Extended Essay Report Highlights

 Important reminders

Anonymizing work – Personal identifiers must not be included in the student’s submission. The student’s personal code can be used.

Supervisors should refer to the student as “the student” in the RPPF

Students should not refer to their supervisor (or other staff member) by name in their reflections or in any acknowledgements.

A formal register should be used throughout.

Integrate quotes and references.

Context should be in the research question.

Academic Honesty and the EE – students must be reminded of the importance of academic honesty and the proper referencing of sources. The minimum information requirements for the IB (superseding any reference-style specifics) are outlined in the attached page from the IB document, Effective Citing and Referencing

All text making up the body of an extended essay must be included in the world count.

Criterion A: Focus and Method

Introductions are central to Criterion A and must include a justification of:

·      why the topic was chosen including framing it within an academic context and outlining the purpose of the research – this should be the  academic purpose and not personal motivations for selecting the topic.

·      why selected sources were chosen i.e. justification or rationale for the use of sources

·      how the selected sources were chosen including why one method was chosen over another

Present clear, detailed accounts of the methodology in a way that would allow the study to be repeated (particularly in the sciences) 

For other subjects, showing the approach or methodology, and explaining why this approach was chosen over other options is critically important.

When explaining the approach or methodology (particularly in languages, INS and arts) show how each source will help answer the research question.

“To what extent…” questions require the examination of alternative points and giving of relative importance to these different points.

The central question students should be answering is, “Why, academically speaking, is it important to answer this question?”

Criterion B: Knowledge and Understanding

The application of sources to support knowledge and understanding is central. As a result, detailed in-text referencing is essential.

Subject specific terminology is often well-used, though reference to theory and concepts is not.

Lower marks are often due to a poor selection of sources that could not be effectively applied to demonstrate knowledge and understanding.

The correct use of subject terminology is essential to showing knowledge and understanding.

When using primary research, it is essential to ensure that the data generated address the RQ.

In accurate and incomplete labeling of diagrams indicates a lack of understanding. In Economics and Business, generic (downloaded) diagrams are not ideal as they prevent the student from effectively applying the theory to their own case study.

For Mathematics, always try to give some commentary or example to explain the Mathematics and show understanding.

For Visual Arts, the primary emphasis should be on evaluating how artists have conveyed their ideas formally and technically, using subject-specific vocabulary.

When accessing websites, be sure that they have been peer-reviewed.

In the early stages of exploring the topic, look for the existence of important research already made in the area of that topic.

For the sciences, avoid a purely empirical essay – a theory / research from reliable sources must be part of the essay.

The central question students should be asking themselves is: “How do the data and/or ideas gleaned from the data relate to the sources that have been accessed and referenced? 

Criterion C: Critical Thinking

This criterion encompasses 3 strands: 1. Research 2. Analysis and 3. Discussion and evaluation

Sources should be used to support critical thinking.

It is crucial that the RQ is framed in a way that leads to argumentation/evaluation and that the candidate frequently refers to the RQ throughout the essay.

The main issue for students with this criterion is the tendency to describe rather than analyse and evaluate.

Students should acknowledge any bias or lack of reliability in their sources and/or data. Similarly, recognition should be given to implicit assumptions and limitations of a theory when applying it.

Economics does not advise that students have an evaluation component in the body of their essay, but that the evaluation and critical thinking be integrated into the essay as a whole.

It is not sufficient to rely on citing secondary sources for the analysis rather than engaging personally with the topic/issue/text.

In Mathematics, it is essential to explain the non-trivial mathematical steps taken.

Criterion D: Presentation

6 required elements for the essay:

1.     Title Page which includes:

Title

Research question

Subject (and category if it falls into World Studies or Language)

Word Count

2.     Contents Page

3.     Introduction - which should make clear to the reader: a. the focus of the essay; b. the scope of the research, in particular an indication of the sources to be used and c. an insight into the line of argument to be taken.

4.     Body of the essay

5.     Conclusion -  which should say what has been achieved, including notes of any limitations and any questions that have not been resolved. Ultimately, it must relate to the research question posed.

Typical flaws:

·      No paragraphing

·      No page numbers

·      Illegible diagrams

·      Poor labeling of tables, graphs and illustrations

·      Use of irrelevant photos

·      Mixed-up fonts

Wherever possible, tables should not be split over two pages.

Equations should not be split over two lines.

Essential material must be included in the essay and not the appendices.

Ensure double spacing.

In Music, students should ensure that clefs and key signatures are not omitted.

Criterion E: Engagement

Students should be encouraged, through the questions asked by the supervisor during the reflection sessions, to think critically about the process rather than putting forward a simple description of the actions. 

Reflections must be more analytical and evaluative and less descriptive. The focus must be on the process and challenges of addressing the research question, as well as the specific lessons learnt regarding research.

Avoid generic statements – the text of the RPPF should be specific to the candidate’s own work, about what they have learnt about their topic, with specific examples.

Additional general recommendations

The EE is not an IA and each requires its own approach – the EE must be firmly based on published research and must integrate ideas and information gleaned from published sources into the argument.

For Biology essays, the best essays are school based laboratory studies that use a straightforward approach and present a clear well supported argument based on a significant body of data.

Substantial secondary academic research must be carried out, regardless of the subject, topic and RQ.

The EE needs a theoretical underpinning.

Discuss underpinning theory in the context of the RQ, not as a separate section.

When a graphic is used, it should be contextualized before it is included.

If theories or diagrams are included that are not supported by evidence, the student should note that, “the situation might be explained by the theory, but there is no evidence to prove firmly that the theory is valid.” Alternatively, it can be said that it “has not been empirically proven.”

Students should be encouraged to reformulate the RQ at the end, if necessary.

Image information should be complete and placed underneath each image, or briefly captioned and accompanied by a table of images after the bibliography (for VA in particular).