In one line: The Individual Oral is a 15-minute oral (10 minutes prepared + 5 minutes of questions from your teacher) in which you explore one global issue through one literary work and one non-literary body of work, marked out of 40.
The IO isn't a performance of a memorised speech — it's you, thinking aloud, analytically, about something that matters in the world and in your texts.
You choose a GLOBAL ISSUE (a real-world concern like power, migration, or identity), a short extract from a literary work and a short extract from a non-literary body of work, and you argue how each explores that issue. Ten minutes of prepared analysis, then five minutes of questions from your teacher.
What the IO asks
One global issue
A real-world concern (power, migration, identity…) present in both works.
Two works
ONE literary work + ONE non-literary body of work (e.g. a set of adverts, a photographer).
10 + 5 minutes
10 minutes of prepared analysis, then 5 minutes of questions from your teacher.
Marked out of 40
Criteria A–D, each out of 10: works+issue, analysis, focus, language.
The key move: The IO = explore ONE global issue through a literary AND a non-literary work, analysing how each presents it — for 10 prepared minutes, then 5 of questions.
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Why it matters in the exam: The IO is worth 30% (SL) / 20% (HL) — a large slice of your grade, and one you control by preparing well.
Its shape
- Global issue
- Two works
- 10+5 minutes
- Marked /40
- Understanding this shape is the first step to a strong oral.
A student says: ‘For my IO I'll talk about my favourite novel for fifteen minutes.’ What's wrong, and what should the IO actually be?
Model answer plan
See the mark-by-mark plan — for / against / judgement, with marking guidance — in study mode.
Watch out: The IO is not a summary or a personal ‘talk’ about a text you like. It's a focused, analytical argument about one global issue across two works — and half the marks (A + B) depend on analysing authorial choices.