• • an assessment, which is an integral part of the course and is compulsory for both SL and HL students. 

  • enables students to demonstrate the application of their skills and knowledge, 

  • enables students to pursue their personal interests, without the time limitations and other constraints that are associated with written examinations

• • The model of internal assessment for computer science consists of a computational solution developed by the candidate.

  • For both SL and HL, it is expected that each candidate will spend 30 hours on the computational solution.

  • For HL candidates, internal assessment contributes 20% of the total mark. 

  • For SL candidates, it contributes 30% of the total mark.

  • For SL and HL, the internal assessment final mark is out of 34. A combined SL and HL sample set is uploaded for external moderation by the IB.

SUMMARY

• • • 2000 words (excluding tables)

    • Solution (Assessed at SL Level)

    • Duration: 30 hours

    • Weighting at SL: 30%

    • Weighting at HL: 20%

• • Students are required to produce a solution that consists of a cover page, the product and the documentation. 

  • The focus of the solution is on providing either an original product or additional functionality to an existing product for a client.

• • Student’s own (individual)  work.

  • Supported and guided by a teacher

  • The work submitted for assessment must address the provided IA criteria effectively

  • The solution is prepared according to the requirements 

  • The internally assessed work must be entirely of the student’s.

  • All work submitted to the IB for moderation or assessment must be authenticated by a teacher, 

  • and must not include any known instances of suspected or confirmed malpractice

• • time for the teacher to explain to students the requirements of the internal assessment, including codes of ethical behaviour and confidentiality

  • class time for students to work on the internal assessment

  • time spent by the student making arrangements to collect data as appropriate

  • time for consultation between the teacher and each student

  • time to review and monitor progress, and to check authenticity.

NOTE: Additional time may be needed outside normal class time for students to work independently, such as acquiring additional skills required for the project and consulting with other people.

• • The term “solution” refers to all the work submitted by the student for the internal assessment; 

  • The term “product” refers to the completed software only. The product is a subset of the solution.

  • The terms “developer” and “student” are synonymous.

  • The term “client” refers to the person for whom the product is being developed. The student may also be the client.

  • The term “adviser” refers to a third party the student must identify to assist him or her in the development of the product.

• 1. The student is developing the product for a third party who is the client and also acts as the adviser.

  2. The student is developing the product for a third party who is the client. Another person acts as the adviser.

  3. The student is the client (developing the product for himself or herself). An appropriate adult must act as the adviser.

• 1. In identifying a problem, students can select any topic that interests them. It does not have to be directly related to the specified themes in the syllabus or to the option studied.

  2. Students should undertake a challenging task using appropriate techniques to showcase their algorithmic thinking and organizational skills.

The solution may take one of these forms:

• • Creating a new system, such as an OOP program, a relational database, a simulation or a stand-alone/ web-based application

  • Adding functionality to an existing system, such as connecting a webpage(s) to a database, writing a function for Moodle, writing a plug-in, or developing a stand-alone application

• • the development of a programming product only using copied code

  • the development of a website (product) using a web-based template that determines its structure and layout

  • the use of unmodified exemplar products or templates provided with software such as the Northwind database in MS Access

  • a product that does not meet the ethical requirements outlined in the “Requirements and recommendations” section of this document.