Monday, January 17, 2011

CLASS IX & X

CHANGES IN THE PATTERN OF THE ENGLISH QUES PAPER FOR SA 2

Question Paper Design SA 2
English Communicative
Classes IX
Code No. 101
The design of the question papers in English Communicative for classes IX & X has
undergone a few changes. They are as under:
Section A - Reading: 20 marks (Question 1-4)
In the existing scheme of the question paper Students answer questions based on four
unseen passages carrying five marks each -all the questions are MCQs.

The change proposed is that students be given two passages (carrying 5+5 marks) out of four which are based on MCQ responses. The other two should require effort on the part of the students to supply the responses.

In the proposed question paper scheme
~ Students will be expected to attempt four passages carrying five marks each.
~ Passage types will include literary, discursive or factual. One out of the four passages will be a poem.
~ Two out of four passages will have Multiple Choice Questions carrying 5+5=10 marks
~ Two out of four passages will have questions wherein students will be expected to supply the responses. This will carry 5+5=10 marks.

Question types will be :
Sentence completion
Gap filling

Note: The weightage given to MCQs to be reduced from the existing 20 Marks in the Reading Section to 10 Marks

Section B--Writing: 20 marks (Question 5-7)-No change

The writing section comprises three writing tasks as indicated below:

Q 5 A short answer question of upto 80 words in the form of a Biographical Sketch (expansion of notes on an individual's life or achievements into a short paragraph)/Data Interpretation,Dialogue Writing or Description (People, Places, Events).
The question will assess students'skill of expressing ideas in clear and grammatically correct English, presenting ideas coherently and concisely, writing a clear description, a clear account of events, expanding notes into a piece of writing , or transcoding information from one form to another. 4 Marks

Q 6 A long answer question (minimum 120 words) in the form of a formal letter/ informal letter or an email. The output would be a long piece of writing and will assess the use of appropriate style, language, content and expression. 8 Marks

Q 7 A long answer question (minimum 150 words) in the form of a diary entry, article, speech,story or debate.

Students' skill in expression of ideas in clear and grammatically correct English, planning,organizing and presenting ideas coherently by introducing, developing and concluding a topic,comparing and contrasting ideas and arriving at a conclusion, presenting an argument with supporting examples, using an appropriate style and format and expanding notes into longer pieces of writing and creative expression of ideas will be assessed. 8 Marks

Important Notes on Format and Word Limit:

Format will not carry any separate marks and in most cases, format will be given in the question paper.
The word limit given is the suggested minimum word limit. No candidate may be penalised for writing more or less than the suggested word limit. Stress should be on content, expression,coherence and relevance of the content presented.

Section C - Grammar: 20 marks-(Question 8-12)

In the existing scheme of the question paper Students answer five questions of four marks each -all MCQs that test various grammatical items in context.

The change proposed is that students be given two questions (carrying 4+4 marks) out of five which are based on MCQ responses. The other three should require effort on the part of the students to supply the responses.

In the proposed question paper scheme:

This section will carry five questions of four marks each
Out of five questions two questions (question 8 and 9) carrying 4 marks each ie total eight marks will have MCQs .The test types for MCQs include:

Gap filling
Sentence completion
Dialogue Completion
Question 10, 11, and 12 will be based on response supplied by students.

These test types which will not be tested as MCQs include

Sentence reordering
Editing
Omission
Sentence transformation

Note : The weightage given to MCQs to be reduced from the existing 20 marks in the
grammar section to 8 marks

Section D - Literature-20 Marks (Question 13-15)

In the existing scheme of the question paper students answer questions based on two extracts out of three for reference to context (Prose/poetry or play) carrying three marks each (Total -6 Marks) -all MCQs.

The change proposed is that students be given one extract for reference to context (carrying 3 marks) out of two which is based on MCQ responses. The other extract should require effort on the part of the students to supply the responses.

In the proposed question paper scheme:

Q13 A) One out of two extracts for reference to context with MCQs (based on poetry / prose/drama).The extract will carry 3 marks.

B) One extract for reference to context (based on poetry / prose/drama) where students will be expected to supply the answer. The extract will carry3 marks. 6 Marks

Q14. Four out of five short answer type questions based on prose, poetry or plays of 2 marks each. The questions will not test recall but inference and evaluation. 8 Marks

Q15. One out of two long answer type questions to assess personal response to text by going beyond the text/ poetry / prose/drama. Creativity, imagination and extrapolation beyond the text and across two texts will also be assessed. 6 Marks

Total No. Existing Weighatage Proposed Weighatage
of Marks to MCQs to MCQs
Section A-Reading 20 Marks 20 Marks 10 Marks
Section B-Writing 20 Marks Nil Nil
Section C-Grammar 20 Marks 20 Marks 8 Marks
Section D-Literature 20 Marks 6 Marks 3 Marks
Total 80 Marks 46 Marks 21 Marks
Percentage 57.5 % 26.25%
Note: The weightage given to MCQs to be reduced from the existing 06 Marks in the
Literature Section to 3 Marks