Educerie · IB Diploma · English A: Language and Literature
Paper 1 — Guided textual analysis: how to write it
The paper. Two unseen non-literary texts of different types (an advert, a speech, an opinion column, an infographic, a cartoon…), each with a guiding question.
| Standard level | Higher level | |
|---|---|---|
| What you write | An analysis of one of the two texts | An analysis of each text |
| Time | 1 hour 15 minutes | 2 hours 15 minutes |
| Marks | 20 | 40 (20 per text) |
There are no line numbers on the texts, so quote short phrases instead of citing lines.
The 75 minutes (per text)
- 15 minutes reading and planning. Read the text twice. Then answer three questions in the margin: who made this, for whom, and to do what?
- 50 minutes writing. An introduction, three or four analytical paragraphs and a short conclusion.
- 10 minutes checking. Check that every paragraph links back to your thesis, then fix any slips in your language.
At HL, give each text the same time. Don't let the first essay eat into the second.
Step 1: Purpose and audience first
Before you look at any technique, decide what the text is for. That is your thesis.
This charity appeal uses the register of an official summons to make readers feel personally responsible, turning a donation into a duty rather than a choice.
A thesis like this gives every later paragraph a job: each one shows how a feature serves that purpose for that audience.
Step 2: Use the guiding question, or replace it
The guiding question points at one technical or formal feature, such as tone, the structure, or the image–text relationship. Answering it is the safest way to stay focused. You may choose a different feature instead, but then you must name it in your introduction.
Step 3: Build each paragraph the same way
- Claim: what the feature does for the purpose.
- Evidence: a short, exact quotation, or a precise description of a visual detail.
- Analysis: how it works: the word choice, the layout, what the reader's eye meets first, the convention it breaks.
- Effect: what it makes this audience think, feel or do, tied back to your thesis.
Spend most of your words on parts 3 and 4. Simply naming a device ("there is a rhetorical question") earns almost nothing.
Step 4: Treat visuals as part of the text
If the text has images, colour, typography or layout, analyse them: what is largest, what is read first, where a figure looks, whether the caption supports or undercuts the image. Leaving them out loses marks in B.
What the four criteria reward (5 marks each)
| Criterion | What gets you the top band | |
|---|---|---|
| A | Understanding and interpretation | You read past the literal meaning to the text's larger implications, with well-chosen quotations |
| B | Analysis and evaluation | You explain how choices shape meaning and judge how well they work, not just what they are |
| C | Focus and organisation | One clear line of argument, and every paragraph moves it forward |
| D | Language | Clear, precise and accurate writing, in a formal analytical register |
Common mistakes
- Going through the text from top to bottom instead of arguing a thesis.
- Lists of devices with no effect named.
- Long quotations: three to six words is usually enough.
- Ignoring the text type and its conventions. Name the convention, and point out where the text breaks it.
Checklist before you hand in
- My introduction names the text type, the audience, the purpose and my thesis
- Every paragraph has a claim, evidence, analysis and effect
- I analysed at least one visual or structural feature, not only words
- My conclusion answers the guiding question (or the focus I chose)
Educerie · written from the IB Language A: language and literature guide (first assessment 2021, amended for 2026). Original text. Last reviewed 19 October 2026.