Which English course + time management advice?

[badkidmarie]

Hey guys,

my IB subject choice forms are due pretty soon, and I am not quite sure about which English course I want to pick yet... I'm probably gonna go with Literature, although I don't really understand the difference between this subject and Language & Literature - can you help me out? Also, is there a tremendous difference in terms of workload between HL and SL? What's your experience?

Lastly, I must confess that I have cheated quite a bit in the past english/history assessments (anything to do with essays, really), simply because I couldn't cope with the short time period we have to complete a complex essay. In our school, we usually get 2 periods (50 mins) to complete the test, so I go home on the day which I started my assessment on, finish it at home on the paper I smuggled from class, and bring in the new parts of the essay the next day. I feel awful about it every single time, but I cannot work under pressure and end up panicking every single time. I am a very good English student and write excellent analyses and creative pieces at home, but as soon as I write an assessment in school, my mind goes blank. Do you have some advice on how to organize my time better and more effectively?

Thank you so much.

[ibprincess]

literature focuses on literature e.g. books, plays, poetry etc, lang&lit has a mixed focus on english language (grammar and stuff) and literature

 

i think you definitely can't do english hl if you can't write an essay in class? i don't think you'd be able to cope with sl either really because the exams you do in literature involve you writing an essay in exam time and both exams are sort of difficult to prepare for before hand. like you can learn stuff like techniques or devices but the writing is done completely during exam time so yea

[ellie]

Lang & Lit isn't about grammar, it's about analysing texts, various text types (including comics, posters, blog posts, poems, news articles, laws, tweets and anything else), literary devices and so on. Language knowledge is assumed; the second part is based on books. Or, more accurately, there's four parts: pt 1 is language & identity (race, gender, etc), pt 2 is on media and pt 3-4 is literature. 

 

The Literature course is books only, and a bit more difficult than the Lang & Lit course. I think it would suit you better if you have trouble writing essays.

 

Don't stress so much about essays! Keep in mind that the IB is two years, you will have all the time in the world to improve. Nobody in our class got over half of what we needed to write done during our first Paper 1 practice, we did it about a month after the IB started, and we just had our third Paper 1 practice, and everyone in class was excited afterwards -- everyone had written enough. You will improve a lot, and if your teacher doesn't make you write timed essays, do it yourself, time yourself and write. It's all about practice, anything is possible with enough practice. You'll also be writing analytical essays in other subjects, for example if you take History or Psychology, and definitely in TOK. For now, just stop cheating -- don't worry about the grade, just try to do as much as you can in class and what you can't do, try to do it next time. Inhale, exhale, take a bottle of water with you, and know that you can do it.

 

You say you can write well at home, so you have it in you, right? So your task until your exams is to learn to write them in exam conditions. Good luck!

Edited February 6, 2015 by ellie

[Guest]

As mentioned, There are some differences between Eng lit and lang and lit. Surely lit is harder. According to what you said, you can't come up with some great idea under the time pressure. I believe it is not only your concern, everyone has the same issue. However, it can be overcome through practice, no doubt. There are also some skills that you can learn E.G. mind map, planing , and so on. So if you are interested in the english language, just do it. You will nail it if you are willing to put your effort in and just study your ass off. I am not an english lit student so I can't really give any suggestion, but you can use the internet, you can find lots of resources to help your writing. 

 

Plus, dont cheat on your test again. Your test is aimed to help you, you should treat it as the real exam and thus can see which level you are in and improve yourself. There is no point of cheating   Your teachers and friends will be disappointed if they find it out. So don't  dwell on the past or feel ashamed of yourself about you was cheating, just don't do it again .

 

So just do it and all the best.

Edited February 6, 2015 by Guest

[Chinmayee Gidwani]

I've taken SL Language, and I can tell you that it's pretty time restrained. If you have trouble with writing quickly and on the spot, I highly suggest you don't take this course. I know it's SL, but because it has to be completed in less than eight months, and there is so much content to cover, it tends to go by very quickly. The HL course lasts for three semesters, and they don't do a LOT more content, so it's a lot more manageable. 

 

I've only heard about the Lang and Lit course from my friends at a different school, but based on what I've heard, it has to do with analyzing different forms of texts (i.e. blogs, news reports, articles, etc.) as well as traditional literature studies. In contrast, the Language course only does literature (i.e. books, plays, and poems). Again, if you're not good with time constraints, go for HL. It's a lot less stress that way. 

 

One last thing.. I did that for my Works in Translations essay too. It's not that big of a deal, a lot of people do it. I just don't recommend you do it every time, because for the exam, (SL Lang), you have to write a comparative essay in about an hour. 

 

All the best