Investigating Subject Areas of Inquiry: A Comprehensive, Textual Overview with Illustrative Examples
In the realm of IB English A: Language and Literature, students are encouraged to delve into the complexities of global issues using a variety of literary and non-literary texts. The course employs five fields of inquiry to guide the Individual Oral (IO) analysis, although these fields are not directly listed in the search results.
These fields, typically centering around thematic and contextual explorations, include Identity, Culture, Politics, Community, and Migration. These fields help students connect their chosen texts to relevant global issues in their IO.
When choosing a global issue for analysis, students might consider topics such as gender, race, self-expression, power, governance, human rights, religious extremism, educational inequality, moral conflict, indoctrination, freedom of speech, propaganda, corruption, institutional failure, racial or gender injustice, climate change, artificial intelligence and ethics, environmental injustice, digital surveillance, censorship of art, cultural preservation, representation in media and entertainment, displacement, diaspora, gender identity and roles, cultural assimilation, intergenerational conflict, and more.
For each field of inquiry, students select a literary and a non-literary text that address the chosen global issue. The analysis focus involves comparing how these texts represent the issue through language, literary and rhetorical devices, context, and perspective.
Some suggested literary texts for each field include:
- Field 1, Culture, Identity & Community: Americanah by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe, The Joy Luck Club by Amy Tan. - Field 2, Beliefs, Values & Education: Persepolis by Marjane Satrapi, The Crucible by Arthur Miller, To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee. - Field 3, Politics, Power & Justice: 1984 by George Orwell, A Doll's House by Henrik Ibsen, A Streetcar Named Desire by Tennessee Williams. - Field 4, Arts, Creativity & Imagination: Frankenstein by Mary Shelley, The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood, Life of Pi by Yann Martel. - Field 5, Science, Technology & the Environment: Oryx and Crake by Margaret Atwood, Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro, The Road by Cormac McCarthy.
It is important to note that while texts can explore multiple fields, for the IO, the analysis must clearly focus on one field only. Mastering each field's scope and aligning texts accordingly can boost Individual Oral grade and enhance critical thinking and comparative analysis skills.
For accurate, detailed examples and the official list of the fields of inquiry with accompanying sample texts and analysis focus, it is best to refer to the official IB English A: Language and Literature guide or the DP Handbook for the relevant curriculum year, which includes these templates and exemplars.
[1][4] (links to the official IB resources)
In the pursuit of developing their critical thinking skills and understanding of global issues, students could delve into educational inequality and self-expression within the field of Beliefs, Values & Education, by analyzing texts like Persepolis and To Kill a Mockingbird. Meanwhile, in the realm of General News, they could discuss climate change and artificial intelligence ethics within the field of Science, Technology & the Environment, using texts such as Oryx and Crake and Never Let Me Go.
