English B: Higher Level

1. 1.

   Read the text “Who owns a song made by a machine?”. An essay: [1] When a computer program produces a melody in seconds, the result can be pleasant, even moving. The harder question is not whether it is music but whose music it is. [2] One view holds that the person who wrote the prompt is the author, just as a photographer is the author of a picture taken with a camera. Another insists that the true authors are the thousands of human musicians whose recordings trained the system, often without their knowledge or payment. [3] Lawmakers are moving slowly, and the courts in different countries have reached different conclusions. Meanwhile, independent musicians worry less about philosophy than about rent. [4] Perhaps the debate will settle on a compromise: credit and payment shared between the people who guide the machine and those whose work made it possible. (a) According to paragraph 1, what is “the harder question”? (b) Explain the comparison with a photographer in paragraph 2. (c) Why do some people argue that human musicians are the true authors? (d) What does the sentence “independent musicians worry less about philosophy than about rent” suggest? (e) What compromise does the writer suggest?

   [5 marks] · no calculator

   Syllabus placement evidence: Language B guide: Paper 2 receptive skills (reading). Human ingenuity (HL): comprehension of an original theme-related text.

   Worked explanation

   1. Read each question, then scan the matching paragraph for the exact detail; keep answers short and use the text's words where a quotation is requested.
   2. Model answers: (a) Whose music it is (who is the author), rather than whether it counts as music. (b) The person who writes the prompt uses the program as a tool, as a photographer uses a camera, so they could be considered the author. (c) Because their recordings trained the system, often without their knowledge or payment. (d) Their main concern is practical: losing income and being able to make a living. (e) Sharing credit and payment between those who guide the machine and those whose work trained it.

   Common mistake: Copying a long section of the text or answering from general knowledge instead of giving the precise detail, word or short quotation the question targets.

   Marking points

   • (a) Whose music it is (who is the author), rather than whether it counts as music.
   • (b) The person who writes the prompt uses the program as a tool, as a photographer uses a camera, so they could be considered the author.
   • (c) Because their recordings trained the system, often without their knowledge or payment.
   • (d) Their main concern is practical: losing income and being able to make a living.
   • (e) Sharing credit and payment between those who guide the machine and those whose work trained it.

   Examiner tip: When a text presents several views, make clear in your answer whose view you are reporting.

2. 2.

   Marking analysis: A learner attempts the following task: “Read the text “Who owns a song made by a machine?”. An essay: [1] When a computer program produces a melody in seconds, the result can be pleasant, even moving. The harder question is not whether it is music but whose music it is. [2] One view holds that the person who wrote the prompt is the author, just as a photographer is the author of a picture taken with a camera. Another insists that the true authors are the thousands of human musicians whose recordings trained the system, often without their knowledge or payment. [3] Lawmakers are moving slowly, and the courts in different countries have reached different conclusions. Meanwhile, independent musicians worry less about philosophy than about rent. [4] Perhaps the debate will settle on a compromise: credit and payment shared between the people who guide the machine and those whose work made it possible. (a) According to paragraph 1, what is “the harder question”? (b) Explain the comparison with a photographer in paragraph 2. (c) Why do some people argue that human musicians are the true authors? (d) What does the sentence “independent musicians worry less about philosophy than about rent” suggest? (e) What compromise does the writer suggest?” Their response addresses only this point: “(a) Whose music it is (who is the author), rather than whether it counts as music.” Evaluate the response against the complete 5-mark task. Identify what earns credit and state every additional requirement needed for full marks.

   [5 marks] · no calculator

   Marking points

   • Recognises credit for the stated point: (a) Whose music it is (who is the author), rather than whether it counts as music.
   • Checks this criterion, crediting equivalent work already shown or identifying what is missing: (b) The person who writes the prompt uses the program as a tool, as a photographer uses a camera, so they could be considered the author.
   • Checks this criterion, crediting equivalent work already shown or identifying what is missing: (c) Because their recordings trained the system, often without their knowledge or payment.
   • Checks this criterion, crediting equivalent work already shown or identifying what is missing: (d) Their main concern is practical: losing income and being able to make a living.
   • Checks this criterion, crediting equivalent work already shown or identifying what is missing: (e) Sharing credit and payment between those who guide the machine and those whose work trained it.

   Examiner tip: Check each criterion, including equivalent work already shown. Do not demand an extra step merely to rewrite an equivalent answer. Do not award the same idea twice or infer work the learner did not show.

3. 3.

   Read the text “The gallery attendant”. An extract from an original short story: For eleven years Mr Bassey had stood in Room 14, between a storm at sea and a portrait of a woman holding a lemon. Visitors rarely looked at him. They looked at the storm, nodded seriously, and moved on to the lemon. But Mr Bassey knew the paintings in a way the visitors never would. He knew that at four in the afternoon the light from the high window turned the woman’s lemon almost gold, and that a child had once stood in front of the storm for twenty minutes, perfectly still, as if waiting to be rescued. On his last day before retirement he did something he had never done: he sat on the bench in the middle of the room and looked. (a) What does the sentence “Visitors rarely looked at him” suggest about Mr Bassey’s position? (b) How is the visitors’ way of looking at art presented? Quote to support your answer. (c) Explain how Mr Bassey’s knowledge of the paintings differs from the visitors’. (d) What does the child’s reaction to the storm painting suggest about the power of art? (e) Explain the significance of the final action.

   [5 marks] · no calculator

   Syllabus placement evidence: Language B guide: Paper 2 receptive skills (reading). Human ingenuity (HL): HL reading of an original literary text.

   Worked explanation

   1. For each part, find the exact words that support your interpretation, quote them briefly, and explain their effect rather than paraphrasing the plot.
   2. Model answers: (a) He is invisible or overlooked; his job makes him part of the background. (b) As quick and superficial: they “nodded seriously, and moved on”. (c) His knowledge comes from long, daily attention (changes of light, other people’s reactions), while visitors see each painting only briefly. (d) Art can absorb a viewer completely and make the scene feel real (“as if waiting to be rescued”). (e) For the first time he becomes a viewer rather than a guard: he allows himself to experience the art he protected, marking a personal transformation.

   Common mistake: Retelling what happens instead of naming the technique, quoting it briefly and explaining its effect on meaning.

   Marking points

   • (a) He is invisible or overlooked; his job makes him part of the background.
   • (b) As quick and superficial: they “nodded seriously, and moved on”.
   • (c) His knowledge comes from long, daily attention (changes of light, other people’s reactions), while visitors see each painting only briefly.
   • (d) Art can absorb a viewer completely and make the scene feel real (“as if waiting to be rescued”).
   • (e) For the first time he becomes a viewer rather than a guard: he allows himself to experience the art he protected, marking a personal transformation.

   Examiner tip: Endings of literary extracts often carry the key meaning; ask what has changed compared with the opening.

4. 4.

   Marking analysis: A learner attempts the following task: “Read the text “The gallery attendant”. An extract from an original short story: For eleven years Mr Bassey had stood in Room 14, between a storm at sea and a portrait of a woman holding a lemon. Visitors rarely looked at him. They looked at the storm, nodded seriously, and moved on to the lemon. But Mr Bassey knew the paintings in a way the visitors never would. He knew that at four in the afternoon the light from the high window turned the woman’s lemon almost gold, and that a child had once stood in front of the storm for twenty minutes, perfectly still, as if waiting to be rescued. On his last day before retirement he did something he had never done: he sat on the bench in the middle of the room and looked. (a) What does the sentence “Visitors rarely looked at him” suggest about Mr Bassey’s position? (b) How is the visitors’ way of looking at art presented? Quote to support your answer. (c) Explain how Mr Bassey’s knowledge of the paintings differs from the visitors’. (d) What does the child’s reaction to the storm painting suggest about the power of art? (e) Explain the significance of the final action.” Their response addresses only this point: “(a) He is invisible or overlooked; his job makes him part of the background.” Evaluate the response against the complete 5-mark task. Identify what earns credit and state every additional requirement needed for full marks.

   [5 marks] · no calculator

   Marking points

   • Recognises credit for the stated point: (a) He is invisible or overlooked; his job makes him part of the background.
   • Checks this criterion, crediting equivalent work already shown or identifying what is missing: (b) As quick and superficial: they “nodded seriously, and moved on”.
   • Checks this criterion, crediting equivalent work already shown or identifying what is missing: (c) His knowledge comes from long, daily attention (changes of light, other people’s reactions), while visitors see each painting only briefly.
   • Checks this criterion, crediting equivalent work already shown or identifying what is missing: (d) Art can absorb a viewer completely and make the scene feel real (“as if waiting to be rescued”).
   • Checks this criterion, crediting equivalent work already shown or identifying what is missing: (e) For the first time he becomes a viewer rather than a guard: he allows himself to experience the art he protected, marking a personal transformation.

   Examiner tip: Check each criterion, including equivalent work already shown. Do not demand an extra step merely to rewrite an equivalent answer. Do not award the same idea twice or infer work the learner did not show.

5. 5.

   Your school is debating whether students should be allowed to use AI tools for homework. Write a text that evaluates the benefits and risks and proposes clear guidelines for fair use. Choose one of these text types: opinion article for the school magazine, speech for a school debate, proposal to the school leadership. Write 450–600 words.

   [6 marks] · no calculator

   Syllabus placement evidence: Language B guide: Paper 1 productive skills (writing), criteria A–C. Human ingenuity (HL): HL writing task on a prescribed-theme context.

   Worked explanation

   1. Decide the text type first, then list what the task requires: the audience, the purpose and every content point. Plan one paragraph for each main idea and aim for 450–600 words. For this task: evaluates both benefits and risks with specific, convincing examples. proposes clear, practical guidelines for fair use and justifies them.
   2. Check each line of the self-check list against your draft: two content points (criterion B), clear linked paragraphs (B), the conventions of your chosen type and a consistent register (C), and accurate, varied language (A).

   Common mistake: Writing a generic essay that ignores the stated audience, purpose and text type, which limits criteria B and C however accurate the language is.

   Marking points

   • Content (criterion B): evaluates both benefits and risks with specific, convincing examples.
   • Content (criterion B): proposes clear, practical guidelines for fair use and justifies them.
   • Message (criterion B): ideas are developed with specific details or examples and organised in clear, logically linked paragraphs.
   • Conventions (criterion C): uses features of the chosen type, e.g. headline and argued paragraphs for an article; audience address, rebuttal and rhetorical close for a debate speech; headed sections and numbered recommendations for a proposal.
   • Register (criterion C): balanced and authoritative, formal for school leadership and engaging but respectful for a debate audience.
   • Language (criterion A): varied vocabulary and a range of accurate simple and complex structures; any errors do not obstruct meaning.

   Examiner tip: Guidelines are stronger when they are specific (“cite any AI tool used”) than when they are general (“use AI responsibly”). This checklist is a self-review aid; the real paper is marked with criteria A (12), B (12) and C (6), and a response that ignores audience, context and purpose can score zero for B and C.

6. 6.

   Marking analysis: A learner attempts the following task: “Your school is debating whether students should be allowed to use AI tools for homework. Write a text that evaluates the benefits and risks and proposes clear guidelines for fair use. Choose one of these text types: opinion article for the school magazine, speech for a school debate, proposal to the school leadership. Write 450–600 words.” Their response addresses only this point: “Content (criterion B): evaluates both benefits and risks with specific, convincing examples.” Evaluate the response against the complete 6-mark task. Identify what earns credit and state every additional requirement needed for full marks.

   [6 marks] · no calculator

   Marking points

   • Recognises credit for the stated point: Content (criterion B): evaluates both benefits and risks with specific, convincing examples.
   • Checks this criterion, crediting equivalent work already shown or identifying what is missing: Content (criterion B): proposes clear, practical guidelines for fair use and justifies them.
   • Checks this criterion, crediting equivalent work already shown or identifying what is missing: Message (criterion B): ideas are developed with specific details or examples and organised in clear, logically linked paragraphs.
   • Checks this criterion, crediting equivalent work already shown or identifying what is missing: Conventions (criterion C): uses features of the chosen type, e.g. headline and argued paragraphs for an article; audience address, rebuttal and rhetorical close for a debate speech; headed sections and numbered recommendations for a proposal.
   • Checks this criterion, crediting equivalent work already shown or identifying what is missing: Register (criterion C): balanced and authoritative, formal for school leadership and engaging but respectful for a debate audience.
   • Checks this criterion, crediting equivalent work already shown or identifying what is missing: Language (criterion A): varied vocabulary and a range of accurate simple and complex structures; any errors do not obstruct meaning.

   Examiner tip: Check each criterion, including equivalent work already shown. Do not demand an extra step merely to rewrite an equivalent answer. Do not award the same idea twice or infer work the learner did not show.

7. 7.

   Choose the word that best fits each gap: (A) unprecedented, (B) controversial, (C) widespread, (D) negligible. (1) The use of smartphones is now ___ even among very young children. (2) The cost of storing a single photo online is almost ___. (3) Gene editing remains ___, with experts deeply divided. (4) The speed of the vaccine’s development was ___; nothing similar had happened before.

   [4 marks] · no calculator

   Syllabus placement evidence: Language B guide: Paper 2 receptive skills (reading). Human ingenuity (HL): language use in a theme-related context.

   Worked explanation

   1. Read the whole sentence on both sides of each gap and decide which structure or meaning it needs before choosing.
   2. Model answers: (1) C widespread. (2) D negligible. (3) B controversial. (4) A unprecedented.

   Common mistake: Choosing an answer from the word next to the gap instead of the grammatical structure and meaning of the whole sentence.

   Marking points

   • (1) C widespread.
   • (2) D negligible.
   • (3) B controversial.
   • (4) A unprecedented.

   Examiner tip: Context clues such as “experts deeply divided” and “nothing similar had happened before” point directly to the right word.

8. 8.

   Marking analysis: A learner attempts the following task: “Choose the word that best fits each gap: (A) unprecedented, (B) controversial, (C) widespread, (D) negligible. (1) The use of smartphones is now ___ even among very young children. (2) The cost of storing a single photo online is almost ___. (3) Gene editing remains ___, with experts deeply divided. (4) The speed of the vaccine’s development was ___; nothing similar had happened before.” Their response addresses only this point: “(1) C widespread.” Evaluate the response against the complete 4-mark task. Identify what earns credit and state every additional requirement needed for full marks.

   [4 marks] · no calculator

   Marking points

   • Recognises credit for the stated point: (1) C widespread.
   • Checks this criterion, crediting equivalent work already shown or identifying what is missing: (2) D negligible.
   • Checks this criterion, crediting equivalent work already shown or identifying what is missing: (3) B controversial.
   • Checks this criterion, crediting equivalent work already shown or identifying what is missing: (4) A unprecedented.

   Examiner tip: Check each criterion, including equivalent work already shown. Do not demand an extra step merely to rewrite an equivalent answer. Do not award the same idea twice or infer work the learner did not show.

9. 9.

   Read the short text “Exhibition review”. “Light Machines, at the City Gallery until June, promises to ‘reinvent how we see’. It does not quite manage that, but it comes closer than most. The first room, a corridor of shifting coloured mirrors, is genuinely disorienting in the best sense. The later rooms are less confident, relying on screens that feel like a trade fair. Go for the mirrors; skip the gift shop.” (a) Identify the text type and two of its conventions in the sample. (b) Is the reviewer’s overall judgement positive, negative or mixed? Justify with two quotations. (c) Comment on the effect of the final sentence.

   [3 marks] · no calculator

   Syllabus placement evidence: Language B guide: text types and conceptual understanding (criterion C). Human ingenuity (HL): identifies text type, audience and register in an original sample.

   Worked explanation

   1. Decide the text type, audience and purpose from the layout and wording, then quote the features that prove each point.
   2. Model answers: (a) A review; any two conventions: the title, venue and dates; evaluation of specific parts; a recommendation to readers. (b) Mixed: positive (“comes closer than most”, “genuinely disorienting in the best sense”) and negative (“less confident”, “feel like a trade fair”). (c) A short, witty imperative gives a clear, memorable recommendation and reinforces the reviewer’s confident, informal voice.

   Common mistake: Naming a feature ("it is informal") without quoting it or linking it to the audience and purpose of the text.

   Marking points

   • (a) A review; any two conventions: the title, venue and dates; evaluation of specific parts; a recommendation to readers.
   • (b) Mixed: positive (“comes closer than most”, “genuinely disorienting in the best sense”) and negative (“less confident”, “feel like a trade fair”).
   • (c) A short, witty imperative gives a clear, memorable recommendation and reinforces the reviewer’s confident, informal voice.

   Examiner tip: Reviews balance description and evaluation; when you write one at HL, justify each judgement with a concrete detail.

10. 10.

    Marking analysis: A learner attempts the following task: “Read the short text “Exhibition review”. “Light Machines, at the City Gallery until June, promises to ‘reinvent how we see’. It does not quite manage that, but it comes closer than most. The first room, a corridor of shifting coloured mirrors, is genuinely disorienting in the best sense. The later rooms are less confident, relying on screens that feel like a trade fair. Go for the mirrors; skip the gift shop.” (a) Identify the text type and two of its conventions in the sample. (b) Is the reviewer’s overall judgement positive, negative or mixed? Justify with two quotations. (c) Comment on the effect of the final sentence.” Their response addresses only this point: “(a) A review; any two conventions: the title, venue and dates; evaluation of specific parts; a recommendation to readers.” Evaluate the response against the complete 3-mark task. Identify what earns credit and state every additional requirement needed for full marks.

    [3 marks] · no calculator

    Marking points

    • Recognises credit for the stated point: (a) A review; any two conventions: the title, venue and dates; evaluation of specific parts; a recommendation to readers.
    • Checks this criterion, crediting equivalent work already shown or identifying what is missing: (b) Mixed: positive (“comes closer than most”, “genuinely disorienting in the best sense”) and negative (“less confident”, “feel like a trade fair”).
    • Checks this criterion, crediting equivalent work already shown or identifying what is missing: (c) A short, witty imperative gives a clear, memorable recommendation and reinforces the reviewer’s confident, informal voice.

    Examiner tip: Check each criterion, including equivalent work already shown. Do not demand an extra step merely to rewrite an equivalent answer. Do not award the same idea twice or infer work the learner did not show.

Original, unofficial practice questions from SubjectScout — not official past-paper questions or complete syllabus coverage.