Extended Essay

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This article is part of the International Baccalaureate series.

IB programmes: Primary Years Programme Middle Years Programme Diploma Programme

Institutions: The IBO United World Colleges

Lists: IB people IB schools DP schools MYP schools PYP schools

IBDP curriculum: Group 1 subjects Group 2 subjects Group 3 subjects Group 4 subjects Group 5 subjects Group 6 subjects Extended Essay Theory of Knowledge Creativity, Action, Service

The Extended Essay (EE) is one of the requirements of the IB Diploma Programme. It is an research-oriented paper, written on a freely-chosen topic and provides the student with an opportunity to conduct independent research on a topic that interests them.^[1] This paper, along with Theory of Knowledge (TOK) and IB examinations, makes up one of the three prerequisites for the IB Diploma.

Contents 1 Recommended subjects 2 Supervision 3 Assessment 4 References 5 Further information

[edit] Recommended subjects

Although the Extended Essay may be written on a topic of the student's choice, it is recommended that it not be taken from the field of any one of the IB subjects that one is studying (e.g. while one can write about a book that has been studied as part of IB English, it must show extra research and depth). This restriction in subject choice is to encourage individual research and learning, and encourages the student to take an interest in subjects other than those studied. However, the topic must not be too broad or too narrow that it is difficult to write 4000 words, and the general subject must be taught under the IB diploma somewhere by one of the members of staff at the college (so that there is someone with expertise able to help). The subject (not topic) on which the Extended Essay is written is recommended to be one that the candidate has formally studied, but this is not required. Also, the EE may not be written across different subjects – it must concentrate on one subject only. However, some subjects include several disciplines, with an emphasis towards one. An example is the subject Environmental Systems and Societies, which can include chemistry, biology, psychology, etc. generally with an emphasis towards one discipline.

[edit] Supervision

The supervisor provides the student with assistance in putting together their EE, including guiding them in finding a suitable research question and on how to acquire the necessary resources to complete the research (such as a specific resource material–often hard-to-find documents or books–or laboratory equipment). The supervisor may suggest improvements to a version of the EE, but must not be engaged in writing it. The IBO recommends that the supervisor spend approximately two to three hours in total with the candidate discussing the EE. Some schools allow their students to choose a supervisor from outside their school, provided that the student appoint a teacher from inside the school to handle required administrative paperwork (such as anti-plagiarism policies).

[edit] Assessment

The Extended Essay is assessed (graded) by examiners appointed by the IB on a scale of 0 to 36. There are "general" and "subject-specific" criteria, at a point ratio of 2:1 (24 possible points for the general criteria and 12 for the subject-specific one). This is converted into a grade from A to E. A similar system is used for Theory of Knowledge and students can gain up to 3 bonus marks for the diploma based on the grades achieved for EE and ToK. However, not submitting either of them, or achieving a grade of E in both of them constitutes a failing condition.

[edit] References

This article includes a list of references, related reading or external links, but its sources remain unclear because it lacks inline citations. Please improve this article by introducing more precise citations where appropriate. (February 2009)

[edit] Further information

This section requires expansion.