Theory of Knowledge

Theory of Knowledge (Mandatory for all students studying for an IB Diploma)

The Theory of knowledge (TOK) course plays a special role in the IB Diploma Program by providing an opportunity for students to reflect on the nature, scope, and limitations of knowledge and the process of knowing. In this way, the main focus of TOK is not on students acquiring new knowledge but on helping students to reflect on, and put into perspective, what they already know. TOK underpins and helps to unite the subjects that students encounter in the rest of their DP studies. It engages students in explicit reflection on how knowledge is arrived at in different disciplines and areas of knowledge, on what these areas have in common, and the differences between them.


The aims of the TOK course are:

TOK is a 5-trimester course.  During the first year of the course, students will study the core theme: Knowledge and the knower.  They will also explore two of the five optional themes as chosen by the TOK instructors (Knowledge and technology, Knowledge and language, Knowledge and politics,  Knowledge and religion, & Knowledge and indigenous societies.  Over the 5 trimesters course, students will study five areas of knowledge: History, The human sciences, The natural sciences, The arts, & Mathematics.  Students are required to complete two assessment tasks for TOK.  During year one, students will complete the Theory of knowledge exhibition and during the 2 trimesters of the second year, they will complete the Theory of knowledge essay on a prescribed title.

(From IB Subject Guide 2020)

 Course Key Concepts

The aims of the TOK course are:

• to encourage students to reflect on the central question, “How do we know that?”, and to recognize the value of asking that question

• to expose students to ambiguity, uncertainty, and questions with multiple plausible answers

• to equip students to effectively navigate and make sense of the world, and help prepare them to encounter novel and complex situations

• to encourage students to be more aware of their own perspectives and to reflect critically on their own beliefs and assumptions

• to engage students with multiple perspectives, foster open-mindedness, and develop intercultural understanding

• to encourage students to make connections between academic disciplines by exploring underlying concepts and by identifying similarities and differences in the methods of inquiry used in different areas of knowledge

• to prompt students to consider the importance of values, responsibilities, and ethical concerns relating to the production, acquisition, application, and communication of knowledge.

(From IB Subject Guide 2020)of knowledge

Assessment Objectives

It is expected that by the end of the TOK course, students will be able to:

(From IB Subject Guide 2020)

Course Outline

The TOK course centers around a core theme: Knowledge and the knower.  This theme provides an opportunity for students to reflect on themselves as knowers and thinkers, and on the different communities of knowers to which we belong.

 Students will then go on to study two optional themes from the following five options:

• Knowledge and technology

• Knowledge and language

• Knowledge and politics

• Knowledge and religion

• Knowledge and indigenous societies                                               

These five themes have been selected because of their contemporary real-world relevance and their rich potential to stimulate interesting and engaging TOK discussions around key areas, such as the justification of, and evidence for, claims. It is intended that all five of these optional themes will have strong links to, and extend from, the core theme—Knowledge and the knower. Whereas the core theme focuses on the student and the particular communities of knowers that they belong to, the optional themes broaden the focus to five factors that have a huge impact on the world today and that play a particularly key role in shaping people’s perspectives and identities. They raise issues that students are likely to encounter in their lives both within and, importantly, beyond their school experiences.

 Areas of knowledge are structures within which much human knowledge is organized. In these areas, there are often socially established methods for producing knowledge, as well as norms for what counts as a fact or a good explanation. 

Students will study all of the following AOKs:

• History

• The natural sciences

• The human sciences

• Mathematics

• The arts

Within their discussions, students should be encouraged to think about and draw examples from, specific individual academic disciplines that are included within the different areas of knowledge.

Three of these will be covered in grade 11 (natural sciences, human sciences, and the arts) while the remaining two will be covered in grade 12. (from IB Subject Guide 2020)

Credits: 1

Length: 5 Trimesters

Grade Levels: 11-12

Prerequisites: None