How to Choose a Global Issue for Your IB IO: Examples and Tips

The Individual Oral (IO) is an important part of the IB English A: Language and Literature course. For Standard Level students, it is the only internally assessed part of the course, and is worth 30% of the final grade in English A. As for Higher Level students, the Individual Oral is worth 20%. 

The Individual Oral consists of a 10 minute presentation discussing a global issue in the context of 2 extracts–one literary, the other non-literary. This is then followed by a 5 minute question and answer session with your teacher. 

The most important part of preparing for the IB Individual Oral is the selection of the global issue. It anchors the presentation as a whole, meaning that your grade is largely dependent on selecting a relevant and clear global issue. The texts that IB English A: Language and Literature students study in class deal with many social and cultural issues, and these can be tailored to work as a global issue in the context of the IB Individual Oral.

What is a Global Issue in the IB Individual Oral?

The English A: Language and Literature guide defines global issues as something that has ‘significance on a wide/large scale’, is transnational, and its impact must be felt in ‘everyday contexts’. 

When looking for a global issue for the IB Individual Oral, students should look for certain key criteria. The selected global issue should be chosen for its relevance, depth and connection to the works studied. It is vital that the global issue be present throughout the literary and non-literary body of work. 

The IB defines certain distinct categories of global issues to help students prepare for their Individual Orals in English A: Language and Literature. These are:

  • Culture, identity and community

  • Beliefs, values and education

  • Politics, power and justice

  • Art, creativity and the imagination

  • Science, technology and the environment

How to Choose the Right Global Issue for Your IB IO

Students should make sure that the global issue selected for the Individual Oral is one that is featured clearly (and, ideally, explicitly) throughout both extracts, as well as featured strongly throughout both bodies of works. It is not enough for the global issue to be mentioned in passing, select a global issue that is tied in with the main themes and ideas of the texts. An example of this would be a global issue aligned with gendered violence when looking at Margaret Atwood’s The Handmaid’s Tale for the literary text. There is scope to create a specific and clear global issue from that, as the theme is clearly present throughout the text. 

Students should aim to avoid overly broad global issues when preparing for their Individual Oral. A global issue like ‘the representation of women’ when looking at the poetry of Carol Ann Duffy is far too broad. However, students should also be careful that their work is not too narrow: ‘sexual violence of artists towards their muses’ in the poetry of Carol Ann Duffy would only work with a single poem, and, therefore, would not be an appropriate global issue. Finding the middle-ground between these two scenarios is essential for success in the Individual Oral for English A: Language and Literature. 

Examples of Global Issues for IB Individual Oral

  • Example work: Tayeb Salih’s Season of Migration to the North and charity campaigns in print from global NGO Oxfam.

Global Issue: How droughts and the people affected by them are frequently exoticised by people outside the regions.

  • Example work: Yukio Mishima’s The Sailor who Fell from Grace with the Sea and podcast transcripts from The Joe Rogan Experience.

Global Issue: Exploring how overly strict definitions of masculinity ironically emasculate men, and can lead to violence when these ideals cannot be fulfilled.

  • Example work: George Orwell’s Nineteen Eighty-Four and political speeches by Malcolm X.

Global Issue: Examining how language can be used by states to oppress and crush resistance from their own citizens.

  • Example work: Margaret Atwood’s The Handmaid’s Tale and the speeches of Malala Yousufzai

Global Issue: Discussing both the reasons why women’s education might be imperilled, and the consequences of resisting it.

  • Example work: Kazuo Ishiguro’s Never Let Me Go and Apple’s Think Different advertising campaign

Global Issue: How literature and media explore the link between art/creativity and the idea of personhood, and the flaws within that association.

Structure Your IB Individual Oral Around a Global Issue

It is vitally important that you state your global issue clearly and concisely in the introduction to your IO presentation. It essentially needs to function as your thesis statement for your presentation, so make sure you state it before moving onto your analysis. It can be helpful to include a brief statement in your introduction about how both your literary and non-literary texts connect to the global issue. This will help the listener understand your argument, and keep your presentation focused. 

Furthermore, ensure that you are selecting examples from throughout both texts in your analysis. The IB wants to see that you know your texts well, and that’s best proved by speaking confidently and analytically about them during your Individual Oral. It is also important that you balance your analysis. We generally advise students to stick to two minutes for each section of analysis. So two minutes on the literary extract, two on the body of work, and then repeating that structure for the non-literary text. Remember, although 10 minutes sounds like a long presentation, it really is not. The time will go by quickly, so it is essential to be concise and clear in your analysis.

Lastly, remain focused on the global issue in your conclusion. This section should not last longer than 40 seconds, so again, concision is key. Leave the listener reflecting on the impact of the global issue on modern society. It is important to ‘widen out’ your discussion of the global issue at the end of an Individual Oral, and emphasise that this global issue is relevant to the world.

Final Tips for the IB Individual Oral

Selecting a global issue is an essential part of preparing for the IB Individual Oral. Students need to consider a global issue that is relevant to both texts and meets the various criteria outlined by the IB. The Individual Oral is an essential part of IB assessment for English A: Language and Literature, and, thus, the better prepared a student is for their presentation, the more likely they are to score highly on the assessment and in the subject more generally.

Are you struggling to find the right global issue or make strong connections between your texts? BartyED’s experienced IB English tutors can guide you through the process, helping you refine your analysis and ace your IB IO. Contact us today by phone (+852 2882 1017) or email enquiries@bartyed.com for personalised tutoring support!

Frequently Asked Questions

  • One example of an IB global issue is ‘the suppression of female autonomy in politically unstable environments’, discussed in Loung Ung’s book First They Killed My Father: A Daughter of Cambodia Remembers, and the 2023 speech to the UN House Nigeria by Malala Yousafzai.

  • The requirements for a global issue are that it is relevant to a student’s chosen texts, that it is present through these texts and that it is relevant to today’s world.

  • It is important that students state clearly their global issue in the introduction of their IO. This can be as simple as stating ‘the global issue I will be discussing is…’ within the first sentence of their IO.

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English, IB DiplomaMark Malone