Final Written Compositions from English Language and Literature (Klauzurní práce z anglického jazyka a literatury)
This Comprehensive examination is written and composed of two relatively autonomous parts, i.e., literary and linguistic essays. The candidates sit each part on a different day and have four hours per each part at their disposal. The final overall assessment results from the two independently assessed components. In case a student fails one of the autonomous parts, they re-sit that part only. To pass the exam, each student has three attempts in all (both parts put together constitute one attempt, or else one re-taken part (or both re-taken parts) constitute/s another attempt).
The linguistic part of the Comprehensive exam verifies knowledge and analytical skills gained in all the obligatory linguistic subjects at BA and MA levels, together with practical formulation skills at C2 level of the Common European Framework of Reference. It is based on an authentic text sample approximately half a standard A4 page in size. The candidate is expected to produce independently a comprehesive analysis of the sample in view of all mandatory linguistic subjects, dividing their attention equally between the langue and the parole disciplines and paying special attention to the passage(s) marked as obligatory. The output corresponds to an essay or a composition. The assessment takes account of the relevance, diversity, representativeness and complexity of the phenomena selected for analysis from each discipline, adequate use of terminology, multiaspectual analysis of the obligatory part, the overall quality and depth of the factual analysis performed and the ability to describe and interpret the findings /tendencies detected. The formulation (proficiency) standard of the composition is an intergral part of the assessment.
In the literary part students choose one of two given themes and they are expected to use examples from English-written literature they have read for their argumentation. This part also requires practical formulation skills at C2 level of the Common European Framework of Reference. The assessment takes account of the factual precision, relevance of the examples used, coherence and logical structure of argumentation, adequate use of terminology, ability of analytical approach to a literary text and its subsequent analysis, and ability to draw sensible conclusions based on the preceding argumentation. The formulation (proficiency) standard of the composition is an intergral part of the assessment.
The candidate can express him/herself in an appropriate tone and style at an adequate level of formality, relating to the subject matter flexibly and effectively and structuring written discourse with fluency and sufficient clarity unhampered by linguistic limitations. The candidate is expected to produce written output devoid of disqualifying mistakes at a B1 level of proficiency or below, such as unidiomatic word order, wrongly used notional concord, missing/wrongly used category of definiteness, misspelling of routinely used vocabulary, or highly limited repetitive use of simple sentence structures and lexical range.
This exam is organized three times an academic year – in January, in May and in September.
Literature
BURGESS, Anthony. English Literature: A Survey for Students. New ed. London: Longman, 1974. ISBN 0-582-55224-9.
CRYSTAL, David. The Cambridge Encyclopedia of the English Language, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1995. ISBN 0-521-40179-8.
GREENBAUM, Sydney, QUIRK, Randolph. A Student’s Grammar of the English Language. Harlow: Longman, 1990. ISBN 0-582-05971-2.
DAWSON, Ashley. The Routledge Concise History of Twentieth-Century British Literature. London and New York: Routledge, 2013. ISBN 978-0415572460.
HALLIDAY, Michael. A. K., HASAN, Ruqaiya. Language, Context, and Text: Aspects of Language in a Social-Semiotic Perspective. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1985. ISBN:0-19-437154-9.
MULLANEY, Julie. Postcolonial Literatures in Context. Continuum Books, 2010. ISBN 978-1-8470-6337-3.
PEPRNÍK, Jaroslav. English Lexicology. Olomouc: Univerzita Palackého v Olomouci, 2011. ISBN 80-244-0265-3.
RULAND, Richard, BRADBURY, Malcolm. From Puritanism to Postmodernism. New York: Viking Penguin, 1991. ISBN 978-0140144352.
YOUNG, Robert J. Postcolonialism: A Very Short Introduction. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2003. ISBN 978-0-19-280182-1.
YULE, George. Pragmatics. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2002. 978-0194372077.