MYP Language B Standard Assessment Criteria Criterion A: Oral communicationmessage and interaction Maximum: 8 To what extent does the

student show the ability to communicate ideas, interact and maintain the flow of the conversation? To what extent can the student: communicate information, ideas and opinions respond and react to questions and ideas (familiar and spontaneous situations) contribute to the conversation and engage actively maintain a flow of ideas and a logical continuity in the conversation?

Tasks used to assess criteria A and B often include role plays, discussions, pair work, interviews, presentations with question and answer sessions, and so on. These tasks give students the maximum opportunity to demonstrate genuine, spontaneous interaction. Achievement Level descriptor level 0 The student does not reach a standard described by any of the descriptors given below. The students communication of information is incoherent; ideas are generally irrelevant and/or repetitive; opinions are unsupported. The student has difficulty in responding, even in familiar situations. The student often needs prompting to encourage a response; conversation/dialogue does not flow. 34 The student has some difficulty in communicating information; ideas are sometimes irrelevant and/or repetitive; some opinions are supported. The student shows understanding through responding

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correctly in familiar situations. The student needs occasional prompting to encourage a response, and this contributes to some lapses in the flow of conversation. 56 The student communicates information clearly, though there is some difficulty with more-complex ideas. The students ideas are relevant but not always developed; opinions are usually justified. The student shows understanding through responding correctly in familiar and some spontaneous situations. The student can maintain the flow of conversation, and may show some active and/or spontaneous engagement. The student needs occasional prompting but this does not disturb the flow of conversation. 78 The student communicates information clearly and effectively; both simple and complex ideas are relevant and developed; opinions are justified. The student shows understanding through responding correctly in familiar and spontaneous situations. The student contributes to the coherent flow of conversation; and is actively and spontaneously engaged. Any prompting is natural and does not disturb the flow. Notes Reading from prepared texts or the use of memorized speeches does not constitute real interaction according to language B objectives. Teachers should bear in mind the different cultural norms and acceptable practices of the target language when engaged in conversation. Spontaneous engagement in the conversation needs to be appropriate to the conversation and to the cultural context.

Criterion B: Oral communicationlanguage Maximum: 8

To what extent does the student show the ability to use the language effectively and accurately? To what extent can the student:

use clear pronunciation and/or intonation correctly use a range of vocabulary correctly use a range of grammatical structures?

Tasks used to assess criteria A and B often include role plays, discussions, pair work, interviews, presentations with question and answer sessions, and so on. These tasks give students the maximum opportunity to demonstrate their ability to use the language. Achievement Level descriptor level 0 The student does not reach a standard described by any of the descriptors given below. The students pronunciation and/or intonation are inaccurate and consistently interfere with comprehensibility. The students range of vocabulary and structures is limited and/or is used inappropriately or incorrectly. Errors interfere frequently. 34 The students pronunciation and/or intonation have mistakes that sometimes interfere with comprehensibility. The student uses a basic range of vocabulary and structures, with occasional mistakes. Errors sometimes interfere. 56 The students pronunciation and/or intonation have occasional mistakes but these rarely interfere with comprehensibility. The student uses a range of vocabulary and structures appropriately; and attempts to use idiom and register appropriate to the context. Errors rarely interfere. 78 The students pronunciation and/or intonation have occasional mistakes, but these do not interfere with comprehensibility.

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The student uses a wide range of vocabulary and varied structures appropriately, including idiom and register appropriate to context. Errors do not interfere. Notes Pronunciation/intonation: clarity must be considered here, rather than issues of accent. Register: this refers to tone, vocabulary, grammar and sentence structure, and their appropriateness for the situation.

Criterion C: Writingmessage and organization Maximum: 8 To what extent does the student show the ability to communicate, organize and support relevant ideas? To what extent can the student:

provide information and ideas develop ideas use a format and structure appropriate to the task to organize the work?

Tasks used to assess criteria C and D often include letter writing, advertisements, essays, creative writing, presentations, and so on. These tasks give students the maximum opportunity to demonstrate their ability to communicate ideas. Achievement Level descriptor level 0 The student does not reach a standard described by any of the descriptors given below. The students communication of information is incoherent; ideas are generally irrelevant and/or repetitive; opinions are unsupported. The lack of structure contributes to the poor clarity of the message.

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34

The student has some difficulty in communicating information; ideas are sometimes irrelevant and/or repetitive; opinions are often unsupported. The student makes an attempt at structuring the work, and uses some basic cohesive devices.

56

The student communicates information clearly, though there is some difficulty with more-complex ideas. The students ideas are relevant but not always supported; opinions are sometimes justified. The student structures the work appropriately, which adds to the clarity of the message; there is an appropriate use of cohesive devices.

78

The student communicates information clearly and effectively; both simple and complex ideas are relevant and supported; opinions are justified. The student structures the work clearly and effectively, which adds to the clarity and coherence of the message; there is effective use of cohesive devices.

Notes Structure: this refers to the format or pattern of the piece of writing. For example, this may involve an introduction, development and conclusion as in some types of formal essay. Cohesive devices: this refers to the grammatical and/or lexical items that link the different elements of a text. Teachers should make sure that students are aware of the different writing norms and practices of the target language when setting writing tasks.

Criterion D: Writinglanguage Maximum: 8 To what extent does the student show the ability to use the language effectively and accurately? To what extent can the student:

correctly use a range of vocabulary correctly use a range of grammatical structures show accuracy in spelling or writing of characters write with a particular audience in mind?

Tasks used to assess criteria C and D often include letter writing, advertisements, essays, creative writing, presentations, and so on. These tasks give students the maximum opportunity to demonstrate their ability to use the language. Achievement Level descriptor level 0 The student does not reach a standard described by any of the descriptors given below. The student uses a limited range of vocabulary and structures; these may be used inappropriately or incorrectly. Errors interfere frequently. Spelling/writing are inaccurate and interfere with communication. The writing does not reflect a sense of audience. 34 The student uses a basic range of vocabulary and structures, with occasional mistakes. Errors sometimes interfere. There are occasional mistakes in spelling/writing that sometimes interfere with communication. There is an attempt to use appropriate register, which shows some evidence of a sense of audience. 56 The student uses a range of vocabulary and structures appropriately; and attempts to use idiom appropriate to the context. Errors rarely interfere. There are occasional mistakes in spelling/writing but these do not interfere with communication. The student shows a sense of audience, though there may be some lapses in using the appropriate register. 78 The student uses a wide range of vocabulary and varied

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structures appropriately and uses idiom appropriate to the context. Errors do not interfere. The student shows a good command of spelling/writing. The student shows a clear sense of audience by consistently using an appropriate register. Notes The importance attached to the assessment of spelling and/or writing will vary from language to language. For example, the techniques of writing will be particularly important in languages such as Chinese or Japanese, whereas spelling will take on greater importance in English or Russian. Sense of audience is linked to register: this refers to tone, vocabulary, grammar and sentence structure, and their appropriateness for the situation.

Criterion E: Reading comprehension Maximum: 16 (8 x 2) To what extent does the student show the ability to comprehend a piece of writing in the target language? To what extent can the student:

identify both stated and implied information identify main ideas and supporting details draw conclusions and recognize implied opinions and attitudes identify aspects of format and style?

Tasks used to assess criterion E often include letters, advertisements, magazine and newspaper articles, prose, and so on. The questions must address each level descriptor so that students have the opportunity to achieve all levels. Achievement Level descriptor level 0 The student does not reach a standard described by any of the

descriptors given below. 12 The student identifies basic information stated in texts with familiar language. The student shows a limited understanding of the text(s) overall. 34 The student identifies stated information, main ideas and some supporting details in texts with familiar language. The student shows an understanding of some parts of the text(s). 56 The student identifies stated and implied information, main ideas and supporting details in texts with familiar and unfamiliar language and/or complex ideas. The student draws conclusions. The student shows an understanding of most parts of the text(s). 78 The student identifies stated and implied information, main ideas and supporting details in texts with familiar and unfamiliar language and/or complex ideas. The student draws conclusions and recognizes opinions and attitudes implied within the text. The student identifies some aspects of format and style where appropriate. The student shows a good understanding of the text(s) overall. Notes Please note that the final level for criterion E should be multiplied by two in order to give equal weighting to comprehension and expressive skills overall. However, this should only be done when determining the final grade (see the Determining the final grade section for further information). Teachers must choose texts and set tasks that will allow the students to reach the highest levels for the criterion: questions must pertain to the descriptors.

Although multiple-choice questions may be appropriate in addressing the lower levels of criterion E, they are not recommended for addressing the higher levels: open-ended questions are more effective in allowing students to demonstrate all the skills listed in the higher levels. When students respond in the target language, they should not be penalized for language errors.