Section A – Reading Skills (26 Marks)
Section A is designed to test students’ ability to read, understand, interpret, and analyze different types of texts. This section includes unseen passages, which means students will read a passage that they have not studied before and answer questions based on it.
There are generally two types of unseen passages in this section. The first passage may be factual, descriptive, or literary in nature. Students are expected to identify the main idea, understand the tone and purpose, infer meanings, and answer vocabulary-based questions. The second passage is usually case-based and may include visual or statistical inputs such as charts, graphs, or data. This tests the student’s ability to interpret information from both text and visuals.
Another important part of Section A is note-making and summarization. Students must read a passage and prepare structured notes using headings, subheadings, abbreviations, and proper format. After that, they must write a concise summary in their own words. This part checks clarity of understanding, organization of ideas, and precision in writing.
This section mainly evaluates comprehension skills, analytical thinking, vocabulary knowledge, and the ability to extract relevant information from a given text.
Two Questions for Section A:
How does the inclusion of both descriptive and case-based passages in Section A help in developing analytical reading skills?
Why is summarization considered an important skill in academic learning?
Section B – Grammar and Creative Writing Skills (23 Marks)
Section B focuses on two major areas: Grammar and Creative Writing. This section checks the student’s command over language rules and their ability to express ideas clearly and effectively.
The grammar portion includes gap-filling questions related to tenses and clauses. Students must apply correct verb forms based on context. There are also questions on re-ordering or transforming sentences, which test understanding of sentence structure, voice, modals, and clauses.
The creative writing section includes short and long writing tasks. Short tasks include writing classified advertisements and posters within a limited word count. These require correct format, clarity, and proper expression. The long writing task usually involves writing a speech of about 120–150 words based on a given topic or visual cue. In such tasks, students must maintain correct format, appropriate tone, logical flow, and effective vocabulary.
Section B evaluates grammatical accuracy, creativity, format adherence, coherence, and fluency in expression. It ensures that students not only understand English rules but can also use the language effectively in real-life situations.
Two Questions for Section B:
Why is understanding tenses and clauses essential for performing well in the grammar section?
How does creative writing in Section B help students develop communication skills?
Section C – Literature (31 Marks)
Section C is the Literature section and carries the highest weightage. It is based on the prescribed textbooks: Hornbill and Snapshots. This section tests students’ understanding of prose, poetry, and supplementary readings.
Students are required to answer extract-based questions from prose and poetry. These questions assess comprehension, interpretation, appreciation of literary devices, and inference skills. There are also short answer questions that require responses in about 40–50 words. These questions test critical thinking and the ability to express ideas concisely.
In addition, there are long answer questions of about 120–150 words. These questions require deeper analysis of themes, characters, incidents, and messages in the text. Students are expected to provide thoughtful, structured, and analytical responses rather than simple summaries.
This section evaluates interpretation skills, reasoning ability, creativity, literary appreciation, and clarity of written expression. It encourages students to think beyond the text and connect ideas to real-life situations.
Two Questions for Section C:
How do extract-based questions in literature help students develop deeper understanding of themes and characters?
Why are long answer questions important in evaluating analytical and critical thinking skills in literature?
