Italian B is a language acquisition course (Group 2) for students who already have some Italian and want to become confident, independent users of the language, in speaking, listening, reading and writing.
Italian is the language of Italy, San Marino and Vatican City, and an official language of Switzerland. It is also studied around the world: according to Italy's Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Italian is studied by approximately two million people worldwide. It opens doors to one of the world's richest cultures in art, design, music, film, food and fashion, and to study and work in Italy and across Europe.
This guide covers everything you need to know about the current Italian B course, from choosing SL or HL to every part of the assessment. It also explains the updated Language B course, first assessed in 2029. The course facts come from the IB's Language B guide (first assessment 2020) and the IB's official subject briefs and updates, written in our own words.
Key Takeaways
- Italian B is for students with some previous Italian. Complete beginners take Italian ab initio, and native speakers usually take Italian A.
- It is offered at SL (150 hours) and HL (240 hours). HL students also study two literary works originally written in Italian.
- The course is built around five themes: identities, experiences, human ingenuity, social organization and sharing the planet.
- Assessment: Paper 1 writing (25%), Paper 2 listening and reading (50%) and an individual oral (25%). No dictionaries are allowed.
- An updated Language B course starts with first assessment in 2029, but the IB has confirmed no changes to the assessment model.
Which IB Italian Course Should You Take?
The IB offers Italian in three different ways, and choosing the right one matters. Taking a course that is too easy or too hard for your current level is one of the most common mistakes students make with languages.
| Course | Who it is for | Levels |
|---|---|---|
| Italian ab initio | Students with no previous Italian, or very little | SL only |
| Italian B | Students with some previous experience of Italian | SL and HL |
| Italian A (Literature, or Language and Literature) | Native or near-native speakers. A literature course in Group 1, not a language-learning course | SL and HL |
The IB guide gives useful placement guidance, based on a 2016 benchmarking study against the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR). It suggests students already at about A2 or B1 can comfortably take Italian B SL, and students already at about B1 or B2 can comfortably take Italian B HL. Your school will make the final decision, often using your MYP results or a placement test.
If you're a complete beginner, read our guide to IB Italian ab initio.
What Is the Difference Between Italian B SL and HL?
At both levels, you learn to describe situations, tell stories, make comparisons, explain problems and give and support your opinions in Italian. The differences are in depth, complexity and literature.
| Italian B SL | Italian B HL | |
|---|---|---|
| Teaching hours | 150 | 240 |
| Literature | Not required | Two literary works originally written in Italian are required |
| Language expectations | Understand straightforward arguments Write and speak on topics of interest | Analyse arguments and literary texts Use a wider and more complex range of language |
| Paper 1 | 250–400 words, 1 hour 15 minutes | 450–600 words, 1 hour 30 minutes |
| Paper 2 listening | 45 minutes | 1 hour |
| Individual oral stimulus | A visual image | An extract from one of your literary works |
HL suits students who are already comfortable in Italian, enjoy reading, and may want to use Italian at university or in their career. SL is a strong choice if Italian is a supporting language for you and you want to build solid, practical fluency.
The Five Themes
Every Language B course, including Italian, is organised around five prescribed themes. All five must be covered equally. The IB also suggests recommended topics for each theme, but these are not prescribed, so your teacher can choose topics that suit the class and the Italian-speaking world.
| Theme | What it explores | Recommended topics |
|---|---|---|
| Identities | The nature of the self and what it means to be human | Lifestyles Health and well-being Beliefs and values Subcultures Language and identity |
| Experiences | The events, experiences and journeys that shape our lives | Leisure activities Holidays and travel Life stories Rites of passage Customs and traditions Migration |
| Human ingenuity | How human creativity and innovation affect our world | Entertainment Artistic expressions Communication and media Technology Scientific innovation |
| Social organization | How groups of people organise themselves, or are organised | Social relationships Community Social engagement Education The working world Law and order |
| Sharing the planet | The challenges and opportunities facing individuals and communities in the modern world | The environment Human rights Peace and conflict Equality Globalization Ethics Urban and rural environment |
The best Italian B students link every theme to specific features of Italian life and culture. Think of regional dialects and identity, the Palio di Siena, the history of Italian emigration to the Americas and Australia, Italian design and the "Made in Italy" brand, the Slow Food movement, or overtourism in cities like Venice and Florence. Specific, well-chosen examples make your writing and your oral far more convincing.
Texts and Text Types
The course uses three broad categories of texts. You'll read and listen to them throughout the course, and you'll write some of them in Paper 1.
| Personal texts | Professional texts | Mass media texts |
|---|---|---|
Blog Diary Email Personal letter Social media posting | Blog Email Essay Formal letter Proposal Questionnaire Report Set of instructions Survey | Advertisement Article Blog Brochure Film Interview Leaflet News report Opinion column Podcast Poster Review Speech Travel guide Web page |
The course also develops your understanding of audience, context, purpose, meaning and variation. These five ideas sit behind every choice you make in Italian: whether to use tu or Lei, how formal your letter should be, or which connectors persuade best in a speech.
Assessment Overview
Standard Level (SL)
| Component | What it involves | Time | Weighting |
|---|---|---|---|
| Paper 1: writing (30 marks) | One writing task of 250–400 words from a choice of three, each on a different theme. You choose the text type from the options given | 1h 15m | 25% |
| Paper 2: listening (25 marks) | Comprehension questions on three audio passages | 45m | 25% |
| Paper 2: reading (40 marks) | Comprehension questions on three written texts | 1h | 25% |
| Individual oral (30 marks) | A presentation on a visual stimulus, a follow-up discussion and a general conversation | 12–15 min, plus 15 min preparation | 25% |
Higher Level (HL)
| Component | What it involves | Time | Weighting |
|---|---|---|---|
| Paper 1: writing (30 marks) | One writing task of 450–600 words from a choice of three, each on a different theme. The tasks demand more complex language and higher-order thinking | 1h 30m | 25% |
| Paper 2: listening (25 marks) | Comprehension questions on three audio passages | 1h | 25% |
| Paper 2: reading (40 marks) | Comprehension questions on three written texts | 1h | 25% |
| Individual oral (30 marks) | A presentation on an extract from one of your two literary works, a follow-up discussion and a general conversation | 12–15 min, plus 20 min preparation | 25% |
Dictionaries and reference materials are not allowed in Paper 1 or Paper 2.
Paper 1: Writing
In Paper 1, you choose one of three tasks. Each task sets out a scenario with an audience, a context and a purpose, and offers a choice of text types. For example, you might be asked to write to a local council, for a school magazine or for a blog. Your job is to choose the most appropriate text type and write it convincingly in Italian.
Paper 1 is marked against three criteria:
| Criterion | What examiners look at | Marks |
|---|---|---|
| A: Language | How varied and appropriate your vocabulary is, how varied your grammar is, and how accurate your Italian is | 12 |
| B: Message | How relevant your ideas are to the task, how well you develop them, and how clearly they are organised | 12 |
| C: Conceptual understanding | Whether you chose a suitable text type, used the right register and tone, and followed the conventions of that text type | 6 |
| Total | 30 |
One rule catches many students out. The IB notes that a response that ignores the context, purpose and audience can score zero for criteria B and C, even if the Italian itself is excellent. Answer the task you were set, not the one you prepared for.
Italian Text Type Conventions
The IB guide doesn't list conventions for each language, but examiners expect you to know them. Here are a few that matter in Italian:
| Text type | Conventions to show |
|---|---|
| Formal letter (lettera formale) | Place and date (Roma, 6 ottobre 2026) Oggetto: Gentile Signora / Gentile Signor Rossi, or Egregio Direttore, Lei throughout A formal closing such as Distinti saluti or Cordiali saluti |
| Informal email or letter | Caro Luca / Cara Giulia, tu A friendly closing such as Un abbraccio, Baci or A presto |
| Article | A headline (titolo), a short lead (occhiello or sommario), subheadings and a byline |
| Blog post | A title, date, personal tone and a question or call to readers at the end |
| Speech (discorso) | A greeting (Buongiorno a tutti, Cari compagni), rhetorical questions, direct address, and a closing (Grazie per l'attenzione) |
| Report or proposal | A title, a clear purpose, headings, neutral register and recommendations |
Paper 2: Listening and Reading
Paper 2 tests your understanding of six authentic texts: three audio passages and three written texts, drawn from all five themes. It doesn't test factual knowledge of the topics, only your understanding of the Italian. All questions are in Italian, and all answers must be in Italian.
Question types typically include multiple choice, true or false with justification, matching, gap-fills and short answers.
Expect regional variety. The IB expects students to have heard a range of accents, and Italian has strong regional differences in pronunciation and intonation, from Milan to Rome to Naples and Sicily, as well as in Italian-speaking Switzerland. If you only listen to one speaker or one region, Paper 2 listening will feel harder than it needs to.
How to prepare: - Listen to Italian podcasts, radio (such as RAI Radio) and news every week. - Read Italian news sites and magazines on topics linked to the five themes. - When you practise past papers, look at why an answer is right. Many marks are lost by copying too much or too little from the text.
The Individual Oral
The individual oral is the internal assessment for Italian B. It takes place in your final year, is conducted entirely in Italian, and is marked by your teacher and moderated by the IB. It is audio recorded, and it cannot be rehearsed, although you can and should practise the format.
SL: The Visual Stimulus
You're shown two images, each linked to a different theme and labelled in Italian. You haven't seen them before. You choose one and have 15 minutes to prepare, making up to 10 bullet-point notes. The images may be a photo, a poster, an illustration or an advertisement.
| Part | What happens | Time |
|---|---|---|
| 1: Presentation | You describe the image, link it to its theme and to Italian culture, and give your opinions | 3–4 min |
| 2: Follow-up discussion | Your teacher asks questions about the theme and your presentation | 4–5 min |
| 3: General discussion | A conversation on at least one additional theme from the course | 5–6 min |
HL: The Literary Extract
You're shown two extracts of up to about 300 words, one from each of the literary works you studied. You choose one and have 20 minutes to prepare. In your presentation, you summarise the extract, briefly place it in the work as a whole, and give your opinions on its characters, events, ideas and themes. Most of your presentation must focus on the extract itself, not the whole book. The follow-up discussion explores the extract, and the general conversation uses one or more of the course themes as a starting point.
How the Oral Is Marked
| Criterion | What it looks at | Marks |
|---|---|---|
| A: Language | Vocabulary, grammar, accuracy, pronunciation and intonation | 12 |
| B1: Message (stimulus or extract) | How well your presentation engages with the image or extract and, at SL, links it to Italian culture | 6 |
| B2: Message (conversation) | How relevant, developed and thorough your answers are | 6 |
| C: Interactive skills | How well you understand, keep the conversation going and contribute ideas of your own | 6 |
| Total | 30 |
Rules to Know
- Your notes are for reference only. Reading them aloud as a speech is not allowed.
- No phones, dictionaries or class notes in the preparation room.
- Pre-learned presentations on generic topics that don't focus on the actual image or extract will not score high marks.
- Examiners stop listening after 15 minutes.
HL Literature: The Two Literary Works
HL students must study two complete literary works originally written in Italian. These can be prose fiction, non-fiction, poetry or drama. The IB is clear that works in translation and simplified "easy reader" versions don't count.
The aim is not literary criticism, which belongs in Italian A. Instead, the works are a stimulus for discussion: you should understand their themes, plot and characters well enough to talk about them confidently in your oral.
Your teacher chooses the works. Examples of the kind of works schools might use include Marcovaldo (Italo Calvino), Io non ho paura (Niccolò Ammaniti), Lessico famigliare (Natalia Ginzburg) and short stories by Luigi Pirandello. These are only examples; the IB doesn't prescribe any texts.
Tip: for each work, build a one-page Italian summary of the plot, main characters, key themes and three or four memorable passages. Practise talking about short extracts aloud, because that's exactly what the oral asks you to do.
Writing Your Extended Essay in Italian
You can write your Extended Essay in Italian B. Under the IB's guide for essays first assessed in 2027, a Language B essay can focus on one of three areas, or a combination of them:
| Area | What it involves | Example idea |
|---|---|---|
| Literary analysis | An aspect of a literary work or works originally written in Italian | How childhood fear is presented through the narrator in a named Italian novel |
| Language use | The development, structure or use of Italian itself, linked to its cultural context or a specific text | How regional dialect is used in the dialogue of a named Italian film script |
| Culture | A sociocultural issue specific to Italy, studied through its effect on the language or through a concrete cultural artefact | What a named advertising campaign reveals about the "Made in Italy" identity |
Key rules: - All texts must be originally written or spoken in Italian. Translations aren't acceptable sources. - You can't write an Italian B essay if you study Italian A. - Cultural topics must be specific to Italian-speaking culture. Broad issues that apply to many cultures, or global trends like social media slang, aren't specific enough. - Most of your sources should be in Italian, and your essay must use an academic register.
Note that interdisciplinary Extended Essays can currently only be written in English, French or Italian, so an Italian B essay will be subject-focused.
What Changes in 2029?
The IB has published an updated Language B course. It will be launched in February 2027 for first teaching in August 2027, with first assessment in May 2029. Students taking exams in 2027 and 2028 follow the current course described above.
The good news: according to the IB, there are no changes to the assessment model. Paper 1, Paper 2 and the individual oral all stay the same. What changes is mainly how the course is described and taught:
| Current course (first assessed 2020) | Updated course (first assessment 2029) | |
|---|---|---|
| Themes | Five prescribed themes | The same five themes |
| Paper 1 and Paper 2 | As described in this guide | No change |
| Individual oral | As described in this guide | Same format The wording of the top descriptors for criteria B2 and C is slightly revised for clarity |
| Course framing | Five concepts: audience, context, purpose, meaning and variation | Adds three lenses (cultures, communication and perspectives) and names three skill areas: sociolinguistic, linguistic and pragmatic |
| Teaching | Current guide and materials | A clearer guide, more emphasis on critical thinking, and new teacher support materials |
| HL literature | Two works originally written in Italian | Same |
In short, if you start the Diploma in 2027 or later, everything in this guide about the exams will still apply.
Common Grammar Problems in IB Italian
These are the errors our tutors see most often in Paper 1 and the oral. Fixing them is one of the fastest ways to move up a markband in Criterion A.
- Passato prossimo vs imperfetto: use the imperfetto for background, description and habits (faceva bel tempo, andavamo spesso…) and the passato prossimo for completed events (all'improvviso ho visto…).
- Essere or avere: verbs of movement and change (andare, venire, partire, diventare) and reflexive verbs take essere, and the past participle agrees (le ragazze sono partite, ci siamo divertiti).
- The subjunctive (congiuntivo): after penso che, credo che, è importante che, bisogna che, benché and affinché (penso che sia giusto). A few accurate subjunctives show complex structures.
- Articulated prepositions: combine prepositions and articles correctly (nel, della, sugli, dall').
- Double consonants: they change meaning and count as spelling errors. Compare caro and carro, nono and nonno, pala and palla.
- Register: pick tu or Lei and stay consistent. Switching halfway through a formal letter costs you in Criterion C.
- False friends (falsi amici): camera means "room", parenti means "relatives", a libreria is a bookshop, and fattoria means "farm".
- Connectors: go beyond e and ma. Use tuttavia, quindi, inoltre, invece and non solo… ma anche to organise your ideas.
Tips for Success in IB Italian B
1. Immerse yourself every week. Use podcasts, series, music and news from across the Italian-speaking world. 2. Build vocabulary by theme. Keep a list for each of the five themes, with useful phrases, not just single words. 3. Learn the text type conventions. Knowing them is an easy way to secure marks in Criterion C. 4. Practise speaking without a script. Describe random photos aloud for three minutes, then answer questions about them. 5. Time your past papers. Paper 1 at SL gives you 1 hour 15 minutes, including planning and checking. See why past papers are the ultimate tool for exam preparation. 6. Use command terms. Paper 2 questions use IB command terms. Our complete guide to IB command terms explains what each one asks for. 7. HL: know your two works inside out. Re-read key scenes and practise summarising extracts aloud.
Common Mistakes to Avoid
- Taking a level that doesn't match your starting Italian
- Writing a generic, memorised Paper 1 answer that ignores the audience and purpose
- Mixing tu and Lei, or ignoring the conventions of the text type
- Getting the auxiliary (essere or avere) or double consonants wrong
- Reading notes aloud in the oral, or giving a pre-learned presentation
- Only listening to one Italian accent before Paper 2
Frequently Asked Questions
Is IB Italian B hard?
It depends on your starting level. If your Italian matches the course level, Italian B is very manageable with regular practice. The challenge is breadth: you need to write, speak, listen and read well, so you can't rely on one strength.
Can I use a dictionary in IB Italian B exams?
No. Dictionaries and other reference materials aren't allowed in Paper 1 or Paper 2, or in the preparation room for the oral.
What level of Italian is Italian B HL?
The IB's guidance suggests students starting Italian B HL are usually around CEFR B1 to B2. Strong HL students often reach a high level of fluency by the end of the course.
Is IB Italian B the same as a CILS or CELI certificate?
No. IB Italian B is part of the IB Diploma and is graded 1 to 7. CILS (UniversitĂ per Stranieri di Siena) and CELI (UniversitĂ per Stranieri di Perugia) are separate Italian language certificates. Some students take both, and the skills overlap a lot.
Can I take Italian B if I have an Italian-speaking parent?
It depends on your actual level. If you are fluent and literate in Italian, your school will usually place you in Italian A. If you understand Italian but rarely read or write it, Italian B may be right. Your school decides.
What changes in IB Italian B from 2029?
The updated course is first taught in August 2027 and first assessed in May 2029. The five themes and all the assessments stay the same. The main changes are a clearer guide, a stronger focus on critical thinking, and a new framing around cultures, communication and perspectives.
Get Support With IB Italian B
Whether you need help with your writing, Paper 2 practice or preparing for the oral, our experienced IB Italian tutors can help, online wherever you are. To see how Italian B fits into your diploma, read our guide to everything you need to know about the IB and how your IB score is calculated.
