Cameroon GCE O Level English Language syllabus

· Updated Nov 5, 2024 · 11 minutes · by Kamerpower Team ·

Cameroon GCE O Level English Language syllabus

530 ENGLISH LANGUAGE

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1. AIMS

The general aims of the syllabus are:

•   To encourage the teaching and learning of the four skills in an integrated manner.
• To encourage communication in speech and writing.
• To promote the use of English Language as a national and international language
• To encourage extensive reading and listening, and responding in various ways.

 2. GENERAL OBJECTIVES

Candidates will be expected to demonstrate their ability to

• Understand and convey information.
• Understand, select, order and present facts, ideas and opinions.
• Evaluate information in reading material and in other media and select what is relevant to specific purposes.
• Recognize implicit meaning and attitude
• Show a sense of audience and awareness of style in a variety of situations.
• Listen, understand, speak and write English that is acceptable in national and international circles.
• Exercise control of appropriate structures and conventions, including punctuation and spelling.

3.ASSESSMENT OBJECTIVES

• Listening and Reading Comprehension, Composition and Directed Writing will assess knowledge, comprehension, application and analysis.
• Grammar and vocabulary will assess knowledge, comprehension and application.
• School-based projects and spoken English will assess knowledge, comprehension, application and analysis.

 4. THE EXAMINATION

Paper	Section	Name	Type of Question	Duration(in minutes)	Nº of Questions Set	Nº of Questions to be answered	Marks	Weighting
I	A	LC	MCQ	25	9	All	9	30 % of the total marks
	B	RC		35	17		17
	C	Gram		10	12		12
	D	Vocab		10	12		12
2	A	DW	Problem. Solving	1 hour	1	1	30	60 % of the total marks
	B	Comp	Essay	1 hour	8	1	40
	C*	SB &Sp.Eng	Cont. Assess. /oral	F4-5 work 5-10 minutes	Open	Open	40	10 % of the total marks

5. THE SYLLABUS CONTENT

 1. LISTENING COMPREHENSION

 Aims

•  Encourage the teaching and learning of listening skills.
• Encourage listening with understanding to varied material.
• Increase learner’s vocabulary.
• Encourage responding in various ways to textual material on different topics.

Objectives

 Candidates shall be assessed on their ability to:

•  Listen to and respond in different ways to various textual materials.
• Infer meaning of words in context.
• Discriminate between sounds.
• Discriminate between stress patterns.
• Identify syllable components.

Content

There will be a listening comprehension text and questions set on it.

The text will either be a story, a dialogue, an interview, a talk, a speech or a radio recording of about 400 to 500 words.  There will be a total of 9 questions in this section; they will be of Multiple- Choice type and will carry 9 marks.

2. READING COMPREHENSION

Aims

• Encourage the teaching and learning of reading skills
• Encourage reading with understanding of textual material on varied topics.
• Increase learners’ vocabulary.
• Foster a love for extensive reading.

Objectives

• Test the ability to read various kinds of material.
• Test the ability to respond in different ways to various kinds of material.
• Test the ability to infer the meanings and use of words in context.

Content

• The examination will be set on one or more passages totaling about 750 to 1000 words in length. The passages may not have the same subject matter. There will be a total of 17 questions in this section; they will be of Multiple- Choice type and will carry 17 marks.

3. GRAMMAR

Aims

• Encourage the learning of grammar which is the basis of the English Language.
• Encourage the application of rules of grammar.
• Improve communication since there is little effective communication without an adequate language base.

OBJECTIVES

• Encourage teachers and learners to give grammar the emphasis it deserves.
• Enable the learners to understand, and be understood.

 Content
This section will consist of 12 Multiple-Choice Questions on items of grammar and will carry 12 marks. It shall be weighted as 30 % of the total subject marks.

4. VOCABULARY

AIMS

• Encourage learners to increase their vocabulary use.
•  Encourage him/her to pay more attention to word use.

OBJECTIVES

• Enable the learner to understand the meaning of words in context.
• Enable the learner to understand the use of words in context.
• Enable the learner to understand a wide range of idioms.
•  Enable the learner to understand a wide range of figures of speech.
•  Enable the learner to use a wide range of idioms.
•  Enable the learner to use a wide range of figures of speech.

Content

This section will consist of 12 Multiple-Choice Questions on items of vocabulary and will carry 12 marks.

5. SPOKEN ENGLISH AND SCHOOL-BASED PROJECTS

Aims

•  Encourage the teaching and learning of oral English.
•  Encourage learners to use acceptable forms in their spoken English.
•  Encourage learners to listen and get used to other varieties of spoken English.

              • Encourage the practical use of English by making learning more participatory and learner-centered.

                • Encourage creativity.
                • Encourage group work and group interaction.
                • Build self-confidence and self-esteem.
                • Encourage learners to adapt to different situations, settings and varied tasks.
                • Encourage the spirit of inquisitiveness and research.

OBJECTIVES

•  Enable active participation of learners in the learning process.
•  Fortify the link between spoken and written English.
•  Enable learners to practice an important skill.
• • Enable learners to understand different ways in which spoken language is used in different contexts.
  • Enable learners to freely and confidently express themselves in a variety of settings and situations.
  • Enable learners to become creative, inquisitive and develop the capacity for research.
  • Enable learners to develop the sense of communal and participatory approach in solving problems or addressing given situations.

Content

• The examination will present an occasion for interacting with the candidate through conversation. The examiner will provide lead questions on varied topics for conversation or dialogue. The questions are meant to provoke candidates to talk, but if a candidate appears not to be well informed about a particular topic, the examiner must switch to another topic since the purpose of the examination is not only to test knowledge but also for articulation, pronunciation, logical sequence and fluency in the candidate.
•  Candidates will be examined either individually, in pairs or in groups of not more than five depending on the questions chosen for the examination. Each candidate will be given 5 – 10 minutes to demonstrate his/her competence in spoken English. The test will carry 40 marks. SPECIFIC REQUIREMENTS FOR THE SUBJECT: Oral Work (there will be Oral Interaction between candidate(s) and examiner(s)).

6. Directed Writing

Aims

•  Encourage learners to extract relevant information from a text.
•  Encourage learners to use the information to write clearly and coherently a specified number of words and paragraphs.
• Encourage learners to write with a purpose and for a particular audience.

Objectives

Encourage learners to:

•  respond to stimulus material.
•  select and present facts.
•  write different text types.
•  slant and format information appropriately.
•  respect words and paragraph limits.

7. COMPOSITION

Aims

Encourage learners to :

•  write English accurately, with correct spelling, punctuation, grammar and good handwriting.
• express themselves in acceptable English.

OBJECTIVES

Enable learners to:

•  acquaint themselves with a variety of written modes.
•  show relevance to the topic chosen.
•  be creative.
•  arrange their ideas logically and coherently.
•  express an appropriate point of view and show a sense of audience.

 SYLLABUS GUIDELINES

 1. LISTENING COMPREHENSION

Candidates will be required to:

• discriminate sounds in connected speech.
• discriminate stress pattern in connected speech.
• listen for main points.
• listen for detail and implied meaning.
• listen for general and specific information.
• listen and differentiate between relevant and irrelevant information.
• listen and identify people’s points of view in a conversation, debate or textual material.
• listen and infer meaning from context.
• listen to a dialogue or conversation and identify a problem.
• listen and identify the purpose of a text
• listen and identify relevant facts from a text.
• listen and recognize a range of spoken text types and speech situations such as a story, talk, conversation, debate, interview and respond appropriately.
• listen and provide a suitable title or conclusion.
• listen and identify characters, settings etc.
• listen and pick out clues about the speaker’s mood (s).
• listen to a debate and select the points.
• listen and distinguished between formal/informal speech register.
• listen and interpret attitudinal meaning.
• listen and recognize indicators in discourse, such as illustration, enumeration and contrast. (e.g. addition, sequence, cause and effect, introducing a new idea, transition to another idea, emphasizing, explanation or clarification of an idea and point already made).
• listen for signal words (for:
  • illustration, for example, N.B., i.e., e.g. etc.
  • conclusion, e.g. therefore, finally, in conclusion.
  • enumeration, e.g. firstly, secondly, next, etc.
  • contrast, e.g. on the contrary, but, however, etc.)

2. READING COMPREHENSION

Candidates will be expected to:

• answer different types of questions on the passage (s).
• answer questions related to the grammar, vocabulary and literary aspects of the passages.
• recognize the main idea and supporting details in textual material.
• select essential information from a paragraph.
• identify the writer’s purpose, point of view and intended meaning; also make inferences using logical reasoning.
• identify the meaning of words and expressions (including unfamiliar ones) in context; interpret figures of speech.
• identify the writer’s attitude to his/her subject.
• provide solutions to a problems.
• read to identify chronological order in a series of events in a passage.
• differentiate between facts and opinion, and make out other people’s views on a subject.
• summarize; synthesis information from more than one source; recognize 
• similarities between ideas in texts.
• identify text type: speech, lecture, story, etc.
• identify parts of speech.
• recognize discourse markers: enumeration, addition, contrast, cause and effect, illustration, etc. Recognize markers for exemplification and explanations, and sequence indicators
• recognize redundancies: restatements, repetitions, oppositions, explanations, examples.
• understand relations between parts of a text through lexical cohesive devices as well as grammatical cohesive devices, e.g. pronoun references (e.g. it, she, etc.).
• use critical reasoning to evaluate textual material.

3. GRAMMAR

Candidates will be tested in:

• main parts of speech: noun, verb, adjective, pronoun, adverb, preposition and conjunctions.
• noun: count and non-count nouns; note should be taken of nouns that do not take plural forms, (e.g. information); quantifiers (much, a lot of, etc.) should be used. correctly
• the verb: tenses, mood, modals (can, may, etc.), voice; reported speech.
• verbals: gerund, infinitive and participle.
• the pronoun: all the forms. (avoid confusion with possessive adjectives).
• the preposition: (including correct combination with other words and when to be omitted). 
• determiners and articles.
• the sentence: agreement; fragments, run-on sentences, dangling and misplaced modifiers.
• the clause: noun, adjective, adverb.
• the phrase: noun, adjective, adverb, proposition.
• comparatives and superlatives.
• conjunctions.
• word order: NB word order in questions, indirect questions; in some phrases: adjective and noun; main verb and auxiliary; enough and adjective; participle and adverb; relative pronoun and preposition.
• word forms: how these alter depends on the position in the sentence and the part of speech.
• punctuation

4. VOCABULARY

Candidates will be tested in:

• word choice:correctness and appropriateness of words; avoid redundancy and malapropism; recognize simple connotations and figures of speech; affixes; prefixes and suffixes; formation of words; synonyms and antonyms, homonyms, words often confused.
• expressions: figurative; idiomatic.
• spelling.
• correct usage of English.

5. DIRECTED WRITING

The text type include:

• Informal letters.
• Formal letters.
• Newspaper Articles.
• Reports.
• Speech.
• Debate.
• Talk.
• Minutes of a meeting.

6. COMPOSITION

The essay will be assessed under:

Content and Organization: The writing will be expected to show relevance to the topic, creativity, logical arrangement of ideas and paragraphing, liveliness and freshness of imagination and progressionfrom the introduction through the development to the conclusion. There should be an appropriate point of view, and a sense of audience.
Expression: The candidate’s writing should reflect a range of skills of expression and appropriate style in relation to the content. Credit will be awarded for positive qualities such as clarity, coherence, adequacy, range and aptness of vocabulary, judicious and imaginative use of figurative language and ability to suit tone to the reader and purpose.

Accuracy: Candidates will be expected to write accurately, without lapse in syntax and sentence structure. Common words should be spelt correctly and punctuation should contribute to the sense, rather than impede it. Although quality is more important than quantity the composition should not be less than 450 words in length. There will be a proportionate deduction of marks if the composition is shorter than this.
Content

a. Narrative.
b. Descriptive.
c. Expository and discursive.
d. Argumentative.
e. Letter writing; formal letters; informal letters.
f. Open-ended (one-word).
g. Reacting to visual stimuli: Pictures, cartoons, etc.

N.B: Candidates:
h. should be trained to use the name and address provided to conceal their identity.
i. must suit their style and point of view to the reader and kind of writing
j. must not use obscene language.

7. SCHOOL –BASED PROJECTS & SPOKEN ENGLISH

Candidates will be evaluated on:

1. Level of articulation and discrimination.
2. Pronunciation, stress and intonation.
3.  Fluency (use of tenses, agreement and clarity of presentation).
4.  Logical organization.
5.  Correct grammar use.
6.  Appropriate word choice.
7.  Appropriate gestures.
8.  Enthusiastic and interesting presentation.
9.  Adequate knowledge of the subject.
10. Audience rapport.

• Participation in group productions such as writing and producing sketches, poems, short stories, plays, etc.
• Editing extracts from newspapers and journals.
• Reports on news, newspapers, magazines, meetings, seminars, workshop, conferences etc.
• Interviews with personalities to get opinion on a variety of topics.
• Candidates are expected to keep a record and portfolio for eventual evaluation.
• Progress reports will be used as part of the evaluation

TEXTBOOKS AND REFERENCES

A. VOCABULARY
1. Redman, S. (2003). English Vocabulary in Use (Pre-intermediate & intermediate). CUP
2. Redman, S. & Grains, R. (2003). Test Your English Vocabulary in Use (Pre-intermediate & intermediate). CUP
3. McCarthy M & O’Dell F. (2001). Test Your English Vocabulary in Use (Upper intermediate) CUP

B. GRAMMAR
1. Murphy, R. (1994).English Grammar in Use (intermediate). CUP
2. Hewings, M. (1999).Advanced Grammar in Use (advanced). CUP.

Recommandation

• Cameroon GCE Board A Level English Language syllabus.

Cameroon GCE O Level English Language syllabus