Marking a 5-mark notice: format conventions versus clear content
A 5-mark notice item reads: 'Your school is holding a Santali cultural programme on 21 February. Write a notice for the school noticeboard giving the date, time, venue and one instruction for participants.' Script D reads: 'Notice - All students are informed that our school is organising a Santali cultural programme on 21 February. The programme will be held in the school hall at 11 a.m. Students who want to participate should meet the Santali teacher. - Secretary, Cultural Committee.' The script uses the English heading 'Notice', puts the date only in the body as '21 February' without a year, and uses the passive 'are informed'. The rubric is: format 2, content 2, language 1. The school wants marks that are consistent with the board's emphasis on clear communication rather than literary style.
1. Score Script D out of 5 and justify each rubric row.
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Award 4/5.
- Format: 1/2. The script has a heading and an issuer, which are the two most important format features. But a school notice normally carries a date line near the top, and the date is buried in the body without a year. The English word 'Notice' is acceptable if the paper does not require an Ol Chiki heading; if the school's convention is an Ol Chiki heading, this row drops to 0.5, but with an integer rubric it is 1.
- Content: 2/2. Date, time, venue and the participant instruction are all present. The omission of the year is a format issue, not a content gap, because the event is clearly this year's 21 February.
- Language: 1/1. The meaning is clear. 'Are informed' is a Bengali-influenced passive, but it does not obscure the message, and the rubric rewards clear communication rather than literary style. If the school has taught 'Students are informed' as an error, deduct here rather than in content.
Comment: 'Clear and complete. Add a dated heading line and check whether your school expects an Ol Chiki heading.'
2. Rewrite the notice in 45–60 words, keeping the same information.
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Notice Date: 10 February 20XX
The school will hold a Santali cultural programme on 21 February at 11 a.m. in the school hall. Students who wish to participate should meet the Santali teacher by 18 February.
Secretary, Cultural Committee
Reasoning: The revision adds a date line, keeps the body under 60 words, and turns the passive into an active instruction. It also adds a deadline, which is useful information for participants without changing the task. The heading remains 'Notice' because the original item did not require Ol Chiki script; if it did, the heading would be in Ol Chiki and the body would follow the school's language policy.
3. Design a 10-mark letter-writing task on the same programme that tests a different skill from the notice, and list three marking criteria.
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Task: 'Write a letter to a friend in another school inviting them to the Santali cultural programme on 21 February. Give the date, time, venue and one reason they would enjoy it. Write 100–120 words.'
Why it differs from the notice: A notice is a public, impersonal, brief announcement; a letter is personal, addressed, and persuasive. The letter tests salutation and closing, audience awareness, and the ability to give a reason, not just list facts.
Marking criteria (10 marks): (1) Format and address-salutation, closing, sender's name (2); (2) Content-date, time, venue and a reason (4); (3) Language and tone-clear, friendly, grammatically controlled (2); (4) Coherence-logical order and linking (2). Do not award marks twice for the same detail; the reason must be developed, not just named.