EXAMINATION SPECIFICATIONS
ENGLISH - LANGUAGE AND LITERATURE - CLASS-X
Division of Syllabus for Term I (April-September) Total Weightage Assigned
Summative Assessment I 30%
Section Marks
Reading 20
Writing 20
Grammar 15
Literature 35
Formative Assessment 20%
TOTAL 90% marks 50%
Division of Syllabus for Term II (October -March) Total Weightage Assigned
Summative Assessment II 30%
Section Marks
Reading 15
Writing 15
Grammar 15
Literature ` 35
Formative Assessment 20%
TOTAL 90 marks 50%
Note:
1. The total weightage assigned to Summative Assessment (SA I&II) IS 60%. The total weightagwe assigned to Formative Assessment (FA1, 2, 3, &4) is 40%. Out of the 40% assigned to Formative Assessment, 10% weightage is assigned to conversation skills (5% each in Term I&II) and 10% weightage to the Reading Project (at least 1 Book is to be read in each term and the Project will carry a weightage of 5% in each term) 2. The Summative Assessment I and Summative Assessment II is for ninety marks each. The weighatge assigned to Summative Assessment I is 30% and the weightage assigned to Summative Assessment II is 30%.
SECTION A: READING 20 Marks
30 periods
Qs 1-4 This section will have four unseen passages of a total length of 800 words. The arrangement within the reading section is as follows:
Q 1&2:Five Multiple Choice Questions on each passage carrying 5 marks for each question.
Q 3&4:Five Supply Type Questions carrying 5 marks on each passage.
Out of the 20 marks, 4 marks will be for vocabulary. The questions will test inference, evaluation and analysis. The passages may be extracts from poetry/ factual/ literary/ discursive texts. At least one passage will be an extract from a poem.
SECTION B: WRITING 20 Marks
40 periods
Q 5 Letter Writing: One out of two letters (formal/informal/email) in not more than 120- 150 words based on verbal stimulus and context provided. Types of letter: Informal - personal, such as to family and friends. Formal - letters to the editor / the principal of a school. Email - formal letters to principal of the school or to the editor of a Newspaper or a Magazine. 8 Marks
Q 6 Writing an article, speech or debate based on a visual or verbal stimulus in not more than 120 words (One out of two). 8 Marks
Q 7 Writing a short composition in the form of dialogue writing or story or report of minimum 80 words(One out of two). 4 Marks
SECTION C: GRAMMAR 15 Marks
This section will assess Grammar items in context for 15 marks.
• This section will carry five questions of three marks each
• Out of five questions two questions (question 8 and 9) carrying 6 marks will have MCQs of three marks each .The test types for MCQs include:
• Gap filling
• Sentence completion
• Dialogue Completion
• Questions 10, 11 and 12(carrying 3 marks each ie total 9 marks) will be based on response supplied by students. (Supply Type Questions). These test types which will not be tested as MCQs include
• Sentence reordering
• Editing
• Omission
• Sentence transformation (including combining sentences)
The Grammar syllabus will include the following areas in class X:
1. Tenses
2. Modals (have to/had to, must, should, need, ought to and their negative forms)
3. Use of passive voice
4. Subject - verb concord
5. Reporting
(i) Commands and requests
(ii) Statements
(iii) Questions
6. Clauses:
(i) Noun clauses
(ii) Adverb clauses of condition and time
(iii) Relative clauses
7. Determiners, and
8. Prepositions
Note: No separate marks are allotted for any of the grammar items listed above since grammar will be tested in an integrated manner.
SECTION D: TEXT BOOKS 35 Marks
First Flight-NCERT Text Book for Class X
Q13 a) and b) Two extracts for reference to context (based on prose or play). These extracts would require effort on the part of the students to supply the responses.
Up to one mark in each extract will be for vocabulary. At least one question will be used for testing local and global comprehension and one question will be on interpretation. (20-30 words) The extracts will carry 4 marks each. 8 Marks
Q 14 Two out of three reference to context stanzas (based on poetry) followed by 3 MCQs to test local and global comprehension of the set text .The extracts will carry 3 marks each. 6 Marks (20-30 words)
Q15. Three out of four short answer type questions based on prose or play to test local and global comprehension of theme and ideas -- 2 marks each. (30-40 words each) 6 Marks
Q16. One out of two long answer type questions extrapolative in nature based on prose or play. (Upto 80 words). 5 Marks
Footprints without Feet: NCERT Supplementary Reader for Class X 10 Marks
Q 17. One out of two long questions from supplementary reader to interpret, evaluate and analyze character, plot or situations occurring in the lessons to be answered in about 80 words. 4 Marks
Q 18. Two out of three short answer type questions based on factual aspects, interpretation and evaluation of a
lesson. (40-50 words each) 3x2 =6 Marks
NOTE: Teachers are advised to:
i. encourage classroom interaction among peers, students and teachers through activities such as role play, group work etc,
ii. reduce teacher-talking time and keep it to the minimum,
iii. take up questions for discussion to encourage pupils to participate and to marshal their ideas and express and defend their views, and
iv. use the scale of assessment for conversation skills to test the students for continuous assessment. Besides measuring attainment, texts serve the dual purpose of diagnosing mistakes and areas of non-learning. To make evaluation a true index of learners' attainment, each language skill is to be assessed through a judicious mixture of different types of questions. In addition to the summative tests, formative assessment is essential to measure the
level of attainment in the four language skills and the learners' communicative competence. Formative assessment should be done through 'in class' activities throughout the year.
Prescribed Books
1 First Flight -Textbook for Class X Published by NCERT,
2 Footprints without Feet - Supplementary Reader for Class X Sri Aurobindo Marg, New Delhi
Reading Section:
Reading for comprehension, critical evaluation, inference and analysis is a skill to be tested formatively as well as
summatively.
Writing Section:
All types of short and extended writing tasks will be dealt with in both I and II Term Summative as well as in Formative Assessment.
Grammar:
Grammar items mentioned in the syllabus will be taught and assessed formatively over a period of time. There will be no division of syllabus for Grammar in the summative assessments for the two terms.
Syllabus for Terms
| S.No. Text Books | First Term (April – September) | Second Term (October - March) | ||||
| | FA 1 10 | FA2 10 | SA I 30 | FA3 10 | FA4 10 | SA II 30 |
| Literature Reader (First Flight) | | | | | | |
| PROSE | | | | | | |
| 1. A Letter to God | Yes | | Yes | | | |
| 2. Nelson Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom | Yes | | Yes | | | |
| 3. His First Flight | Yes | | Yes | | | |
| 4. Black Aeroplane | Yes | Yes | Yes | | | |
| 5. From the Diary of Anne Frank | | Yes | Yes | | | |
| 6. The Hundred Dresses-I | | Yes | Yes | | | |
| 7. The Hundred Dresses-II | | Yes | Yes | | | |
| 8. A Baker from Goa | | | | Yes | | Yes |
| 9. Coorg | | | | Yes | | Yes |
| 10. Tea form Assam | | | | Yes | | Yes |
| 11. Mijbil the otter | | | | | Yes | Yes |
| 12. Madam Rides the Bus | | | | | Yes | Yes |
| 13. The Sermon at Benares | | | | | Yes | Yes |
| 14. The Proposal | | | | | Yes | Yes |
| POETRY | | | | | | |
| 1. Dust of Snow | Yes | | Yes | | | |
| 2. Fire and Ice | Yes | | Yes | | | |
| 3. A Tiger in the zoo | Yes | | Yes | | | |
| 4. How to tell Wild Animals | Yes | | Yes | | | |
| 5. The Ball Poem | | Yes | Yes | | | |
| 6. Amanda | | Yes | Yes | | | |
| 7. Animals | | | | Yes | | Yes |
| 8. The Trees | | | | Yes | | Yes |
| 9. Fog | | | | | Yes | Yes |
| 10. The Tale of Custard the Dragon | | | | | Yes | Yes |
| 11. For Anne Gregory | | | | | Yes | Yes |
| Supplementary Reader (Footprints without Feet) | | | | | | |
| 1. A Triumph of Surgery | Yes | | Yes | | | |
| 2. The Thief's Story | Yes | | Yes | | | |
| 3. The Midnight Visitor | Yes | | Yes | | | |
| 4. A Question of Trust | | Yes | Yes | | | |
| 5. Footprints without feet | | Yes | Yes | | | |
| 6. The Making of a Scientist | | | | Yes | | Yes |
| 7. The Necklace | | | | Yes | | Yes |
| 8. The Hack Driver | | | | | Yes | Yes |
| 9. Bholi | | | | | Yes | Yes |
| 10. The Book that saved the Earth | | | | | Yes | Yes |
Note:
1. Formative Assessment is assessment 'for' learning. Thus schools may adapt the above break-up as per their convenience.
2. All activities related to Formative Assessment such as language games, quizzes, projects, role plays dramatisation,script writing etc must be done as 'in class' and 'in school' activities. In case, a field survey or visit is taken up,it must be under the direct supervision of the teacher.
