English - Communicative Class 10 CBSE (English Medium) CBSE Topics and Syllabus

• Reading Skill (Textual) 

• Qs 1-2. This section will have two unseen passages of a total length of 700-750 words. The arrangement within the reading section is as follows:
• Q.1: A Factual passage 300-350 words with eight very short answer type questions. (8 Marks)
• Q. 2: A Discursive passage of 350-400 words with four short answer type questions to test inference, evaluation and analysis and four MCQs to test vocabulary. (12 Marks)

By the end of the course, students should be able to:

1. read silently at varying speeds depending on the purpose of reading;*1
2. adopt different strategies for different types of text, both literary and non-literary;
3. recognise the organization of a text;
4. identify the main points of a text;
5. understand relations between different parts of a text through lexical and grammatical cohesion devices.
6. anticipate and predict what will come next in a text;*
7. deduce the meaning of unfamiliar lexical items in a given context;
8. consult a dictionary to obtain information on the meaning and use of lexical items;*
9. analyse, interpret, infer (and evaluate) the ideas in the text;
10. select and extract from a text information required for a specific purpose (and record it in note form)
11. transcode information from verbal to diagrammatic form;
12. retrieve and synthesise information from a range of reference material using study skills such as skimming and scanning;
13. interpret texts by relating them to other material on the same theme (and to their own experience and knowledge); and
14. read extensively on their own.

* Objectives which will not be tested in a formal examination

• Writing Skill 
• Grammar 

• Q. 3: Letter to the Editor/ article in about 100-120 words will make use of any visual / verbal stimulus and the question will be thematically based on the MCB. (5 marks)
• Q.4: Writing a short story based on a given outline or cue/s in about 150-200 words. (10 marks)

The Grammar syllabus will include the following areas in classes IX & X.

1. Tenses
2. Modals (have to/had to, must, should, need, ought to and their negative forms)
3. Use of passive voice
4. Subject – verb concord
5. Reporting :- (i) Commands and requests (ii) Statements (iii) Questions
6. Clauses:- (i) Noun clauses (ii) Adverb clauses of condition and time (iii) Relative clauses
7. Determiners, and
8. Prepositions

The above items may be tested through test types as given below:

• Q.5 Gap filling with one or two words to test Prepositions, Articles, Conjunctions and Tenses. (3 marks)
• Q.6 Editing or Omission (4 marks)
• Q.7 Sentences reordering or Sentence Transformation in context. (3 marks)

WRITING

By the end of the course, students should be able to:

1. express ideas in clear and grammatically correct English, using appropriate punctuation and cohesion devices;
2. write in a style appropriate for communicative purposes;
3. plan, organise and present ideas coherently by introducing, developing and concluding a topic;
4. write a clear description (e.g., of a place, a person, an object or a system);
5. write a clear account of events (e.g., a process, a narrative, a trend or a causeeffect relationship);
6. compare and contrast ideas and arrive at conclusions;
7. present an argument, supporting it with appropriate examples;
8. use an appropriate style and format to write letters (formal and informal),biographical sketches, dialogues, speeches, reports, articles,e-mails and diary entries;
9. monitor, check and revise written work;
10. expand notes into a piece of writing;
11. summarise or make notes from a given text; and
12. decode information from one text type to another (e.g., diary entry to letter, advertisement to report, diagram to verbal form).

LISTENING

By the end of the course, students should be able to:-

1. adopt different strategies according to the purpose of listening (e.g., for pleasure, for general interest, for specific information);
2. use linguistic and non-linguistic features of the context as clues to understanding and interpreting what is heard (e.g., cohesion devices, key words, intonation, gesture, background noises);
3. listen to a talk or conversation and understand the topic and main points;
4. listen for information required for a specific purpose, e.g., in radio broadcast, commentaries, airport and railway station announcements;
5. distinguish main points from supporting details, and relevant from irrelevant information;
6. understand and interpret messages conveyed in person or by telephone;
7. understand and respond appropriately to directive language, e.g., instruction, advice, requests and warning; and
8. understand and interpret spontaneous spoken discourse in familiar social situations.

SPEAKING

By the end of the course, students should be able to:

1. speak intelligibly using appropriate word stress, sentence stress and intonation patterns;
2. adopt different strategies to convey ideas effectively according to purpose, topic and audience (including the appropriate use of polite expressions);
3. narrate incidents and events, real or imaginary in a logical sequence;
4. present oral reports or summaries; make announcements clearly and confidently;
5. express and argue a point of view clearly and effectively;
6. take active part in group discussions, showing ability to express agreement or disagreement, to summarise ideas, to elicit the views of others, and to present own ideas;
7. express and respond to personal feelings, opinions and attitudes;
8. convey messages effectively in person or by telephone;
9. frame questions so as to elicit the desired response, and respond appropriately to questions; and
10. participate in spontaneous spoken discourse in familiar social situations 

GRAMMAR

By the end of the course, students should be able to use the following accurately and appropriately in context:

1. Verbs

(a)Tenses

• present/past forms
• simple/continuous forms
• perfect forms
• future time reference
• modals
• active and passive voice
• subject-verb concord
• non-finite verb forms (infinitives and participles)

2. Sentence Structure

• connectors
• types of sentences
• affirmative/interrogative sentences negation
• exclamations
• types of phrases and clauses:- (i) finite and non-finite subordinate clauses (ii) noun clauses and phrases (iii) adjective clauses and phrases (iv) adverb clauses and phrases

• indirect speech
• comparison
• nominalisation

3. Other Areas

• determiners
• pronouns
• prepositions

• Reading Skill (Non-textual) 

• Q. 8. One out of two extracts from prose / poetry / play for reference to context. Three very short answer questions. One mark in each extra will be for vocabulary. One question will be used for testing local and global comprehension and one question will be on interpretation. (3 marks)
• Q. 9. Four short answer type questions from the Literature Reader to test local and global comprehension of theme and ideas (30-40 words each) (8 Marks)
• Q.10.One out of two long answer type questions to assess how the values inherent in the text have been brought out. Creativity, imagination and extrapolation beyond the text and across the texts will be assessed. (80-100 words). (4 marks)
• Q. 11. One out of two Very Long Answer Question on theme or plot involving interpretation, inference and character, in about 150-200 words based on prescribed novel. (10 Marks)

LITERATURE

By the end of the course, students should be able to understand, interpret, evaluate and respond to the following features in a literary text:

1 Character, as revealed through

• appearance and distinguishing features,
• socio-economic background,
• action/events,
• expression of feelings,
• speech and dialogues.

2 Plot/Story/Theme, emerging through main events,

• progression of events and links between them;
• sequence of events denoting theme.

3 Setting, as seen through time and place, socio-economic and cultural background, people, beliefs and attitudes.

4 Form

• rhyme
• rhythm
• simile
• metaphor
• pun
• repetition