As part of the IB Diploma Programme at BG, Danish and English can be chosen in different subject groups, Group 1 (Language A – Studies of Language and Literature) and Group 2 (Language B – Language Acquisition). In both groups Danish and English are always offered at Higher Level (HL) as well as Standard Level (SL). Group 1 is described elsewhere on the website.

Furthermore, in Group 2 we offer French HL and SL and Spanish Ab Initio.

In Group 2: English, Danish, French and Spanish are taught as a B language, which means that it is taught as a second language, and there will therefore automatically be more focus on grammar and general language acquisition. Being a Danish Gymnasium Danish at either A or B level is compulsory. Danish can be taken as a 7th subject.

The aims of any Group 2 language course are to:

  1. develop students’ intercultural understanding
  2. enable students to understand and use the language they have studied in a range of contexts and for a variety of purposes
  3. encourage, through the study of texts and through social interaction, an awareness and appreciation of the different perspectives of people from other cultures
  4. develop students’ awareness of the role of language in relation to other areas of knowledge
  5. develop students’ awareness of the relationship between the languages and cultures with which they are familiar
  6. provide students with a basis for further study, work and leisure through the use of an additional language
  7. provide the opportunity for enjoyment, creativity and intellectual stimulation through knowledge of an additional language.

The structure of the English B course is shown in the diagram below:

This shows that both HL and SL will cover the Core and two Options, whereas only HL students will have to read two complete literary works. However, in covering both the Core and the Options, literary texts of different genres may and will be chosen by the teacher.

The final grade given for B courses have five different components:

  • Two final written exams at the very end of the course: Paper 1 and Paper 2
  • Two oral components completed during the two-year course: The Individual Oral and the Interactive Oral Activity
  • A Written Assignment on receptive and productive skills completed during the course