learning platform for health care education.

The impact of VR training on health care professionals’ learning has predominantly been researched in terms of the enhancement of technical surgical abilities. This includes refining procedural planning, familiarizing oneself with medical instruments, and practicing psychomotor skills such as dexterity, accuracy, and speed [ 8 , 9 ]. In contrast, the exploration of VR training in fostering non-technical or ‘soft’ skills, such as communication and teamwork, appears to be less prevalent [ 10 ]. A recent systematic review evaluates the outcomes of VR training in non-technical skills across various medical specialties [ 11 ], focusing on vital cognitive abilities (e.g., situation awareness, decision-making) and interprofessional social competencies (e.g., teamwork, conflict resolution, leadership). These skills are pivotal in promoting collaboration among colleagues and ensuring a safe health care environment. At the same time, they are not sufficiently comprehensive for encounters with patients with mental health disorders.

For health care professionals providing care to patients with mental health disorders, acquiring specific skills, knowledge, and empathic attitudes is of utmost importance. Many individuals experiencing mental health challenges may find it difficult to communicate their thoughts and feelings, and it is therefore essential for health care providers to cultivate an environment where patients feel safe and encouraged to share feelings and thoughts. Beyond fostering trust, health care professionals must also possess in-depth knowledge about the nature and treatment of various mental health disorders. Moreover, they must actively practice and internalize the skills necessary to translate their knowledge into clinical practice. While the conventional approach to training mental health clinical skills has been through simulation or role-playing with peers under expert supervision and practicing with real patients, the emergence of VR applications presents a compelling alternative. This technology promises a potentially transformative way to train mental health professionals. Our review identifies specific outcomes in knowledge, skills, and attitudes, covering areas from theoretical understanding to practical application and patient interaction. By focusing on these measurable concepts, which are in line with current healthcare education guidelines [ 12 ], we aim to contribute to the knowledge base and provide a detailed analysis of the complexities in mental health care training. This approach is designed to highlight the VR training’s practical relevance alongside its contribution to academic discourse.

A recent systematic review evaluated the effects of virtual patient (VP) interventions on knowledge, skills, and attitudes in undergraduate psychiatry education [ 13 ]. This review’s scope is limited to assessing VP interventions and does not cover other types of VR training interventions. Furthermore, it adopts a classification of VP different from our review, rendering their findings and conclusions not directly comparable to ours.

To the best of our knowledge, no systematic review has assessed and summarized the effectiveness of VR training interventions for health professionals in the assessment and treatment of mental health disorders. This systematic review addresses the gap by exploring the effectiveness of virtual reality in the training of knowledge, skills, and attitudes health professionals need to master in the assessment and treatment of mental health disorders.

This systematic review follows the guidelines of Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analysis [ 14 ]. The protocol of the systematic review was registered in the Open Science Framework register with the registration ID Z8EDK.

We included randomized controlled trials, cohort studies, and pretest–posttest studies, which met the following criteria: a) a population of health care professionals or health care professional students, b) assessed the effectiveness of a VR application in assessing and treating mental health disorders, and c) reported changes in knowledge, skills, or attitudes. We excluded studies evaluating VR interventions not designed for training in assessing and treating mental health disorders (e.g., training of surgical skills), studies evaluating VR training from the first-person perspective, studies that used VR interventions for non-educational purposes and studies where VR interventions trained patients with mental health problems (e.g., social skills training). We also excluded studies not published in English or Scandinavian languages.

Search strategy

The literature search reporting was guided by relevant items in PRISMA-S [ 15 ]. In collaboration with a senior academic librarian (IBN), we developed the search strategy for the systematic review. Inspired by the ‘pearl harvesting’ information retrieval approach [ 16 ], we anticipated a broad spectrum of terms related to our interdisciplinary query. Recognizing that various terminologies could encapsulate our central ideas, we harvested an array of terms for each of the four elements ‘health care professionals and health care students’, ‘VR’, ‘training’, and ‘mental health’. The pearl harvesting framework [ 16 ] consists of four steps which we followed with some minor adaptions. Step 1: We searched for and sampled a set of relevant research articles, a book chapter, and literature reviews. Step 2: The librarian scrutinized titles, abstracts, and author keywords, as well as subject headings used in databases, and collected relevant terms. Step 3: The librarian refined the lists of terms. Step 4: The review group, in collaboration with a VR consultant from KildeGruppen AS (a Norwegian media company), validated the refined lists of terms to ensure they included all relevant VR search terms. This process for the element VR resulted in the inclusion of search terms such as ‘3D simulated environment’, ‘second life simulation’, ‘virtual patient’, and ‘virtual world’. We were given a peer review of the search strategy by an academic librarian at Inland Norway University of Applied Sciences.

In June and July 2021, we performed comprehensive searches for publications dating from January 1985 to the present. This period for the inclusion of studies was chosen since VR systems designed for training in health care first emerged in the early 1990s. The searches were carried out in seven databases: MEDLINE and PsycInfo (on Ovid), ERIC and CINAHL (on EBSCOhost), the Cochrane Library, Web of Science Core Collection, and Scopus. Detailed search strategies from each database are available for public access at DataverseNO [ 17 ]. On July 2, 2021, a search in CINAHL yielded 993 hits. However, when attempting to transfer these records to EndNote using the ‘Folder View’—a feature designed for organizing and managing selected records before export—only 982 records were successfully transferred. This discrepancy indicates that 11 records could not be transferred through Folder View, for reasons not specified. The process was repeated twice, consistently yielding the same discrepancy. The missing 11 records pose a risk of failing to capture relevant studies in the initial search. In July 2023, to make sure that we included the latest publications, we updated our initial searches, focusing on entries since January 1, 2021. This ensured that we did not miss any new references recently added to these databases. Due to a lack of access to the Cochrane Library in July 2023, we used EBMR (Evidence Based Medicine Reviews) on the Ovid platform instead, including the databases Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials, Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews, and Cochrane Clinical Answers. All references were exported to Endnote and duplicates were removed. The number of records from each database can be observed in the PRISMA diagram [ 14 ], Fig. 1 .

PRISMA flow chart of the records and study selection process

Study selection and data collection

Two reviewers (JS, CWS) independently assessed the titles and abstracts of studies retrieved from the literature search based on the eligibility criteria. We employed the Rayyan website for the screening process [ 18 ]. The same reviewers (JS, CWS) assessed the full-text articles selected after the initial screening. Articles meeting the eligibility criteria were incorporated into the review. Any disagreements were resolved through discussion.

Data extracted from the studies by the first author (CWS) and cross-checked by another reviewer (JS) included: authors of the study, publication year, country, study design, participant details (education, setting), interventions (VR system, class label), comparison types, outcomes, and main findings. This data is summarized in Table 1 and Additional file 1 . In the process of reviewing the VR interventions utilized within the included studies, we sought expertise from advisers associated with VRINN, a Norwegian immersive learning cluster, and SIMInnlandet, a center dedicated to simulation in mental health care at Innlandet Hospital Trust. This collaboration ensured a thorough examination and accurate categorization of the VR technologies applied. Furthermore, the classification of the learning designs employed in the VP interventions was conducted under the guidance of an experienced VP scholar at Paracelcus Medical University in Salzburg.

Data analysis

We initially intended to perform a meta-analysis with knowledge, skills, and attitudes as primary outcomes, planning separate analyses for each. However, due to significant heterogeneity observed among the included studies, it was not feasible to carry out a meta-analysis. Consequently, we opted for a narrative synthesis based on these pre-determined outcomes of knowledge, skills, and attitudes. This approach allowed for an analysis of the relationships both within and between the studies. The effect sizes were calculated using a web-based effect size calculator [ 27 ]. We have interpreted effect sizes based on commonly used descriptions for Cohen’s d: small = 0.2, moderate = 0.5, and large = 0.8, and for Cramer’s V: small = 0.10, medium = 0.30, and large = 0.50.

Risk of bias assessment

JS and CWS independently evaluated the risk of bias for all studies using two distinct assessment tools. We used the Cochrane risk of bias tool RoB 2 [ 28 ] to assess the risk of bias in the RCTs. With the RoB 2 tool, the bias was assessed as high, some concerns or low for five domains: randomization process, deviations from the intended interventions, missing outcome data, measurement of the outcome, and selection of the reported result [ 28 ].

We used the Risk Of Bias In Non-randomized Studies of Interventions (ROBINS-I) tool [ 29 ] to assess the risk of bias in the cohort and single-group studies. By using ROBINS-I for the non-randomized trials, the risk of bias was assessed using the categories low, moderate, serious, critical or no information for seven domains: confounding, selection of participants, classification of interventions, deviations from intended interventions, missing data, measurement of outcomes, and selection of the reported result [ 29 ].

We included eight studies in the review (Fig. 1 ). An overview of the included studies is presented in detail in Table 1 .

Four studies were RCTs [ 19 , 20 , 21 , 22 ], two were single group pretest–posttest studies [ 23 , 26 ], one was a controlled before and after study [ 25 ], and one was a cohort study [ 24 ]. The studies included health professionals from diverse educational backgrounds, including some from mental health and medical services, as well as students in medicine, social work, and nursing. All studies, published from 2009 to 2021, utilized non-immersive VR desktop system interventions featuring various forms of VP designs. Based on an updated classification of VP interventions by Kononowicz et al. [ 30 ] developed from a model proposed by Talbot et al. [ 31 ], we have described the characteristics of the interventions in Table 1 . Four of the studies utilized a virtual standardized patient (VSP) intervention [ 20 , 21 , 22 , 23 ], a conversational agent that simulates clinical presentations for training purposes. Two studies employed an interactive patient scenario (IPS) design [ 25 , 26 ], an approach that primarily uses text-based multimedia, enhanced with images and case histories through text or voice narratives, to simulate clinical scenarios. Lastly, two studies used a virtual patient game (VP game) intervention [ 19 , 24 ]. These interventions feature training scenarios using 3D avatars, specifically designed to improve clinical reasoning and team training skills. It should be noted that the interventions classified as VSPs in this review, being a few years old, do not encompass artificial intelligence (AI) as we interpret it today. However, since the interventions include some kind of algorithm that provides answers to questions, we consider them as conversational agents, and therefore as VSPs. As the eight included studies varied significantly in terms of design, interventions, and outcome measures, we could not incorporate them into a meta-analysis.

The overall risk of bias for the four RCTs was high [ 19 , 20 , 22 ] or of some concern [ 21 ] (Fig. 2 ). They were all assessed as low or of some concern in the domains of randomization. Three studies were assessed with a high risk of bias in one [ 19 , 20 ] or two domains [ 22 ]; one study had a high risk of bias in the domain of selection of the reported result [ 19 ], one in the domain of measurement of outcome [ 20 ], and one in the domains of deviation from the intended interventions and missing outcome data [ 22 ]. One study was not assessed as having a high risk of bias in any domain [ 21 ].

Risk of bias summary: review authors assessments of each risk of bias item in the included RCT studies

For the four non-randomized studies, the overall risk of bias was judged to be moderate [ 26 ] or serious [ 23 , 24 , 25 ] (Fig. 3 ). One study had a serious risk of bias in two domains: confounding and measurement of outcomes [ 23 ]. Two studies had a serious risk of bias in one domain, namely confounding [ 24 , 25 ], while one study was judged not to have a serious risk of bias in any domain [ 26 ].

Risk of bias summary: review authors assessments of each risk of bias item in the included non-randomized studies

Three studies investigated the impact of virtual reality training on mental health knowledge [ 24 , 25 , 26 ]. One study with 32 resident psychiatrists in a single group pretest–posttest design assessed the effect of a VR training intervention on knowledge of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptomatology, clinical management, and communication skills [ 26 ]. The intervention consisted of an IPS. The assessment of the outcome was conducted using a knowledge test with 11 multiple-choice questions and was administered before and after the intervention. This study reported a significant improvement on the knowledge test after the VR training intervention.

The second study examined the effect of a VR training intervention on knowledge of dementia [ 25 ], employing a controlled before and after design. Seventy-nine medical students in clinical training were divided into two groups, following a traditional learning program. The experimental group received an IPS intervention. The outcome was evaluated with a knowledge test administered before and after the intervention with significantly higher posttest scores in the experimental group than in the control group, with a moderate effects size observed between the groups.

A third study evaluated the effect of a VR training intervention on 299 undergraduate nursing students’ diagnostic recognition of depression and schizophrenia (classified as knowledge) [ 24 ]. In a prospective cohort design, the VR intervention was the only difference in the mental health related educational content provided to the two cohorts, and consisted of a VP game design, developed to simulate training situations with virtual patient case scenarios, including depression and schizophrenia. The outcome was assessed by determining the accuracy of diagnoses made after reviewing case vignettes of depression and schizophrenia. The study found no statistically significant effect of VR training on diagnostic accuracy between the simulation and the non-simulation cohort.

Summary: All three studies assessing the effect of a VR intervention on knowledge were non-randomized studies with different study designs using different outcome measures. Two studies used an IPS design, while one study used a VP game design. Two of the studies found a significant effect of VR training on knowledge. Of these, one study had a moderate overall risk of bias [ 26 ], while the other was assessed as having a serious overall risk of bias [ 25 ]. The third study, which did not find any effect of the virtual reality intervention on knowledge, was assessed to have a serious risk of bias [ 24 ].

Three RCTs assessed the effectiveness of VR training on skills [ 20 , 21 , 22 ]. One of them evaluated the effect of VR training on clinical skills in alcohol screening and intervention [ 20 ]. In this study, 102 health care professionals were randomly allocated to either a group receiving no training or a group receiving a VSP intervention. To evaluate the outcome, three standardized patients rated each participant using a checklist based on clinical criteria. The VSP intervention group demonstrated significantly improved posttest skills in alcohol screening and brief intervention compared to the control group, with moderate and small effect sizes, respectively.

Another RCT, including 67 medical college students, evaluated the effect of VR training on clinical skills by comparing the frequency of questions asked about suicide in a VSP intervention group and a video module group [ 21 ]. The assessment of the outcome was a psychiatric interview with a standardized patient. The primary outcome was the frequency with which the students asked the standardized patient five questions about suicide risk. Minimal to small effect sizes were noted in favor of the VSP intervention, though they did not achieve statistical significance for any outcomes.

One posttest only RCT evaluated the effect of three training programs on skills in detecting and diagnosing major depressive disorder and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) [ 22 ]. The study included 30 family physicians, and featured interventions that consisted of two different VSPs designed to simulate training situations, and one text-based program. A diagnostic form filled in by the participants after the intervention was used to assess the outcome. The results revealed a significant effect on diagnostic accuracy for major depressive disorder for both groups receiving VR training, compared to the text-based program, with large effect sizes observed. For PTSD, the intervention using a fixed avatar significantly improved diagnostic accuracy with a large effect size, whereas the intervention with a choice avatar demonstrated a moderate to large effect size compared to the text-based program.

Summary: Three RCTs assessed the effectiveness of VR training on clinical skills [ 20 , 21 , 22 ], all of which used a VSP design. To evaluate the effect of training, two of the studies utilized standardized patients with checklists. The third study measured the effect on skills using a diagnostic form completed by the participants. Two of the studies found a significant effect on skills [ 20 , 22 ], both were assessed to have a high risk of bias. The third study, which did not find any effect of VR training on skills, had some concern for risk of bias [ 21 ].

Knowledge and skills

One RCT study with 227 health care professionals assessed knowledge and skills as a combined outcome compared to a waitlist control group, using a self-report survey before and after the VR training [ 19 ]. The training intervention was a VP game designed to practice knowledge and skills related to mental health and substance abuse disorders. To assess effect of the training, participants completed a self-report scale measuring perceived knowledge and skills. Changes between presimulation and postsimulation scores were reported only for the within treatment group ( n = 117), where the composite postsimulation score was significantly higher than the presimulation score, with a large effect size observed. The study was judged to have a high risk of bias in the domain of selection of the reported result.

One single group pretest–posttest study with 100 social work and nursing students assessed the effect of VSP training on attitudes towards individuals with substance abuse disorders [ 23 ]. To assess the effect of the training, participants completed an online pretest and posttest survey including questions from a substance abuse attitudes survey. This study found no significant effect of VR training on attitudes and was assessed as having a serious risk of bias.

Perceived competence

The same single group pretest–posttest study also assessed the effect of a VSP training intervention on perceived competence in screening, brief intervention, and referral to treatment in encounters with patients with substance abuse disorders [ 23 ]. A commonly accepted definition of competence is that it comprises integrated components of knowledge, skills, and attitudes that enable the successful execution of a professional task [ 32 ]. To assess the effect of the training, participants completed an online pretest and posttest survey including questions on perceived competence. The study findings demonstrated a significant increase in perceived competence following the VSP intervention. The risk of bias in this study was judged as serious.

This systematic review aimed to investigate the effectiveness of VR training on knowledge, skills, and attitudes that health professionals need to master in the assessment and treatment of mental health disorders. A narrative synthesis of eight included studies identified VR training interventions that varied in design and educational content. Although mixed results emerged, most studies reported improvements in knowledge and skills after VR training.

We found that all interventions utilized some type of VP design, predominantly VSP interventions. Although our review includes a limited number of studies, it is noteworthy that the distribution of interventions contrasts with a literature review on the use of ‘virtual patient’ in health care education from 2015 [ 30 ], which identified IPS as the most frequent intervention. This variation may stem from our review’s focus on the mental health field, suggesting a different intervention need and distribution than that observed in general medical education. A fundamental aspect of mental health education involves training skills needed for interpersonal communication, clinical interviews, and symptom assessment, which makes VSPs particularly appropriate. While VP games may be suitable for clinical reasoning in medical fields, offering the opportunity to perform technical medical procedures in a virtual environment, these designs may present some limitations for skills training in mental health education. Notably, avatars in a VP game do not comprehend natural language and are incapable of engaging in conversations. Therefore, the continued advancement of conversational agents like VSPs is particularly compelling and considered by scholars to hold the greatest potential for clinical skills training in mental health education [ 3 ]. VSPs, equipped with AI dialogue capabilities, are particularly valuable for repetitive practice in key skills such as interviewing and counseling [ 31 ], which are crucial in the assessment and treatment of mental health disorders. VSPs could also be a valuable tool for the implementation of training methods in mental health education, such as deliberate practice, a method that has gained attention in psychotherapy training in recent years [ 33 ] for its effectiveness in refining specific performance areas through consistent repetition [ 34 ]. Within this evolving landscape, AI system-based large language models (LLMs) like ChatGPT stand out as a promising innovation. Developed from extensive datasets that include billions of words from a variety of sources, these models possess the ability to generate and understand text in a manner akin to human interaction [ 35 ]. The integration of LLMs into educational contexts shows promise, yet careful consideration and thorough evaluation of their limitations are essential [ 36 ]. One concern regarding LLMs is the possibility of generating inaccurate information, which represents a challenge in healthcare education where precision is crucial [ 37 ]. Furthermore, the use of generative AI raises ethical questions, notably because of potential biases in the training datasets, including content from books and the internet that may not have been verified, thereby risking the perpetuation of these biases [ 38 ]. Developing strategies to mitigate these challenges is imperative, ensuring LLMs are utilized safely in healthcare education.

All interventions in our review were based on non-immersive desktop VR systems, which is somewhat surprising considering the growing body of literature highlighting the impact of immersive VR technology in education, as exemplified by reviews such as that of Radianti et al. [ 39 ]. Furthermore, given the recent accessibility of affordable, high-quality head-mounted displays, this observation is noteworthy. Research has indicated that immersive learning based on head-mounted displays generally yields better learning outcomes than non-immersive approaches [ 40 ], making it an interesting research area in mental health care training and education. Studies using immersive interventions were excluded in the present review because of methodological concerns, paralleling findings described in a systematic review on immersive VR in education [ 41 ], suggesting the potential early stage of research within this field. Moreover, the integration of immersive VR technology into mental health care education may encounter challenges associated with complex ethical and regulatory frameworks, including data privacy concerns exemplified by the Oculus VR headset-Facebook integration, which could restrict the implementation of this technology in healthcare setting. Prioritizing specific training methodologies for enhancing skills may also affect the utilization of immersive VR in mental health education. For example, integrating interactive VSPs into a fully immersive VR environment remains a costly endeavor, potentially limiting the widespread adoption of immersive VR in mental health care. Meanwhile, the use of 360-degree videos in immersive VR environments for training purposes [ 42 ] can be realized with a significantly lower budget. Immersive VR offers promising opportunities for innovative training, but realizing its full potential in mental health care education requires broader research validation and the resolution of existing obstacles.

This review bears some resemblance to the systematic review by Jensen et al. on virtual patients in undergraduate psychiatry education [ 13 ] from 2024, which found that virtual patients improved learning outcomes compared to traditional methods. However, these authors’ expansion of the commonly used definition of virtual patient makes their results difficult to compare with the findings in the present review. A recognized challenge in understanding VR application in health care training arises from the literature on VR training for health care personnel, where ‘virtual patient’ is a term broadly used to describe a diverse range of VR interventions, which vary significantly in technology and educational design [ 3 , 30 ]. For instance, reviews might group different interventions using various VR systems and designs under a single label (virtual patient), or primary studies may use misleading or inadequately defined classifications for the virtual patient interventions evaluated. Clarifying the similarities and differences among these interventions is vital to inform development and enhance communication and understanding in educational contexts [ 43 ].

Strengths and limitations

To the best of our knowledge, this is the first systematic review to evaluate the effectiveness of VR training on knowledge, skills, and attitudes in health care professionals and students in assessing and treating mental health disorders. This review therefore provides valuable insights into the use of VR technology in training and education for mental health care. Another strength of this review is the comprehensive search strategy developed by a senior academic librarian at Inland Norway University of Applied Sciences (HINN) and the authors in collaboration with an adviser from KildeGruppen AS (a Norwegian media company). The search strategy was peer-reviewed by an academic librarian at HINN. Advisers from VRINN (an immersive learning cluster in Norway) and SIMInnlandet (a center for simulation in mental health care at Innlandet Hospital Trust) provided assistance in reviewing the VR systems of the studies, while the classification of the learning designs was conducted under the guidance of a VP scholar. This systematic review relies on an established and recognized classification of VR interventions for training health care personnel and may enhance understanding of the effectiveness of VR interventions designed for the training of mental health care personnel.

This review has some limitations. As we aimed to measure the effect of the VR intervention alone and not the effect of a blended training design, the selection of included studies was limited. Studies not covered in this review might have offered different insights. Given the understanding that blended learning designs, where technology is combined with other forms of learning, have significant positive effects on learning outcomes [ 44 ], we were unable to evaluate interventions that may be more effective in clinical settings. Further, by limiting the outcomes to knowledge, skills, and attitudes, we might have missed insights into other outcomes that are pivotal to competence acquisition.

Limitations in many of the included studies necessitate cautious interpretation of the review’s findings. Small sample sizes and weak designs in several studies, coupled with the use of non-validated outcome measures in some studies, diminish the robustness of the findings. Furthermore, the risk of bias assessment in this review indicates a predominantly high or serious risk of bias across most of the studies, regardless of their design. In addition, the heterogeneity of the studies in terms of study design, interventions, and outcome measures prevented us from conducting a meta-analysis.

Further research

Future research on the effectiveness of VR training for specific learning outcomes in assessing and treating mental health disorders should encompass more rigorous experimental studies with larger sample sizes. These studies should include verifiable descriptions of the VR interventions and employ validated tools to measure outcomes. Moreover, considering that much professional learning involves interactive and reflective practice, research on VR training would probably be enhanced by developing more in-depth study designs that evaluate not only the immediate learning outcomes of VR training but also the broader learning processes associated with it. Future research should also concentrate on utilizing immersive VR training applications, while additionally exploring the integration of large language models to augment interactive learning in mental health care. Finally, this review underscores the necessity in health education research involving VR to communicate research findings using agreed terms and classifications, with the aim of providing a clearer and more comprehensive understanding of the research.

This systematic review investigated the effect of VR training interventions on knowledge, skills, and attitudes in the assessment and treatment of mental health disorders. The results suggest that VR training interventions can promote knowledge and skills acquisition. Further studies are needed to evaluate VR training interventions as a learning tool for mental health care providers. This review emphasizes the necessity to improve future study designs. Additionally, intervention studies of immersive VR applications are lacking in current research and should be a future area of focus.

Availability of data and materials

Detailed search strategies from each database is available in the DataverseNO repository, https://doi.org/10.18710/TI1E0O .

Abbreviations

Virtual Reality

Cave Automatic Virtual Environment

Randomized Controlled Trial

Non-Randomized study

Virtual Standardized Patient

Interactive Patient Scenario

Virtual Patient

Post Traumatic Stress Disorder

Standardized Patient

Artificial intelligence

Inland Norway University of Applied Sciences

Doctor of Philosophy

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Acknowledgements

The authors thank Mole Meyer, adviser at SIMInnlandet, Innlandet Hospital Trust, and Keith Mellingen, manager at VRINN, for their assistance with the categorization and classification of VR interventions, and Associate Professor Inga Hege at the Paracelcus Medical University in Salzburg for valuable contributions to the final classification of the interventions. The authors would also like to thank Håvard Røste from the media company KildeGruppen AS, for assistance with the search strategy; Academic Librarian Elin Opheim at the Inland Norway University of Applied Sciences for valuable peer review of the search strategy; and the Library at the Inland Norway University of Applied Sciences for their support. Additionally, we acknowledge the assistance provided by OpenAI’s ChatGPT for support with translations and language refinement.

Open access funding provided by Inland Norway University Of Applied Sciences The study forms a part of a collaborative PhD project funded by South-Eastern Norway Regional Health Authority through Innlandet Hospital Trust and the Inland University of Applied Sciences.

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CWS, KS, BS, and JS collaboratively designed the study. CWS and JS collected and analysed the data and were primarily responsible for writing the manuscript text. All authors contributed to the development of the search strategy. IBN conducted the literature searches and authored the chapter on the search strategy in the manuscript. All authors reviewed, gave feedback, and granted their final approval of the manuscript.

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Additional file 1: table 2..

Effects of VR training in the included studies: Randomized controlled trials (RCTs) and non-randomized studies (NRSs).

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Steen, C.W., Söderström, K., Stensrud, B. et al. The effectiveness of virtual reality training on knowledge, skills and attitudes of health care professionals and students in assessing and treating mental health disorders: a systematic review. BMC Med Educ 24 , 480 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1186/s12909-024-05423-0

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The literature and performance course aims to explore the relationship between literature and theatre. The main focus of the course is the interaction between the literary skills of close reading, critical writing and discussion and the practical, aesthetic and symbolic elements of performance. The course is organized into three parts, each ...
The effectiveness of virtual reality training on knowledge, skills and
Virtual reality (VR) training can enhance health professionals' learning. However, there are ambiguous findings on the effectiveness of VR as an educational tool in mental health. We therefore reviewed the existing literature on the effectiveness of VR training on health professionals' knowledge, skills, and attitudes in assessing and treating patients with mental health disorders.

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IB Language and Literature 2.0

Language and Literature Text Types

Advertisements

Sample Responses:

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Key Features of advertisements

Charity Appeals

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key features of charity appeals

Recruitment Campaigns

key features of recruitment campaigns

key features of speeches

Opinion Columns

Key features of opinion columns

Comic Strips

Key features of comic strips

Satirical Cartoons

sample responses:

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key features of satirical cartoons

Magazine Articles

Key features of Magazines

key features of interviews

key features of blogs

Information Texts

Key features of information texts

Infographics

key features of infographics

Scientific Articles

key features of scientific articles

News Reports

Key Features of News Writing

Descriptive Passages

sample Responses:

Key features of descriptive passages

Key features of diaries

Key features of letters

Travel Writing

Key Features of Travel Writing

Advisory Texts

key features of advisory texts

Texts for Children

key features of texts for children

Prose Fiction

key features of prose fiction

key features of poetry

Prose Non-fiction

key features of prose non-fiction