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Communication skills
Good scientists need to be able to communicate well with others. A list of the essential general communication skills required in the 21st century is provided and this page also puts an emphasis on the...
Teaching, learning & resources
Thinking skills
This page details the different levels of thinking skills and how they relate to the IB's Objective levels 1,2 and 3. It provides advice and an example of how to build up the ability of your students...
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Thinking skills
This page details the different levels of thinking skills and how they relate to the IB's Objective levels 1,2 and 3. It provides advice and an example of how to build up your ability to recognise and...
External assessment
Grade boundaries
Because the assessment is criterion-based rather than norm-referenced, the actual grade boundaries vary from year to year although ‘rule of thumb’ boundaries can be used when assessing grades for your...
Experimental programme & IA
'Hands on' practicals
This section explains why hands-on practicals are well worth doing, considers all the safety aspects and goes on to list full details with worksheets of over 35 experiments that students can do in your...
Activities
Preparation of 1,3-dinitrobenzene
Benzene itself cannot be used in school laboratories due to its carcinogenic nature. This practical illustrates an electrophilic substitution reaction by converting nitrobenzene into 1,3-dinitrobenzene...
Activities
Hydrolysis of halogenoalkanes
This practical examines the effect of changing the halogenoalkane from primary to secondary to tertiary and changing the halogen from chlorine to bromine to iodine on the rate of nucleophilic substitution....
Activities
Reactions of organic compounds
This is very much a practical introduction to organic chemistry and is excellent for demonstrating (or reinforcing) the underlying theory. The aim of this practical is to relate physical and chemical...
Activities
Oxidation of ethanol
This practical covers the oxidation of ethanol to both ethanal and ethanoic acid using acidified potassium dichromate(VI) and involves the techniques of distillation and reflux. There are only two reactions...
Activities
Electrolytic cells
This practical covers the electrolysis of molten salts required for both SL and HL and also the electrolysis of aqueous solutions of salts, acids and bases which is only required if you are a Higher Level...