The History Teacher’s Plea: Replacing the L2 Oral
A candidate’s L2 is German. She is enrolled in History through German as a 3-period course and Geography through German as a 4-period course. For her three oral examinations she must take L1, either L2 or a subject taught through L2, and a third subject. She asks to use History for the L2 oral replacement because her History teacher has given her 88% for oral participation and says her argumentation is stronger in History than in German. The EB coordinator cites the school’s rule: a subject taught through L2 may replace the L2 oral only if it is a 4-period course and the candidate has followed it for at least two years. History is 3-period. The candidate’s parents point out that the EB regulations do not explicitly mention ‘4-period’ and ask for an exception. The school’s deadline for oral subject registration is in five days. The candidate’s preliminary marks are: German 71%, History 84%, Geography 69%.
1. Determine whether the candidate may use History to replace the L2 oral. Explain the basis for your decision and identify any alternative that would still allow her to avoid the German oral.
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The candidate may not use History to replace the L2 oral. The EB framework allows a subject taught through L2 to replace the L2 oral only when that subject is taught as a 4-period course; the school’s rule implements this requirement. History is a 3-period course, so it does not qualify. The parents’ argument that the EB regulations do not mention ‘4-period’ is not decisive: the 4-period requirement is the school’s operationalisation of the EB condition that the subject be taught at a sufficiently substantial level. The alternative is Geography, which is taught through German as a 4-period course. If the candidate chooses Geography for the L2 replacement, she can still take History as her third oral, provided the third oral is not already used. She should not be granted an exception; doing so would disadvantage other candidates and weaken the assessment. The coordinator should explain the rule in writing and offer a practice oral in Geography before the deadline.
2. If the candidate chooses Geography for the L2 replacement, what are the risks, and how should the school advise her?
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Choosing Geography carries three risks. First, the candidate’s Geography preliminary mark (69%) is lower than her German mark (71%), so her starting point is weaker. Second, the Geography oral assesses content through German, but the mark counts as the L2 oral; a poor performance could lower her L2 final mark, which is compulsory for the Bac. Third, she has less time to prepare because she was planning to use History. The school should advise her to compare her oral fluency in German and her grasp of the Geography syllabus. It should arrange a diagnostic oral with the Geography teacher and give her the criteria. If her diagnostic mark is below 65%, she should take the German oral and use History as the third oral. The decision should be hers, but it must be informed by evidence, not by the teacher’s 88% participation mark in History, which does not measure the same skills.