Secondary School Syllabus and Examination Specification of English Code No. 101 for class 9 and 10 Under NSQF 

 

English-Communicative

Code No. 101

 

Total no. of Periods: 150

 

This is a two-year syllabus for classes IX and X. The CBSE has prepared a package for this syllabus called Interact in English. It includes the following:

For Students:

• Main Course Book
• Literature Reader
• Work Book
• Long Reading Texts

 

Interact in English has been designed to develop the student’s communicative competence in English. Therefore, content selection is determined by the student’s present and future academic, social and professional needs. Since, it is a skill-based course; teachers can identify appropriate activities and exercises from the Main Course Book which can be done in the allotted number of periods.  However, a judicious balance of all activities will help in reinforcing the skills.

The overall aims of the course are:

• to enable the learner to communicate effectively and appropriately in real-life situations.
• to use English effectively for study- purposes across the curriculum.
• to develop and integrate the use of the four language skills, i.e. listening, speaking, reading and writing.
• to develop interest in and appreciation of literature.
• to revise and reinforce structures already learnt.

 

Teachers may kindly keep the following in mind to develop these competencies:

 

Creativity: Students should be encouraged to think on their own and express their ideas using their experience, knowledge and imagination, rather than being text or teacher dependent.

 

Self-monitoring: Students should be encouraged to monitor their progress, space out their learning, so they should be encouraged to see language not just as a functional tool, but .is an important part of personal development and inculcation of values.

Teaching/Testing Objectives

READING

By the end of the course, students should be able to:

1. read silently at varying speeds depending on the purpose of reading;*
2. adopt different strategies for different types of text, both literary and non-literary;
3. recognize the organization of a text;
4. identify the main points of a text;
5. understand relations between different parts of a text through lexical and grammatical cohesion devices.
6. anticipate and predict what will come next in a text;*
7. deduce the meaning of unfamiliar lexical items in a given context:
8. consult a dictionary to obtain information on the meaning and use of lexical items;*
9. analyze, interpret, infer (and evaluate*) the ideas in the text;
10. select and extract from a text information required for a specific purpose (and record it in note form*)
11. transcode information from verbal to diagrammatic form;
12. retrieve and synthesize information from a range of reference material using study skills such as skimming and scanning*;
13. interpret texts by relating them to other material on the same theme (and to their own experience and knowledge*); and
14. read extensively on their own.

WRITING

By the end of the course, students should be able to:

• express ideas in clear and grammatically correct English, using appropriate punctuation and cohesion devices;
• write in a style appropriate for communicative purposes;
• plan, organize and present ideas coherently by introducing, developing and concluding a topic;
• write a clear description (e.g. of a place, a person, an object or a system);
• write a clear account of events (e.g. a process, a narrative, a trend or a cause-effect relationship);
• compare and contrast ideas and arrive at conclusions;

• present an argument, supporting it with appropriate examples;
• use an appropriate style and format to write letters (formal and informal), biographical sketches, dialogues, speeches, reports, articles, e-mails and diary entries;
• monitor, check and revise written work;
• expand notes into a piece of writing:
• summarize or make notes from a given text; and
• recode information from one text type to another (e.g. diary entry to letter, advertisement to report, diagram to verbal form)

LISTENING

By the end of the course, the students should be able to:

• adopt different strategies according to the purpose of listening (e.g. for pleasure, for general interest, for specific information);
• use linguistic and non-linguistic features of the context as clues to understanding and interpreting what is heard (e.g. cohesion devices, key words, intonation, gesture, background noises);
• listen to a talk or conversation and understand the topic and main points;
• listen for information required for a specific purpose, (e.g. in radio broadcast, commentaries, airport and railway station announcements)
• distinguish main points from supporting details, and relevant from irrelevant information;
• understand and interpret messages conveyed in person or by telephone;
• understand and respond appropriately to directive language, (e.g. instruction, advice, requests and warning) and
• understand and interpret spontaneous spoken discourse in familiar social situations.

SPEAKING

By the end of the course, students should be able to:

• speak intelligibly using appropriate word stress, sentence stress and intonation patterns;
• adopt different strategies to convey ideas effectively according to purpose, topic and audience (including the appropriate use of polite expressions);
• narrate incidents andevents, real or imaginary in a logical sequence;
• present oral reports or summaries; make announcements clearly and confidently;
• express and argue a point of view clearly and effectively;
• take active part in group discussions, showing ability to expressagreement or disagreement, to summarize ideas, to elicit the views of others, and to present own ideas;
• express and respond to personal feelings, opinions and attitudes;
• conveymessages effectively in person or bytelephone;
• frame questions so as to elicit the desired response, and respond appropriateto questions; and
• participate in spontaneous spoken discourse in familiar social situations.

GRAMMAR

By the end of the course, students should be able to use the following accurately and appropriately in context

Verbs

Tenses: present/past forms

• simple/continuous forms
• perfect forms
• future time reference
• modals
• active and passive voice
• subject-verb concord
• non-finite verb forms (infinitives and participles)

2. Sentence Structure

• connectors
• types of sentences:
• affirmative/interrogative sentence negation
• exclamations
• types of phrases and clauses
•                finite and non-finite subordinate clauses
•                noun clauses and phrases
•                adjective clauses and phrases
•                adverb clauses and phrases
• indirect speech
• comparison
• nominalization

3. Other Areas

• determiners
• pronouns
• prepositions

LITERATURE

By the end of the course, students should be able to understand, interpret, evaluate and respond to the following features in a literary text:

1. Character, as revealed through

• appearance and distinguishing features,
• socio-economic background
• action/events,
• expression of feelings,
• speech and dialogues

2. Plot/story/theme, emerging through main events,

• progression of events and links between them;
• sequence of events denoting theme.

3. Setting, as seen through time and place, socio-economic and cultural background, people, beliefs and attitudes.

4. Form

• rhyme
• rhythm
• simile
• metaphor,
• alliteration
• pun
• repetition

Assessment in class IX and X

The English curriculum aims at the harmonious development of the four language skills, and thus of the learners’ communicative capacity. Teaching/ testing objectives have been set for each of these skills, indicating the level of achievement expected of the learners. However, although it is possible to assess these skills and sub-skills, it is not possible to test all of them through a formal, time-bound examination. It is, therefore, essential to measure the level of attainment in these skills through Formative assessment, in addition to the Summative assessment. The overall pattern of the two modes of assessment at Class IX and X is as follows:

The academic year will be divided into two assessment periods:

weightage

Summative 1- from April – September          30%

Formative I                                                        -10%

Formative II                                                       – 10%

Summative II – from October – March            30 %

Formative II                                                       – 10%

Formative IV                                                       – 10%

Formative Assessment is a tool used by the teacher to continuously monitor student progress in a non-threatening, supportive environment. It involves regulardescriptive feedback, a chance for the student to reflect on the performance, take advice and improve upon it. It involves students being an essential part of assessment from designing criteria to assessing self or peers. If used effectively it can improve student performance tremendously while raising the self-esteem of the child and reducing the work load of the teacher.

 

Features of Formative Assessment

• is diagnostic and remedial
• makes the provision for effective feedback
• provides the platform forth active involvement of students in their own learning.
• enables teachers to adjust teaching to take account of the results of assessment
• recognizes the profound influence assessment has on the motivation and self-esteem of students, both of which are crucial influences on learning
• recognizes the need for students to be able to assess themselves and understand how to improve
• builds on students’ prior knowledge and experience in designing what is taught.
• incorporates varied learning styles into deciding how and what to teach.
• encourages students to understand the criteria that will be used to judge their work

• offers an opportunity to students to improve their work after feedback,
• helps students to support their peers, and expect to be supported by them.

Formative Assessment is thus carried out during a course of instruction for providing continuous feedback to both the teachers and the learners to take decisions regarding appropriate modifications in the transactional procedures and learning activities.

Problem Solving Assessment:

Along with the use of modified strategies in the teaching learning process, it also becomes imperative that students are given training in all skills so that during the II semester they are able to perform well in the PSA. It is widely acknowledged fact that research and analytical skills, the ability to apply basic concepts of different subjects, solve application based problems in Mathematics and Science, comprehend and analyze written texts and effective communication are the skills which ensure success in Higher Studies and Professional areas:

 The features:

• Compulsory for all students of Classes IX and carry 90 minutes. There will be 60 items of MCQ type.
• No specific syllabus for ‘Problem Solving Assessment'(CBSE-PSA)
• It will assess Quantitative Reasoning, Qualitative Reasoning and Language Conventions. They would be assessing student’s ability to process, interpret and use information rather than assessing student’s prior subject matter knowledge.
• The Assessment in language will contain items that will assess grammar, usage, vocabulary in context and passage-completion, designed to improve the generic and higher order thinking skills.
• TheCBSE-PSA will be conducted in January-February and counted towards FA-4 which is 10% of total assessments of class IX. This assessment will also be carried forward towards the FA-4 in class X. This score will be reflected in one Language (English or Hindi), Mathematics, Science and Social Science. The same score will be reflected in FA-4 for class IX and X.
• The students will have the option to improve their PSA score in class X, as they can take the test with class IX students of that Session in January-February. The best scores will be reflected in the final certificate in case of those applying for improvement.
• Needless to say, that there will be no separate time tables/periods tor teaching or practice of PSA, because the skills are incorporated in the course of teaching.

Note:

1. All activities related to Formative Assessment such as Language games, quizzes, projects, role plays, dramatization, script writing etc. must be done as ‘in class’ and ‘in school’ activities, supervised by the teacher.

Continuous Assessment refers to the assessment of student’s achievement throughout the year, through a variety of activities field trips and visits outside the schools are also carried out within the school hours: such activities may be formal or informal, but in orderto assess listening and speaking skills, it is important that a large proportion of the marks allotted should be derived from informal procedures.

Conversation skills: Speaking and Listening Assessment (SL): This area relates to the teaching/testing objectives for these two skills or language learning, the importance of conversation skills cannot be underestimated.

Assessment of Speaking and Listening Skills in Secondary Classes

The CBSE introduced the formal assessment of speaking and listening skills in classes IX and X w.e.f. the session 2012-13. As a part of the CCE, it is believed that assessment should be used to control and regulate the quality and also to maintain the desired standards of performance in specific areas of learning. As good communication skills raise the self-esteem of a student and gives him/ her confidence to face the challenges of life, it is desired that the student acquires proficiency in it by the time he or she complete secondary education. In the present time, speaking and listening are considered to be the essential skills of learning a language which are extensively used in one’s life. Hence, the formal assessment of speaking and listening skills has been added in the overall assessment scheme with a view to bring in a ‘washback’ effect in the teaching process. While the focus of listening skills is to assess a student’s competency in listening for understanding the main points for identifying general and specific information for a purpose distinguishing the main points from the supporting details, interpreting messages understanding and following instructions, advice, requests etc. the linguistic and non-linguistic features of a language etc. and appropriate activities may be used or assessing the above mentioned objectives.

The assessment of speaking skills is based on four aspects of a language which include language functions, grammar, lexis or range of vocabulary and phonology. Students will be assessed on a scale of 1-5 wherein is the lowest and 5 is the highest. If a student performs very well but doesn’t completely fall in the highest category he or she can be marked in between 3 and 5. This will give a student a wider range where the performance can be pitched.

 

The descriptors for three bands are given below for all the four areas:

Language descriptors – Bl and B2

The overall assessment policy for class IX and X seeks to measure the four skills. Listening and reading, however, can be assessed in this way, through activities which lead to a written product such as notes, a table or a summary. This type of assessment however should notbea test of writing skills. Students should be awarded marks as objectively as possible according to the extent to which they have understood, whether through reading or through listening. They should not be penalized in such assignments for errors in punctuation, spelling or grammar.

Other assignments, however, will focus on writing skills and involve extended writing. This takes place through writing skills activities in the Main Course Book, and via certain activities in the Literature Reader. Assessment of written work forms an important and integral part of the overall assessment of the student’s ability in the use of the English language. It is in this area very often that subjectivity creeps in and mars the judgment in evaluation because of a lack of clear – cut guidelines for the teachers.

In the new curriculum for English, each student’s written work has to be assessed throughout the year in an informal manner. For this, it becomes essential to provide a rating scale to help teachers to make formative assessment objective and uniform. The assignments should vary each year. Throughout the year, the teacher should keep a record of marks awarded for assignments and activities carried out as part of formative assessment.

 

Reading Project

Inculcating good reading habits in children has always been a concern for all stakeholders in education. The purpose is to create independent thinking individuals with the ability to not only create their own knowledge but also critically interpret, analyze and evaluate it with objectivity and fairness. This will also help students in learning and acquiring better language skills.

Creating learners for the 21st century involves making them independent learners who can learn, unlearn and relearn’ if our children are in the habit of leading they will learn to reinvent themselves and deal with the many challenges that lie ahead of them.

Reading is not merely decoding information or pronouncing words correctly, it is an interactive dialogue between the author and the reader in which, the reader and author share their experiences and knowledge with each other. Good readers are critical readers with an ability to arrive at a deeper understanding of not only the world presented in the book but also of the real world around them.

Consequently, they become independent thinkers capable of taking their own decisions in life rationally. Hence, a few activities are suggested below which teachers may use as a part of the reading project.

• Short review
• Dramatization of the story
• Commentary on the characters

• Critical evaluation of the plot, story line and characters
• Comparing and contrasting the characters within the story and with other characters in stories by the same author or by the other authors
• Extrapolating about the story’s ending or life of characters after the story ends
• Identifying characters’ actions in the story
• Making an audio story- out of the novel/text to be read out to younger children
• Interacting with the author
• Holding a literature test where various characters interact with each other
• Acting like authors/poets/dramatists, to defend their work and characters
• Symposiums and seminars for introducing a book, an author, or a theme
• Finding similar text in other languages, native or otherwise and looking at differences and similarities.
• Creating graphic novels out of novels/short stories read
• Creating their own stories

Teachers may opt for:-

• One book;
• Books of one genre; to be read by the whole class.

Teacher may select books suitable to the age and level of the learners. Care ought to be taken to choose books that are appropriate in terms of language, theme and content and which do not hurt the sensibilities of any child.

Teachers may later suggest books from other languages but dealing with the same themes as an extended activity.

The Project should lead to independent learning/reading skills and hence the chosen book/selection should not be taught in class, but may be introduced through activities and be left for the students to read at their own pace. Teachers may, however, choose to assess a child’s progress or success in reading the book by asking for a verbal or written progress reports, looking at the diary entries of students, engaging in a discussion about the book, giving a short quiz or a worksheet about the book/ short story The mode of assessment may be decided by the teacher as seen fit.

These may be used for Formative Assessments only. It may be noted that this reading project is   apart from the long reading texts which have been prescribed for the Summative Assessment I and II as well as for Formative Assessments.

 

Examination Specifications

English- Communicative (Code: 101)

Class- IX 

SECTION A: READING                                                                                                        20 Periods

The reading passages will be three unseen texts with a total length between 700-800 words. There will be assessment of vocabulary as MCQ’s

Apart from a poem, prose literary texts may include excerpts from authentic literature such as short story, autobiography, biography .travelogue .novel etc.

Whenever a poem or a prose/literary text are used, the other two texts should be discursive. If a poem is selected then, the length of the poem may be between 14 to 20 lines.

SECTION B: WRITING                                                                                                        40 Periods

The writing section comprises of the following tasks.

• Very short answer type questions: Notice, message or poster
• Short Answer type questions: Biographical sketch, data interpretation, dialogue writing or description (people, objects or events), diary entry
• Long answer-01 type questions: A formal/informal letter [including letter to the editor].
• Long answers-02 type questions: An article, speech, debate, newspaper or school magazine report or story to be thematically based on the MCB with verbal/visual cues.

Important note on format and word limit:

• Format may not carry any separate marks and may sometimes be given in the question paper.
• The word limit is the suggestive of the minimum. No candidate may be penalized for writing more or less than the suggested word limit, provided the topic is covered adequately.

SECTION C: GRAMMAR                                                                                                      25 Periods

MCQ’s type questions:

• Gap filling
• Sentence or dialogue completion

Supply type questions:

• Sentence reordering
• Error correction/Omission type
• Sentence transformation

The grammar items which have been dealt with in class IX, namely, forms, sentence structure, connectors, determiners, pronouns, prepositions, clauses, phrases etc. through formative assessment.

Test types used may include gap-filling, cloze (gap filling exercise with blanks at regular intervals), sentence completion, recording word groups into sentences, editing, dialogue-completion and sentence-transformation; supply type questions may be based on verbal or visual cue/s.

SECTION D: LITERATURE                                                                                                  65 Periods

• Very short answer type questions: Based on extracts from poetry, a short story and a play ( MCQ’s)
• Very short answer type questions: Based on prose, poetry and play
• Long answer – 01 type questions: based on poetry, prose and drama

Long Reading Texts (Either one out of two prescribed)

• Long answer – 01 type questions: To assess global understanding interpretation , inference and a character sketch

Note: Short answer questions or long answer questions based on values can be given in the writing section or in the literature section.

Assessment of Skills in FA and SA

Reading:

In terms I and II as formative and Summative assessment. The Interact in English Main Course Book will be read in two terms i.e. Term I (April – September) and Term II (October – March).

Writing:

Purpose of assessment all themes dealt within the Main Course Book and other age appropriate themes may be used.
Note: The following guidelines may be followed while awarding marks during FA and SA
Content                       : 40%

Expression                 : 60%

• A maximum of two marks may be deducted for spelling, punctuation and grammatical errors in a long answer.
• A maximum of one mark may be deducted for spelling, punctuation of grammatical errors in a short answer.

 Though marks have been allotted specifically for the value points (content) as per the marking scheme, the examiner should assess whether the content has been expressed in a coherent and cohesive manner, because content and expression are perceived as being interlinked.

Similarly, in all the writing tasks credit should be given to creativity in the realm of ideas and language use. A proper balance of content, expression (accuracy, fluency, cohesion and coherence) and creativity would encourage students to aim for higher standards in written communication. Errors in spelling, punctuation and grammar should be penalized to the extent of marks allotted for accuracy.

Grammar:

Grammatical structures prescribed in the syllabus will be assessed formatively as well as summatively. There will be no division of syllabus for grammar in the summative or formative assessments for the 2 terms. However, a suggested split – up of the Work Book for the 2 terms is given.

 

Class IX-Communicative

Syllabus for Class IX English Communicative

SECTION B: WRITING                                                                                                         30 Periods

The writing section comprises of the following tasks.

• Short answer type questions: Notice, message or poster
• Long answer – 01 type questions: Biographical sketch, data interpretation, dialogue writing or description (people, objects or events), diary entry
• Long answer-01 type questions: A formal/informal letter [including letter to the editor].
• Long answers-C2 type questions: An article, speech, debate, newspaper or school magazine report or story to be thematically based on the MCB with verbal/visual cues.

Important note on format and word limit:

• Format may not carry any separate marks and may sometimes be given in the question paper.
• The word limit is the suggestive of the minimum. No candidate may be penalized for writing more or less than the suggested word limit, provided the topic is covered adequately.

SECTION C: GRAMMAR

This section will assess Grammar items – in context based on response supplied by students

MCQ’s and Supply Type Questions:

• Gap filling
• Sentence or dialogue completion
• Sentence reordering
• Error correction/Omission type
• Sentence transformation

The grammar items which have been dealt with in class IX.  Namely, forms, sentence structure, connectors, determiners, pronouns, prepositions, clauses, phrases etc. through formative assessment.

Tests types used may include gap-filling, cloze (gap filling exercise with blanks at regular intervals), sentence completion, recording word groups into sentences, editing, dialogue-completion and sentence-transformation Supply type questions may be based on verbal or visual cue/s.

SECTION D: LITERATURE

• Very short answer type questions / MCQ’s: Based on extracts from poetry, a short story and a play(MCQ’s)
• Short answer type questions: Based on prose, poetry and play
• Long answer- 01 type questions: Based on poetry, prose and drama

 

Long Reading Texts (Any one out of two prescribed)

• Long answer- 01 type questions: To assess global understanding interpretation, inference and a character sketch

Note: Short answer questions or long answer questions based on values can be given in the writing section or in bold the literature section.

Assessment of Skills in FA and SA

Reading:

In terms I and II as formative and Summative assessment. The Interaction English Main Course Book will be read in two terms i.e. Term I (April-September) and Term II (October-March).

Writing:

For purpose of assessment, all themes dealt within the Main Course Book and other age-appropriate themes may be used.

Note: The following guidelines may be followed while awarding marks during FA and SA

Content    : 40%

Expression: 60%

A maximum of two marks may be deducted for spelling, punctuation and grammatical errors in a long answer.

A maximum of one mark may be deducted for spelling, punctuation of grammatical errors in a short answer.

Though marks have been allotted specifically for the value points (content) as per the marking scheme, the examiner should assess whether the content has been expressed in a coherent and cohesive manner, because content and expression are per­ceived as being interlinked.

Similarly in all the writing tasks credit should be given to creativity in the realm of ideas and language use. A proper balance of content, expression (accuracy, fluency, cohesion and coherence) and creativity would encourage students to aim for higher standards in written communication. Errors in spelling, punctuation and grammar should be penalized to the extent of marks allotted tor accuracy.

Grammar:

Grammatical structures prescribed in the syllabus will be assessed formatively as well as summatively. There will be no division of syllabus for grammar in the summative or formative assessments for the 2 terms. However, a suggested split-up of the Work Book for the 2 terms is given.

Class X – Communicative

Syllabus for Class X English Communicative

Total No. of Periods: 150

WORKBOOK – Suggested break – up of units for the purpose of teaching only

Term I

English-Language Litrature

   Code No. 184

Background

Traditionally, language-learning materials beyond the initial stages have been sourced from literature: prose, fiction and poetry. While there is a trend for inclusion of a wider range of contemporary and authentic texts, accessible and culturally appropriate pieces of literature should play a pivotal role at the secondary stage of education. The English class should not be seen as a place merely to read poems and stories in, but an area of activities to develop the learner’s imagination as a major aim of language study, and to equip the learner with communicative skills to perform various Language functions through speech and writing.

 

Objectives

The general objectives at this stage are:

• to build greater confidence and proficiency in oral and written communication
• to develop the ability and knowledge required in order to engage in independent reflection and inquiry
• to use appropriate English to communicate in various social settings
• equip learners with essential language skills to question and to articulate their point of view
• to build competence in the different registers of English
• To develop sensitivity to and appreciation of. other varieties of English, Indian English, and the culture they reflect
• to enable the learner to access knowledge and information through reference skills (consulting a dictionary / thesaurus, library, internet etc.)
• to develop curiosity and creativity through extensive reading
• to facilitate self-learning to enable them to become independent learners
• to review, organize and edit their own work and work done by peers

At the end of this stage, learners will be able to do the following:

• give a brief oral description of events/ incidents of topical interest
• Retell the contents of authentic audio texts (weather reports, public announcements, simple advertisements, short interviews, etc.)
• participate in conversations, discussions, etc. on topics of mutual interest in non-classroom situations
• narrate the story depicted pictorially or in any other non-verbal mode
• respond in writing to business letters, official communications
• Read and identify the main points / significant details of texts like scripts of audio-video interviews, discussions, debates etc.
• write without prior preparation on a given topic and be able to defend or explain the position taken / views expressed in the form of article, speech, or a debate
• write a summary of short lectures on familiar topics by making / taking notes
• write an assessment of different points of view expressed in a discussion / debate
• read poems effectively (with proper rhythm and intonation)
• to transcode information from a graph / chart to a description / report and write a dialogue, short story or report

 

Language Items

In addition to consolidating the grammatical items practiced earlier, the courses at the secondary level seek to reinforce the following explicitly:

• sequence of tenses
• reported speech in extended texts
• modal auxiliaries (those not covered at upper primary)
• non-finites (infinitives, gerunds, participles)
• conditional clauses
• complex and compound sentences
• phrasal verbs and prepositional phrases
• cohesive devices
• punctuation (semi-colon, colon, dash, hyphen, parenthesis or use of brackets and exclamation mark)

Methods and Techniques

The methodology is based on a multi-skill, activity based, learner centered approach. Care is taken to fulfill the functional (communicative), literary (aesthetic) and cultural (sociological) needs of the learner. In this situation, the teacher as the facilita­tor of learning, presents language items, contrives situations which motivate the child to use English for the purposes of communication and expression. Aural-oral teaching and testing is an integral feature of the teaching-learning process. The electronic and print media could be used extensively. The evaluation procedure should be continuous and comprehensive. A few suggested activities are:

• Role playing
• Simulating real-to-life situations
• Dramatizing and miming
• Problem solving and decision making
• Interpreting information given in tabular form and schedule
• Using newspaper clippings
• Borrowing situations from the world around the learners, from books and from other disciplines
• Using language games, riddles, puzzles and jokes
• Interpreting pictures / sketches / cartoons
• Debating and discussing
• Narrating and discussing stories, anecdotes, etc.
• Reciting poems
• Working in pairs and groups
• Using media inputs – computer, television, video cassettes, tapes, software packages.

Assessment in class IX and X

The English curriculum aims at the harmonious development of the four language skills, and thus of the learners’ communica­tive capacity. Teaching/testing objectives have been set for each of these skills, indicating the level of achievement expected of the learners. However, although it is possible to assess these skills and sub-skills, it is not possible to test all of them through a formal, time-bound examination. It is therefore, essential to measure the level of attainment in these skills through Formative assessment, in addition to the Summative assessment. The overall pattern of the two modes of assessment at class IX and X is as follows:

The academic year will be divided into two assessment periods:

                                                                                                                                                                                                                        weightage
Summative 1          –    from April-September  –    30%

Formative I                                                                  10%
Formative II –                                                              10%

Summative II –             from October-March     –   30%

Formative III –                                                             10%
Formative IV-                                                               10%

Formative Assessment is a tool used by the teacher to continuously monitor student progress in a non-threatening, supportive environment. It involves regular descriptive feedback, a chance for the student to reflect on the performance, take advice and improve upon it. It involves students being an essential part of assessment from designing criteria to assessing self or peers. If used effectively it can improve student performance tremendously while raising the self-esteem of the child and reducing the work load of the teacher.

 

Features of Formative Assessment

• is diagnostic and remedial
• makes the provision for effective feedback
• provides the platform for the active involvement of students in their own learning.
• enables teachers to adjust teaching to take account of the results of assessment
• recognizes the profound influence assessment has on the motivation and self-esteem of students, both of which are crucial influences on learning
• recognizes the need for students to be able to assess themselves and understand how to improve
• builds on students’ prior knowledge and experience in designing what is taught.
• incorporates varied learning styles into deciding how and what to teach.
• encourages students to understand the criteria that will be used to judge their work
• offers an opportunity to students to improve their work after feedback,
• helps students to support their peers, and expect to be supported by them.

Formative Assessment is thus carried out during a course of instruction for providing continuous feedback to both the teachers and the learners for taking decisions regarding appropriate modifications in the transactional procedures and learning activities.

Problem Solving Assessment:

Along with the use of modified strategies in the teaching learning process, it also becomes imperative that students are given training in all skills so that during the II semester they are able to perform well in the PSA. It is widely acknowledged fact that research and analytical skills, ability to apply basic concept of different subjects, solve application based problems in Math­ematics and Science, comprehend and analyze written text and effective communication are the skills which ensure success in Higher Studies and Professional areas:

 

The features:

• Compulsory for all students of Classes IX and carry 90 minutes. There will be 60 items of MCQ type.
• No specific syllabus for ‘Problem Solving Assessment'(CBSE-PSA)
• It will assess Quantitative Reasoning, Qualitative Reasoning and Language Conventions. They would be assessing student’s ability to process, interpret and use information rather than assessing student’s prior subject matter knowledge.
• The Assessment in language will contain items that will assess grammar usage, vocabulary in context and passage-completion, designed to improve the generic and higher order thinking skills.

 

• The CBSE-PSA will be conducted in January-February and counted towards FA-4 which is 10% of total assessments of class IX. This assessment will also be carried forward towards the FA-4 in class X. This score will be reflected in one Language (English or Hindi), Mathematics, Science and Social Science. The same score will be reflected in FA-4 for class IX and class X.
• The students will have the option to improve their PSA Score in class X, as they can take the test with class IX students of that Session in January – February. The best scores will be reflected in the final certificate in case of those applying for improvement.
• Needless to say that there will be no separate time tables/periods for teaching or practice of PSA, because the skills are incorporated in the course of teaching.

Note:

1. All activities related to Formative Assessment such as Language games, quizzes, projects, role-plays, dramatiza­tion, script writing etc. must be done as ‘in class’ and ‘in school’ activities, supervised by the teacher.

Continuous Assessment refers to the assessment of student’s achievement throughout the year, through a variety of activities field trips and visits outside the schools are also carried out within the school. Such activities may be formal or informal, but in order to assess listening and speaking skills, it is important that a large proportion of the marks allotted should be derived from informal procedures.

Conversation Skills: Speaking and Listening Assessment: this area relates to the teaching/testing objectives for these two skills. In the skill-based approach to language learning, the importance of conversation skills cannot be underestimated.

 

Assessment of Speaking and Listening Skills in Secondary Classes

The CBSE had introduced the formal assessment of speaking and listening skills in classes IX and X i.e. the session 2012-13. As a part of the CCE, it is believed that assessment should be used to control and regulate the quality and also to maintain the desired standards of performance in specific areas of learning. As good communication skills raise the self-esteem of a student and gives her confidence to face the challenges of life, it is desired that the student acquires proficiency in it by the time she complete the secondary education. In the present time speaking and listening are considered to be the essential skills of learning a language which are extensively used in one’s life. Hence, the formal assessment of speaking and listening skills has been added in the overall assessment scheme with a view to bring in a ‘wash back’ effect in the teaching process. While the focus of listening skills is to assess a student’s competency in listening for understanding the main points for identifying general and specific information for a purpose distinguishing the main points from the supporting details, interpreting messages understanding and toll owing instruction, advice, requests etc. the linguistic and non-linguistic features of a language- appropriate activities may be used or assessing the above mentioned objectives.

The assessment of speaking skills is based on four aspects of a language which include language functions, grammar, lexis or range of vocabulary and phonology. Students will be assessed on a scale of 1-5 wherein I is the lowest and 5 is the highest. If a student performs very well but doesn’t completely fall in the highest category she can be marked in between 3 and 5. This will give a student wider range where the performance can be pitched.

 

English

Class-IX & X

The descriptors for three bands are given below for all the four areas:

Language descriptors – Bl and B2

  

Pronunciation descriptors Bl and B2

The overall assessment policy for class IX and X seeks to measure the four skills. Listening and leading, however, can be assessed in this way, through activities which lead to a written product such as notes, a table or a summary .This type of assessment however should not be a test of writing skills. Students should be awarded marks as objectively as possible according to the extent to which they have understood, whether through reading or through listening. They should not be penalized in such assignments for errors in punctuation, spelling or grammar.

Other assignments, however, will focus on writing skills and involve extended writing. This takes place through writing skills activities in the Main Course Book, and via certain activities in the Literature Reader. Assessment of written work forms an important and integral part of the overall assessment of the student’s ability in the use of the English language. It is in this are a very often that subjectivity creeps in and mars the judgment in evaluation because of a lack of clear-cut guidelines for the teachers.

In the new curriculum for English, each student’s written work has to be assessed throughout the year in an informal manner. For this, it becomes essential to provide a rating scale to help teachers to make formative assessment objective and uniform. The assignments should vary each year. Throughout the year, the teacher should keep a record of marks awarded for assignments and activities carried out as part of formative assessment.

Reading Project

Inculcating good reading habits in children has always been a concern for all stakeholder sin education. The purpose is to create independent thinking individuals with the ability to not only create their own knowledge but also critically interpret, analyze and evaluate it with objectivity and fairness. This will also help students in learning and acquiring better language skills.

Creating learners for the 21st century involves making them independent learners who can learn, un learn and relearn’ and if our children are in the habit of reading they will learn to reinvent themselves and deal with the many challenges that lie ahead of them.

Reading is not merely decoding information or pronouncing words correctly, it is an interactive dialogue between the author and the reader in which the reader and author share their experiences and knowledge with each other. Good readers are critical readers with an ability to arrive at a deeper understanding of not only the world presented in the book but also of the real world around them.

Consequently they become independent thinker capable of taking his/her own decisions in life rationally. Hence, a few activities are suggested below which teachers may use as part of the reading project,

• Short review
• Dramatization of the story
• Commentary on the characters
• Critical evaluation of the plot, storyline and characters
• Comparing and contrasting the characters with in the story and with other characters in stories by the same author or by the other authors
• Extrapolating about the story’s ending or life of characters after the story ends
• defending characters’ actions in the story
• Making an audio story out of the novel/text to be read out to younger children
• Interacting with the author
• Holding a Literature Fest where various characters interact with each other
• Role playing as authors/poets/dramatists, to defend their works and characters
• Symposiums and seminars for introducing a book, an author, or a theme
• Finding similar text and looking at differences and similarities.
• Creating graphic novels out of novels/short stories read
• Dramatizing incidents from a novel or a story
• Creating their own stories

Teachers mas- opt for:-

• One book;
• Books of one genre; to be read by the whole class.

 

Teacher may select books suitable to the age and level of the learners. Care ought to be taken to choose books that are appropriate in terms of language, theme and content and which do not hurt the sensibilities of any child.

Teachers may later suggest books from other languages but dealing with the same themes as an extended activity,

The Project should lead to independent learning/reading skills and hence the chosen book/selection should not be taught in class, but may be introduced through activities and be left for the students to read at their own pace. Teachers may, however, choose to assess a child’s progress or success in reading the book by asking for verbal or written progress reports, looking at the diary entries of students, engaging in a discussion about the book, giving a short quiz or a worksheet about the book/short story The mode of assessment may be decided by the teacher seen fit.

These may be used for Formative Assessments only. It may be noted that this reading project is apart from the long reading texts which have been prescribed for the Summative Assessment I and as well as for Formative Assessments.

 

Examination Specification

SECTION  A:  READING                                                            20 Periods                                                                                                 

• This section will have three unseen passages of a total length of 750- 800 words.
• Multiple Choice Questions based on each passage and Vocabulary will be assessed as MCQ’s / supply -type questions:
• One passage will be an extract from a poem. Length of the poem will be 14-28 lines,

 

SECTION B: WRITING                                                                        40 Periods                                                                                                              

Long answer -CI type questions: Formal / informal letter/e-mail [formal only] in not more than I based on verbal stimulus.

Types of letter:

• Informal-personal. Such as to Family and friends etc.
• Formal-letters to the editor/the principal of a school etc.
• Email-formal

Long answer-C I type questions: An article, speech or debate based on a visual/verbal stimulus, a story or report for a school magazine

 

SECTION C: GRAMMAR                                                                          25 Periods                                           

MCQ’s type questions:

• Gap filling
• Sentences or dialogue completion

 

Supply type questions:

• Sentence reordering
• Editing omission
• Sentence transformation (including combining sentences) may be based on verbal/visual clues

The Grammar syllabus

1. Tenses
2. Modals (have to/had to, must, should, need, ought to and their negative tonus)
3. Use of passive voice
4. Subject-verb concord
5. Reporting

• Commands and requests
• Statements
• Questions

6. Clauses

• Noun clauses
• Adverb clauses of condition and time
• Relative clauses

7. Determiners, and
8. Prepositions

Note: No separate marks are allotted for the grammar items listed above.

SECTION D: TEXT BOOKS                                                                   95 Periods                                               

• Beehive
• Moments (NCERT)
• Very short answers type/MCQ’s: Extracts for reference to context based on prose and play to test local and global .comprehension and interpretation. Vocabulary may be tested.
• Short answer type questions/ MCQ’s: Reference to context stanza as based on poetry
• Short answer type questions: Based on Beehive and Moments
• Long answer-01 type questions: Extrapolative, based on Beehive and Moments

 

Note to teachers:

1. Encourage classroom interaction among peers, students and teachers through activities such as role play, group work etc.,
2. Reduce Teacher-talking time may be kept to the minimum.

• Take up questions for discussion to encourage pupils to participate and to marshal their ideas and express and defend their views, and

1. Use the scale of assessment for conversation skills, for Continuous Assessment.

 

Besides measuring attainment, assessment and tests serve the dual purpose of diagnosing mistakes and areas of non-learning. To make evaluation a true index of learners’ attainment, each language skill is to be assessed through a judicious mixture of different types of questions. In addition to the summative tests, formative assessment is essential to measure the level of attainment in the four language skills and the learners’ communicative competence. Formative assessment should be done through’ in class’ activities throughout the year.

 

Long Reading Texts

Long answer-01 type questions: Global questions on theme and plot involving interpretation and inference and character sketch

Note: Values-based questions for 4 marks will be based on literature: Section – D

Prescribed Books (either one)

1. Beehive – Text book for Class IX Published by NCERT

2      Moments – Supplementary Reader for Class IX   Sri Aurobindo Marg, New Delhi

Long Reading Texts [either one]:

3. Gulliver’s Travels – 2005 (unabridged edition) Jonathan Swift
4. Three Men in a Boat – 1889 (unabridged edition) Jerome K. Jerome

 

Note to teachers:

1. Encourage classroom interaction among peers, students and teachers through activities such as role play, group work etc.,
2. Reduce Teacher • talking time may be kept to the minimum.

• Take up questions for discussion to encourage pupils to participate and to marshal their ideas and express and defend their views, and

1. List the scale of assessment for conversation skills, to test the students for Continuous Assessment.

Besides measuring attainment, texts serve the dual purpose of diagnosing mistakes and areas of non-learning. To make evaluation a true index of learners’ attainment, each language skill is to be assessed through a judicious mixture of different types of questions. In addition to the summative tests, formative assessment is essential to measure the level of attainment in the four language skills and the learners’ communicative competence. Formative assessment should be done through’ in class’ activities throughout the year.

Reading Assessment of Reading Skills:

Reading for comprehension, critical evaluation, inference and analysis is a skill to be tested formatively as well as summatively.

Writing:

All types of short and extended writing tasks will be dealt with in both I and II Term Summative as well as in Formative Assessment.

Grammar:

Grammar items mentioned in the syllabus will be taught and assessed formatively over a period of time. There will be no division of syllabus for Grammar in the summative assessments for the two terms.

 

 

Syllabus for Class IX English Language & Literature

Total No. of Periods: 180

 

Note:

1. Formative Assessment is assessment for learning. Thus schools may adapt the suggested break-up.
2. All activities related to Formative Assessment such as language games, quizzes, projects, role plays, dramatization, script writing etc. which are done as ‘in school’ activities and, including,! Field survey or visits, is taken must be done under the direct supervision of the teacher.

 

Examination Specification

SECTION A: READING

• This section will have three unseen passages of a total length of 750-850 words.
• Multiple Choice Questions/Very short answer type questions based on each passage and Vocabulary will be assessed as MCQ’s.
• One passage to be an extract from a poem a complete poem.

SECTION B: WRITING

Q4    Long answer – 01 type question: Formal / informal letter/e-mail [formal] based on verbal stimulus.

Types of letter:

• Informal-personal, such as to family and friends etc.
• Formal-letters to the editor/the principal of a school etc.
• Email-formal
• Longanswer-01 type: An article, speech or debate based on a visual or verbal stimulus, a guided story or report for a school magazine

 

SECTION C: GRAMMAR

This section to assess Grammar in context.

MCQ type questions:

• Gap filling
• Sentences or dialogue completion

Supply types questions:

• Sentence reordering
• Editing or Omission
• Sentence transformation supply type questions may be based on visual cue /s.

The Grammar syllabus:

1. Tenses
2. Modals (have to/had to. must, should, need, ought to and their negative forms)
3. Use of passive voice
4. Subject-verb concord
5. Reporting

• Commands and requests
• Statements
• Questions

6. Clauses:

• Noun clauses
• Adverb clauses of condition and time
• Relative clauses

7. Determiners, and

8,           Prepositions

 

Note: No separate marks are allotted for any of the grammar items listed above.

 

SECTION D: TEXT BOOKS

Beehive and Moments (NCERT)

• Very short answer type questions/MCQ’s: Reference to context based on prose and play to assess literary appreciation and understanding, local and global comprehension and interpretation
• Short answer type questions: First Flight and Footprints without Feet
• Long answer -01 type questions: Extrapolative from First Flight and Foot prints without Feet

 

Prescribed Books

1. First Flight – Text book for Class X Published by NCERT
2. Foot Prints without Feet-Supplementary Reader for Class X Sri Aurobindo Marg, New Delhi

 

Novel/Long Reading Text

3. DiaryofaYoung Girl– I947(unabridged edition) Anne Frank

or

4. The Story of MyLife-1903 (unabridged edition) Helen Keller

 

Long Reading Texts:

Note to teachers:

1. Encourage classroom interaction among peers, students and teachers through activities such as role play, group work etc.,
2. Reduce Teacher – talking time maybe kept to the minimum.

• Take up questions for discussion to encourage pupils to participate and to marshal their ideas and express and defend their views, and

1. Use the scale of assessment for conversation skills, to assess the students for Continuous Assessment.

 

Besides measuring attainment, texts serve the dual purpose of diagnosing mistakes and areas of non-learning. To make evaluation a true index of learners’ attainment, each language skill is to be assessed through a judicious mixture of different types of questions. In addition to the summative tests, formative assessment is essential to measure the level of attainment in the four language skills and the learners’ communicative competence. Formative assessment should be done through’ in class’ activities throughout the year.

Types of Questions:

Long answer – 01 type: Global questions on theme and plot involving interpretation and inference and a character sketches

Assessment of Reading Skills:

Reading for comprehension, critical evaluation, inference and an analysis a skill to be tested formatively as well summatively.

Writing:

Al) types of short and long answer type writing tasks will be dealt with in both 1 and II term Summative as well as in Formative Assessment.

Grammar:

Grammar items mentioned in the syllabus will be taught and assessed formatively over a period of time. There will be no division of syllabus for Grammar in the summative assessments for the two terms.

 

 

Syllabus for Class X

English Language and Literature

Note:

1. Formative Assessment is assessment for learning. Thus schools may adapt the suggested break-up.
2. All activities related to Formative Assessment such as language games, quizzes, projects, role-plays, dramatization, script writing etc. which are done as ‘in school’ activities and, including a field survey or visits, is taken must be done under the direct supervision of the teacher.