Writing IB Test Questions
Paper 1 = unseen 10 [-12] line passage of Ovid’s Meta [2012] – 1 hr
Paper 2= choose 3 out of 4 genre passages = 1.5 hrs =30 min per passage
[To modify for 1.5 hr test total=2of3 genre and 3-4 line transl]
Paper 2- Hints for writing an IB Latin question for paper 2
Total of 1015 marks per passage [real test has 15 now that extra essay is gone]
length - recent tests – passage is [SL test 2011 - Cat14. 23lns 123wds; Horace 3.9-24lns 107 words;
Verg6 – 18 lns, 126wds; Verg6, 16lns, 112wds; juv 135 20lns, wds]
There should be a translation question…2 lines of Vergil or a 4 line stanza of Horace…worth 3 marks
For Vergil – scan 2 lines, worth 2 marks
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Scan line 44 (desidia ... pingues). How does scansion here assist a correct translation? [2 marks]
Explain how the scansion helps to identify the case of casus (line 273).. [2 marks]
[juvenal also in hex,scan selected lines written in hexameters, elegiacs, or hendecasyllables
Comment on the following 3 things: [verb tenses, people, references, [3 marks]
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Discuss the effect these words have on the narrative. (2 marks]
Choose four words or phrases that, in your opinion, contribute to the pathos of the passage and exp lain how they
do so. [8 marks]
Briefly explain the context of this passage. [2 marks]
Palatium Romulus, Remus Aventinum (lines 3-4). Name or describe the rhetorical device used here. "what is its
effect in context? [2 marks]
Who were illi and who were hi (line 7)? [2 marks]
ridebis (line 1). Identify three word or phrases from this letter which, in your opinion, were likely to make Tacitus
laugh. [3 marks]
What feature of Roman hunting technique made it possible for Pliny to do as he claims? [2 marks]
Identify three mythical characters from this passage and give a very brief account of their story. [3 marks]
What two experiences is Juvena) claiming in the last section of this passage? [2 marks]
What do we laern about Pollio from these words, and how does it strengthen Catullus' argument? [2 marks]
What point is Catullus making in this line? [2 marks]
What had happened in the previous lines to explain the reaction described in line 145 (his lacrimis ... miserescimus
ullra)? [3 marks]
What is th e speaker trying to achieve in line 154-9 (vos ae/erni ... legibus ullis) and what tactics does he use? [3 marks]
Describe the style of lines 150-1 (quo molem ... belli?); what effect do you think it has on the reader? [3 marks][series of
several short rhetorical questions]
Who is speak ing and to whom? 2
Explain how this passage contributes to our understanding of the challenges facing Aeneas in Aeneid 2. 5marks
Name the tenses of movebat (line 5), of audis (l ine 6) and of j lebis (line 10). What do your answers suggest about
Horace's view of Lydia's life? 3 marks
Explain fully the significance of Thracio bacchante ... venlo (line I 1-1 2)? 2 marks [referencing the bacchic festivals in
the interlunia]
Adriaci ... domulII Veneris quam Darica slIslinet Ancon (l ines 39-40). Why, in your opinion, does luvena] give such
precise geograrhical detail? [2 marks]
sanguinis ... glllla (line 54); what is .luvenal describing here, and what does he think it shows? 2 marks
lugentis amicllm Pelidae (l ines 279-80). Name the two men involved here and explain enough of their story to justify
their presence here. [4 marks]
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Briefly indicate five examples of humour or irony to be found in this passage. You may use material from your
responses to (i), (ii) or (iv). [5 marks]
Part 2: Topics
The examination paper:
The section B essay question will be removed.
There will still be 10 extracts with questions, 2 for each genre. For each pair of
extracts, one set of questions will be directed questions (10 marks); the other set of
questions will have fewer questions and one of the questions will require a ‘lit-crit’
answer worth 12 marks – HL three questions worth 2, 2, 8; SL – four questions worth
2, 2, 2, 6.
Paper 1 = unseen 10 [-12] line passage of Ovid’s Meta [2012] – 1 hr
Word length of the passage in Paper 1: HL - 115-125 words; SL - 55-65 words.
Guidelines for the selection and presentation of the passage:
• There will be an introductory synopsis of 2 or 3 sentences.
• The passage itself should begin with 1 or 2 easy sentences (short sentences
with one finite verb).
• Glossing will be added for such things as difficult words, sentence structure clarity, unfamiliar proper
nouns.
• The text should have: both ‘v’ and ‘u’, ‘i’ (instead of ‘j’), small letters at the beginning of sentences.
For Poetry
Couplet - Five couplets, [8 marks] per couplet
Single lines usually worth 4 marks per line, sometimes broken in half
Where [4 marks] are available, give four if all correct; if one Latin word is rendered incorrectly,
give [3]; if half or more of the section is correct (but more Latin words than one are rendered
incorrectly), give [2]; if something is correct but more than half the section is wrong, give one.
Otherwise zero.
For Prose
Since the rules forbid half marks it is important to find a way to distinguish between more and less
serious errors. Otherwise, in this kind of exercise, it can become difficult to reflect the range of
performance. The scheme below divides the passage into short sections assigned [2 marks],
[3 marks], [4 marks] or [5 marks].
*In the case of one-mark sections, assign the mark to a correct answers or an answer with no more than
one minor error (tense, number etc.).
*In the case of two-mark sections, assign full marks to correct answers or answers with no more than
one minor error (tense, number etc.). Two or three minor errors or one major error should be
awarded [1 mark]. Otherwise award no mark.
*In the case of three-mark sections, assign full marks to correct answers or answers with no more
than one minor error (tense, number etc.). Two or three minor errors or one major error should be
awarded [2 marks]. For [1 mark], candidates should have no more than two major errors, or four
minor errors or a combination of one major error and two minor errors.
*In the case of four-mark sections, assign full marks to correct answers or answers with no more than
one minor error (tense, number etc.). Two or three minor errors or one major error should be
awarded [3 marks]. For [2 marks], candidates should have no more than two major errors, or four
minor errors or a combination of one major error and two minor errors. For [1 mark], candidates
should be ineligible for [2 marks] but should demonstrate some understanding of the section.
*In the case of five-mark sections, assign full marks to correct answers or answers with no more than
one minor error (tense, number etc.). Two or three minor errors or one major error should be
awarded [4 marks]. For [3 marks], candidates should have no more than two major errors, or four
minor errors or a combination of one major error and two minor errors. For [2 marks] or [1 mark],
candidates should be ineligible for [3 marks] but should demonstrate some understanding of the
section.
I do hope that this will seem fair and reasonably easy to apply. Please mark the boundaries on the
scripts you mark, and please put your individual marks in the margin of the scripts (not in the
candidates’ work), with the total (circled) at the end.