The MYP English Language and Literature number of criteria is four: Criterion A: Analysing, Criterion B: Organizing, Criterion C: Producing text, and Criterion D: Using language. Each has a maximum achievement level of 8, giving a combined classroom total of 32.
The criteria apply throughout the Middle Years Programme, although their detailed descriptors become more demanding as students progress. They also underpin the optional MYP Year 5 on-screen examination. Understanding criterion levels, examination marks, and final 1-7 grades helps prevent common grading mistakes.
The four MYP English Language and Literature criteria
MYP assessment is criterion-related. Teachers judge work against published descriptors rather than ranking students against classmates or adjusting results to fit a class average.
| Criterion | Name | Main focus | Maximum level |
|---|---|---|---|
| A | Analysing | Interpretation, evidence, creators' choices, effects, and comparisons | 8 |
| B | Organizing | Structure, coherence, development, formatting, and referencing | 8 |
| C | Producing text | Original writing, imagination, style, purpose, and audience | 8 |
| D | Using language | Vocabulary, register, grammar, sentences, spelling, and expression | 8 |
The criteria are equally weighted when calculating an overall classroom achievement level. However, one assignment does not necessarily assess all four. An analytical essay might assess A, B, and D, while a speech or narrative might assess B, C, and D.
Criterion A: Analysing
Criterion A measures how effectively students interpret literary and non-literary texts. It covers content, context, language, structure, technique, style, and relationships between texts.
High achievement requires more than identifying a metaphor or summarizing a passage. Students must explain how a creator's choice produces meaning or affects an audience, support interpretations with precise evidence, and evaluate similarities and differences when comparison is required. A useful reasoning sequence is: choice → effect → meaning → purpose.
Criterion B: Organizing
Criterion B assesses how clearly ideas are structured and presented. It rewards organizational choices suited to the context and intention, logical development, coherence, and appropriate referencing or formatting conventions.
Insightful ideas can lose impact if they appear in an unclear order. Purposeful introductions, topic sentences, transitions, paragraph sequencing, conclusions, and citations make reasoning easier to follow. The IB uses the spelling Organizing, although some schools write “Organising” in local materials.
Criterion C: Producing text
Criterion C assesses original text creation. Students might write narratives, speeches, articles, scripts, opinion pieces, or other forms for a defined audience and purpose.
Markers consider imagination, insight, sensitivity, stylistic choices, and relevant details. Technical accuracy alone does not guarantee high achievement if the response is generic or poorly matched to the prompt. Form, voice, imagery, structure, and detail should work together to create a deliberate effect.
Criterion D: Using language
Criterion D evaluates control of vocabulary, sentence structures, register, grammar, syntax, punctuation, spelling, pronunciation, and relevant non-verbal communication. The applicable features depend on whether the task is written, oral, or multimodal.
Sophisticated vocabulary does not earn a high level by itself. Language must be accurate and suitable for the task. A formal analysis, personal memoir, and campaign speech each require a different register.
Students can practise these skills with the RevisionDojo MYP English Language and Literature resources and review the MYP Language and Literature assessment criteria guide.
How MYP English grading works
Each criterion is divided into achievement bands, normally 1-2, 3-4, 5-6, and 7-8. The descriptors explain the quality of work expected. A level of 0 applies when the work does not reach a standard described by the available descriptors.
Teachers use best-fit judgment, not a mechanical checklist requiring every descriptor word to be demonstrated perfectly. For reporting, they consider appropriate evidence collected across the reporting period rather than automatically averaging every task.
The four final criterion levels are added:
A commonly applied MYP conversion table is:
| Total criterion points | Final MYP grade |
|---|---|
| 1-5 | 1 |
| 6-9 | 2 |
| 10-14 | 3 |
| 15-18 | 4 |
| 19-23 | 5 |
| 24-27 | 6 |
| 28-32 | 7 |
A total of 0 ordinarily means no grade can be awarded. Schools should confirm their current reporting policy, particularly when distinguishing internal reports from official eAssessment results.
Worked grading example
Suppose a student receives these final best-fit levels:
| Criterion | Achievement level |
|---|---|
| A: Analysing | 6 |
| B: Organizing | 5 |
| C: Producing text | 7 |
| D: Using language | 6 |
| Total | 24 out of 32 |
Since , the student receives a final grade 6. The student does not need a 7 in every criterion, but strength in one area cannot indefinitely compensate for weak performance elsewhere. The RevisionDojo guide to MYP grade boundaries explains this distinction further.
How MYP English Language and Literature eAssessment works
The MYP English Language and Literature eAssessment is an externally marked on-screen examination for registered MYP Year 5 students. It is different from an ordinary classroom test, and not every MYP student is required to take it.
The IB subject brief describes an 80-mark examination with two broad components:
| Examination component | Criteria assessed | Raw marks |
|---|---|---|
| Analysis | A, B, and D | 30 |
| Creative writing | B, C, and D | 50 |
| Total | All four criteria across the examination | 80 |
The analysis component requires students to interpret, compare, and contrast supplied texts while supporting ideas coherently. The creative component requires an original text shaped deliberately for audience, purpose, and effect.
Although Criteria B and D appear in both components, this does not mean they carry twice the overall weight. The examination blueprint is designed so that all four criteria are equally weighted, subject to a small permitted variation in raw-mark distribution.
Official results use the 1-7 scale, but students must not apply the classroom 32-point conversion table to an 80-mark examination score. The IB determines subject and session-specific boundaries through grade awarding. Coordinators should therefore consult official boundaries for the relevant examination session.
For the full MYP Certificate, Language and Literature is one of eight required eAssessment components. Candidates must also satisfy the IB's separate component-grade and total-point requirements.
Common misconceptions about the criteria
- Every assignment must assess all four criteria. A task should assess only the criteria and strands for which it produces valid evidence. Across the course, students must still receive suitable opportunities to demonstrate every required criterion.
- A level 6 out of 8 is the same as a grade 6. A criterion level describes performance in one skill area. A final grade results from combining all four criterion levels.
- Grammar determines the English grade. Accuracy contributes mainly to Criterion D, but students must also analyse texts, organize ideas, and produce purposeful original work.
- The latest task automatically determines the final level. Recent evidence may show current achievement, but MYP reporting is not simply “last score wins.” Teachers make a professional best-fit judgment using appropriate evidence.
The criteria-first MYP revision strategies show how students can turn rubric feedback into targeted practice.
Practical ways to improve all four criteria
Before an assessment, identify the criteria and strands being marked. Translate each strand into a specific action, such as “explain the effect of two structural choices” or “maintain a persuasive register for teenage readers.”
A balanced practice routine could include:
- one short unseen analysis for Criterion A;
- one essay plan focused on sequencing for Criterion B;
- one creative or persuasive paragraph for Criterion C;
- one accuracy and register exercise for Criterion D;
- one rewrite based on rubric-aligned feedback.
Students aiming for the highest bands should compare their work directly with the descriptors rather than asking only whether an answer is correct. The guide to scoring a 7 in MYP Language and Literature explains how evidence, structure, and controlled language combine in strong responses.
Conclusion
MYP English Language and Literature has four equally weighted criteria. Each has a maximum level of 8, producing an internal total out of 32 that can be converted to a final 1-7 grade.
Year 5 eAssessment measures the same areas but uses raw examination marks and session-specific grade awarding. For structured preparation, RevisionDojo Study Notes can clarify the skills, while the Questionbank and Jojo AI can support criterion-focused practice and feedback.
Sources and referenced URLs
- IB MYP Language and Literature subject brief
- IB overview of MYP assessment
- IB MYP grading and awards requirements
- IB explanation of MYP passing criteria
- RevisionDojo MYP English Language and Literature resources
- RevisionDojo assessment criteria guide
- RevisionDojo guide to MYP grade boundaries
- RevisionDojo revision strategies
- RevisionDojo guide to scoring a 7