IBDP Design Technology - Cumulative Testing

Assessment /
Cumulative Testing

If people knew how hard I worked to get my mastery, it wouldn't seem so wonderful at all. -- Michelangelo

In order to prepare for the external examination at the end of the programme, students will sit eight cumulative tests over the course of the two-year programme. Each test contains questions on all topics studied up to the moment of testing (with an emphasis on the most recently studied topic). Questions for these exams are mostly taken from past exams. Standard Level candidates will sit a test that is different from that of Higher Level candidates.

Cumulative tests initially contain only paper 1 (multiple choice) or paper 2 (short-response) types of questions. Towards the end of the programme, paper 3 type questions (long response) will be provided to the Higher Level candidates.

Mastery of Content will be tracked through a student's individual progress tracker. Both test results and inquiry activities are used to assess mastery.

How to prep for a cumulative test properly?

[120 minutes] Prioritize your study focus:
- [5 min per subtopic] Write down what you know about the latest subtopics that were treated in class in a short bullet list. I.e. create a quick 'prior knowledge' overview. Do not look at your notes.
- [30 min] Check your mastery progress checker to see which topics are your weaker points. Look up questions from past cumulative tests that you were not able to answer.
- [60 min] Skim-read class or previous test notes to identify areas that need to be revisited. Compare with your 'prior knowledge' list as well.
[60-120 minutes] For the most recent (untested material): Go over your notes on the printouts of the syllabus and create a hand-written two-column summary (see below). OR adapt a section of the Revision guide (2-column). Making these summaries will create a very good resource for when you have to prepare for the final examination as well.
[60 minutes] Revise your summaries

How to prep for a cumulative test the 'quick and dirty' way? (not recommended)

[60 minutes] Use the glossary to check whether you understand all key terminology. There are flashcards on Quizlet as well.
[30 minutes] Review past cumulative tests.

2-Column Exam Notes

2-Column Exam Notes are a way of processing your class notes into something 'studiable'. The general idea is to organize the key points of your learning in a left column with concepts/cues/terminology and a right column with more verbose additional details. That second column should nevertheless be concise and will probably feature a lot of bullet-pointed lists. The columns should be clearly separated so you can cover them up while testing your understanding or recollection of concepts. The act of creating these notes of course is studying in itself.