WRITTEN ASSIGNMENT

1. WRITTEN ASSIGNMENT • ENGLISH B - STANDARD LEVEL – MAY 2015

3. WhatistheWrittenAssignment? • It is an inter-textual reading task based on the core: Social Relationships, Global Issues, Communication and Media. • It is a word-processed task of 300-400 words (excluding bibliography) based on three source texts previously selected by the student and directly related to one or more of the core topics. • Together with this task, students must produce a rationale of 150-200 words explaining main aspects of their work.

4. Whatisexpectedfromstudents? • Students must produce a piece of writing from the recommended list of text-types. • The content must be linked to one or more of the core topics and based on the information gathered from the three (minimum) or four (maximum) source texts. Students should: • address the subject presented in the rationale • organize the information from the sources in a manner appropriate to the task • use language appropriate to the text type and communicative purpose.

5. Whatis a rationale? Students must write a 150–200 word rationale introducing the assignment which must include: • the subject investigated • a brief description of each of the sources • the student’s intended aim(s) • explanation of how the student intends to achieve his or her aim(s)—choice of text types, audience, register, style and so on.

6. Howisitassessed? • It is externally assessed is worth 20% of the overall mark. • The written assignment submitted for external assessment must be the student’s own work. • Academic honesty, authenticity and proper use of intellectual property are expected at all times. If any instances of them are known, students will not be eligible for a mark in that component and no grade will be awarded

7. Theimportance of thewordcount • Work falling significantly beneath the required word count is unlikely to meet the stated requirements of the task and is therefore likely to receive low marks. • If the word limit is exceeded, the assessment will be based on the rationale and the first 400 words of the task.

8. AssessmentCriteria There are three assessment criteria:

9. CRITERION A: Rationale and task How well does the student use the rationale and the task in order to accomplish the assignment? • How clearly has the task been introduced in the rationale? • How successfully does the task address the subject and aim(s) stated in the rationale? • How appropriate is the choice of the text type to the task?

12. CRITERION B: Organization and development How well are ideas organized and developed? Note: Criterion B is applied on the task only

13. CRITERION C: Language How appropriately and effectively does the student use language in relation to the task? Note: Criterion C is applied on the task only

15. WA stages • Considerthecoretopics: choosethearea in whichtodevelopyour WA • Selectthreeorfoursourcetextsthat relate toyourarea of interest • Establishconnectionsbetweenthetexts • Whatisthemain idea of eachtext? • What do theysayaboutthecoretopic? • Plan, plan, plan: chooseyouraudience, text-type,purpose, tone. (Thisinformationwillhelpyouwhileproducingyourrationale)

16. Communication and Media • Advertising • Censorship • Radio and television • Telephones • Internet

17. Social Relationships • Celebrations, social and religiousevents • Taboos versus whatissociallyacceptable • Relationships (friendship, work, family) • Cultural identity

18. Global Issues • Impact of manonnature • Global warming • Waterscarcity • Globalization • Recycling • Fishexhaustion • Migration (rural-urban) • Poverty • Loss of cultural heritage

19. Selectingthesourcetexts • Recommended sources are: Articles, Blogs, Interviews, Audio/visual materials • The use of pages such as Wikipedia, Online Forums or any other user-based page (wikis) are not recommended. Note: All your choices must be consulted with your teacher

20. SL Texttypes • Article, column • Blog • Brochure, leaflet, flyer, pamphlet, ad • Essay • Interview in any form • Report • Review • Set of instructions, guidelines • Written correspondence

21. Article • The term 'article' applies to a very wide range of styles and approaches. Clearly, it carries the notion of a journalistic discourse, but the context – which includes where it is to be published, and to whom it is to be addressed – will have a powerful influence on how it is written • Title / headline • Appropriate / typical structure of paragraphs • Is there a sense of effective address to the public ? • Is the opening, in particular, attractive / attention-catching ?

22. Blog/diaryentry • A distinction: both text types typically present personal experience and comment, but a blog is more of a public statement, whereas a diary is more of a private reflection. • Conventions : are there conventions for the relatively new blog - or for the anarchically personal diary ? • register: informality enriched with sophistication - if both text types are personal, some informality can be expected in register and rhetoric, but higher marks will go to scripts which combine colloquialism with dashes of complex phrasing and effects • basic paragraphing applied with clarity: while one can think of examples of real diaries which ignore basic paragraphing, students writing an exam script should be expected to show that they understand that sensible paragraphing aids clarity.

23. Brochure, leaflet, flyer, pamphlet, advertisement • What all of these formats have in common is that they are concerned to disseminate information quickly and concisely. The task may define an emphasis on informing (e.g the health leaflet) or on promoting (e.g. the publicity brochure). • format – does it look like, for instance, a brochure ? titles, headings / use of sections – bullet points, stars, etc • 'address' - all of these text types include the idea of a form of direct address to a target audience … are there indications that the student understands this, and expresses such address? • 'promotional language' – usually, these text types are all hortatory, they encourage the target audience to agree with what is being presented, to 'buy the idea' … so to what extent does the style + rhetoric achieve this effect?

24. Essay • Conventions - There are many different conventions for many different types of essay - which are expected, if any in particular, and how are the conventions to be recognised ? ... to say nothing of how much can be expected from SL students. Will the elements below be recognised as 'conventions' ? • Register - Tricky, this, because teachers seem to have differing expectations as to how formal / impersonal an essay should be – for instance, some encourage and some discourage the use of the pronoun 'I'. Best to reward consistency, rather than penalise for expectations that may not be valid. • Rhetoric - Touches of rhetoric expected, rather than the full-blown regular effects more typical of a speech … ? • Cohesive devices - Clear and appropriate paragraphing, emphasising the logical steps of the argument + good use of sequence markers – all expected in a good response.

25. Interview • There are two common varieties of 'interview': the 'transcript' and the 'embedded'. The Transcript reads like a script, being an accurate transcription of the words used, without commentary or description. The Embedded variety is essentially an article, based on description and commentary, with liberal quotation (which may be either direct quotation or reported speech).

26. Report • The essence of this text type is the ability to present a clear explanation of a given subject – which involves (i) analysis, (ii) summary and (iii) organization. • organization: How the text should best be organised will again be determined by the precise nature of the task, but these main elements should probably be recognisable : background … overall description … description of important details … concluding summary. • format: headings … bullet points ... clear, purposeful paragraphing? • register: How well, and consistently, does the candidate use (basically) formal language?

27. Review • This text type is really a journalistic form, which aims to combine objective information with subjective opinion. The (dominant) element of 'opinion' should involve analysis and evaluation – while the journalism context usually demands that the overall impact should be interesting and entertaining. A review is not the same thing as a commentary (which implies an academic context). • format- elements of journalistic format: title, byline, short paragraphs - perhaps subheadings/titles • 'address' - How well does the script establish lively, direct communication that will interest the audience? This is likely to involve a semi-formal register (for clarity and concise explanation) with dashes of informality to convey the personal tone + vivid coment / rhetoric.

28. Set of instructions, guidelines • The essence of these two related but distinct text types is that they both aim to give precise guidance as to how to handle a practical situation. The key to good instructions is that they give concrete explanation in a precise sequence, whereas the key to good guidelines is that they give general explanation, which may or may not involve precise sequence. • clear sequence (for instructions) – a sense of logical steps • attention to detail + control of essential, useful information • anticipation of difficulties – understanding which parts of the process may cause problems for the uninformed • empathy with audience – most easily detected by the ability to anticipate difficulties, (e.g. explanation of technical terms, above), but may also involve use of encouraging, helpful comments • format – a good response is recognisable by the use of some or all of these: headings, numbered sections, short paragraphs

29. Writtencorrespondance: formal/informal • This group of text types involve writing directly to a specific reader – as opposed to the other text types, which all involve writing for a generalised or notional audience. The fundamental distinction between 'formal and 'informal' is that in the formal type the purpose of the letter is more important than the relationship with the reader, whereas in the informal type, the relationship between writer and reader is at least as important as the purpose.

30. IMPORTANT DATES • Friday 13th: Selection of sourcetexts • Monday 16th: SIMCE MOCK TEST 2 • Friday 20th: Integratedskills test + readingcomprehensiononsourcetexts • Week of 23rd: WA preparation • July 2th: EXAM (rationale + task)