IB Language B first assessment 2020; English B focus
Teach English B for the Chinese ESL audience, supported by the official English B specimens. Themes: identities, experiences, human ingenuity, social organization, sharing the planet. Future 2029 briefs are not the 2026 assessment model.
Writing Paper 1 25%, listening and reading Paper 2 50%, individual oral 25%. SL writing 75 min (250–400 words), HL 90 min (450–600 words); HL studies two literary works and uses a literary extract for the oral.
Productive skills; five themes · English audience, register and purposeful writing
A proposal usually states a need, a practical plan and expected benefits. A friendly message can use a more personal tone.
Grammar and vocabulary should serve the message; a memorized opening cannot compensate for missing task content.
Checked example
For a proposal about a reading club, identify the purpose, meeting schedule, supervision and expected benefit. Use polite, specific recommendations.
We recommend a supervised Thursday meeting is clearer than we must have a great club soon.
Limits and practice
English B is language acquisition, not Language A literary criticism.
Follow the SL or HL word range and task choice; do not pad the response with unrelated memorized phrases.
Which sentence best suits a formal proposal?
Answer: We recommend a supervised weekly reading meeting with a clear sign-up process.
Receptive skills · English listening and reading inference
Read or listen for the whole message before isolating a word. Contrast markers such as but can change the interpretation of a sentence.
An inference must be supported by the text; plausible outside knowledge is not enough.
Checked example
Longer than expected signals an inconvenience. Made it worthwhile then gives a positive overall evaluation of the view.
A suitable answer preserves both parts rather than selecting only the negative clause.
Limits and practice
A transcript is useful for analysis but does not replace listening practice with real audio.
This package needs school-recorded or licensed listening material before receptive-skill parity can be claimed.
What is the speaker's overall attitude in the original sentence?
Answer: The journey was inconvenient but the view justified it.
Interactive skills · English oral communication and follow-up
At SL, the oral uses a visual stimulus linked to course themes. At HL, it begins with a literary extract from a studied work.
Present clearly, then respond to the teacher's questions with relevant detail, reasons and examples.
Checked example
For a visual, describe people sharing dishes, link this to a particular cultural practice you have studied and qualify the comparison.
If asked about differences, explain one specific experience rather than listing stereotypes.
Limits and practice
HL requires two literary works and extract-based discussion; an SL picture lesson alone does not cover that requirement.
The teacher conducts and records the actual oral; self-written answers cannot substitute for interaction.
Which opening is most careful?
Answer: The image shows shared dishes; this may connect to a specific communal dining practice studied in class.