“Teachers open the door, but you must enter by yourself.”

• Chinese Proverb

Theory of knowledge (TOK) asks students to reflect on the nature of knowledge and on how we know what we claim to know. It plays a special role in the International Baccalaureate® (IB) Diploma Programme (DP), by providing an opportunity for students to explore questions about knowledge and the process of knowing. TOK emphasizes comparisons between areas of knowledge and encourages students to become more aware of their own perspectives and the perspectives of others. It is one of the components of the DP core and is mandatory for all DP students. The TOK requirement is central to the educational philosophy of the DP.  

The following 12 concepts have particular prominence within, and thread throughout, the TOK course: 

evidence, certainty, truth, interpretation, power, justification, 

explanation, objectivity, perspective, culture, values, responsibility. 

Exploration of the relationship between knowledge and these concepts can help students to deepen their understanding, as well as facilitating the transfer of their learning to new and different contexts. 

As you debate the legitimacy of different perspectives and points of view, as you assess the validity of arguments and counterarguments, as you consider the methods by which you acquire knowledge in your different Diploma Programme (DP) subjects, you will clash with your classmates and lock horns with your teachers.  But, in the process, you’re going to develop and advance your own understanding of the world, and learn a great deal about yourself.

There are two assessment tasks in the TOK course: an essay and an exhibition. The essay is externally assessed by the IB, and must be on any one of the six prescribed titles issued by the IB for each examination session. (For ACS, these titles will be issued in September 2021). The maximum word limit for the essay is 1,600 words. 

The TOK exhibition explores how TOK manifests in the world around us. For this reason it is strongly recommended that students base their exhibition on one of the TOK themes (either the core theme or one of the optional themes). The TOK exhibition is an internal assessment component—it is marked by the teacher and is externally moderated by the IB.   It enables students to demonstrate the application of their skills and knowledge and to pursue their personal interests.

For this task, students are required to create an exhibition of three objects that connect to one of the 35 “IA prompts.” Students are required to create an exhibition comprising three objects, or images of objects, and an accompanying written commentary on each object.

Theory of Knowledge is a pass/fail course here at ACS. Throughout IB Core 1, there are a series of scaffolded responses and assessments that count as formatives, on the one hand, and help prepare students for the IBO assessments on the other.  

Procedures to Pass TOK:

• Students are required to complete all administered work, orally or in writing, which will lead to the final assessments of TOK in Year 2.

• Within the IB Core, regular class time is dedicated to complete all formative TOK work, thus all students are expected to complete all formative work on time.

• All formative work will receive feedback based on IB TOK assessment standards in order for the students to understand the full expectations of the two major TOK assessments. 

• To ensure ultimate success in TOK, the pass/fail approach favors self-advocacy, self-regulation and metacognitive reflection as these characteristics are paramount to success in full DP class and life beyond, it is essential to develop 

• To ensure a ‘Passing’ grade, students must ensure work is turned in and the student is, at a minimum, ‘Developing Proficiency’ or higher on the majority of formative assessments.  If a student remains at an ‘Emerging Proficiency’ level, or offers ‘Insufficient Evidence’ or NTI (not turned in), the  student cannot pass TOK.

Areas of knowledge are specific branches of knowledge, each of which can be seen to have a distinct nature and different methods of gaining knowledge. TOK distinguishes between five areas of knowledge. They are mathematics, the natural sciences, the human sciences, the arts, and history.  (Ethics is a major component of each of these AOK). The knowledge framework is a device for exploring the areas of knowledge. It identifies the key characteristics of each area of knowledge by depicting each area as a complex system of four interacting components. This enables students to effectively compare and contrast different areas of knowledge and allows the possibility of a deeper exploration of the relationship between areas of knowledge and the course themes.

The task of the TOK student is to examine how we know what we claim to know by analyzing knowledge claims and exploring knowledge questions.  This is accomplished through a primarily discussion-based consideration that come to shape both our personal and shared understanding of the world around us.  The fundamental question of TOK is therefore always, “how do we know what we claim to know and can our knowledge be trusted?”

STUDENTS IN THIS COURSE ARE EXPECTED TO:

• Be on time and prepared for class.

• Complete all assignments on time and contribute to class discussions.

• Read widely and study regularly.

• Maintain a positive environment by being polite and respectful toward the other people in the room.

Academic Integrity

Students are expected to demonstrate integrity by accepting responsibility for learning and for the accurate evidence of this learning. Academic dishonesty is defined as: 

Plagiarism: the representation of the ideas or work of another person as your own. 

Collusion: supporting malpractice by another student, as in allowing your work to be copied or submitted by another student.

Duplication of Work: the presentation of the same work as another student 

Misconduct During an Assessment: including the possession of unauthorized material.

Disclosing information to another student, or receiving information from another student, about the content of an assessment.

(definitions from International Baccalaureate Organization, 2016, P 12).

All incidents of confirmed academic dishonesty are reported to the Assistant Principal and a conference is held with the student, the teacher, the Assistant Principal and/or IBDP Coordinator. Following the conference, a letter is sent to the student’s parents and a copy of the letter is placed in the student’s academic file. This letter remains in the student’s file until graduation or withdrawal. At the teacher's discretion and in consultation with the administration, the student may receive a reduced or failing grade for the work in question. Repeated incidents of academic dishonesty may result in failure in the course for the semester, suspension, or dismissal from school (see Major Rules Violations, Category II).