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The data booklet and multiple choice exams

This page looks at how the availability of the whole of the IB data booklet might affect the setting of multiple choice questions in Paper 1 of the final external assessment. It gives examples of questions which can really no longer be asked and also examples of questions that could now be asked.
(Image from IUPAC)

The data booklet and multiple choice exams

Introduction

The 2023 guide lists the tools that IB chemistry students need to be familiar with but one tool, which is a unique and essential tool for all chemists, is missing from the list - the periodic table. The periodic table is of course covered under Structure 3.1 but there is no emphasis on it being a tool for chemists. In the past on the MYP programme students were introduced to the concept of homo faber (man the toolmaker) and the periodic table was often used as one of the great examples of a man-made tool. The assessment for the new 2023 DP chemistry syllabus now means that students have a copy of the IB data booklet for all their external exams. They always did have access to the data booklet for Paper 2 (and the old Paper 3) but they only had access to the basic periodic table (now Section 7) for Paper 1 (multiple choice questions). The data booklet does not specifically identify the s, p, d and f blocks so a question such as

Which is a d-block element?

A. Ti
B. Te
C. Th
D. Tb

could still be asked. However many of the other types of multiple choice questions on periodicity cannot really be set again as the answers can now be found simply by looking at one of the layouts of the periodic table in sections 8, 9 or 10.

Examples of such questions include:

Which is a correct statement?

A. Atomic radius decreases down group 1
B. First ionization energy decreases down group 17.
C. Atomic radius increases across period 3 from sodium to chlorine.
D. First ionization energy decreases across period 3 from sodium to chlorine.

and

Which are listed in order of increasing size

A. S2– < Cl– < K+ < Ca2+
B. K+ < Ca2+ < Cl–  < S2–
C. Ca2+ < K+ < Cl–  < S2–
D. Cl– < S2– < Ca2+ < K+

In the section on periodic trends I have included an extra multiple choice quiz with questions which do test the trends students should know. Unlike all the other multiple choice tests, this quiz should be answered without the data booklet.

On the flip side, having access to the data booklet does now mean that other types of multiple choice questions on topics other than periodicity, which previously could not be asked, now can be.

This purpose of these questions is to gives some examples of how having access to the whole data booklet could now be used in multiple choice exams to test areas that could not have been asked in the past.

Some background on the rationale behind the questions

The first five questions are suitable for both Standard and Higher Level students, questions 6 to 10 are for Higher Level students only. They tend to be harder than many previous IB multiple choice questions and are intended to get students to think rather than just regurgitate facts so are not necessarily questions that could be asked in an official IB exam. However they are intended to challenge students and help to prepare them to face difficult questions with confidence and also get them used to using the data booklet. The ten questions certainly do not cover everything and you are encouraged to think about other areas in which questions could also be asked based on information in the data booklet. Remember too that students also have access to a calculator so several of the questions involve calculations that they could not have been asked to do in the past. As with all the other multiple choice questions on this site, the answers are not only given but also explained to assist students in their learning.

Some background information on each question is given below.

Question 1. Non-isoelectronic ions

Even though the basic trends, such as how ionization energies, atomic and ionic radii and electronegativities etc. change down a group or across a period can be seen clearly from data in Sections 8, 9 or 10 in the data booklet, there is now scope for getting students to think more critically. Students still need to understand the reasoning behind the explanations for these trends. For example, in past questions on the size of ions (similar to the one above) students needed to see that all four species are isoelectronic so the largest will be the one with the least protons and the smallest the one with the most protons. Atomic size increases as the energy levels increase but ions decrease in size as electrons are removed. This question looks at comparing the size of ions that are not all isoelectronic.

Question 2. Electron affinities

Students should know that all the first electron affinities of the elements are exothermic whereas the second electron affinities are endothermic. In the past they did not have the data to be able to compare the effect of removing a second electron as they had no access to Section 9 in the data booklet.

Question 3. Melting and boiling points

Now that students have access to the data in Section 8 questions can be asked comparing the melting and/or boiling points of specified elements.

Question 4.  Enthalpy calculations

Average bond enthalpies are listed in Section 12 but not all bonds conform to the average. Data from Sections 12, 13 and 14 can be utilised to arrive at the value for a specific bond enthalpy which deviates significantly from the average. This question involves several steps and includes the energy change in condensing gaseous water into liquid water so is more suited to Paper 2 but the reason for including it here is to get students to question and use enthalpy data.

Question 5. Significant figures

Even though their values are often known accurately to many significant figures, most of the values given in Section 2 are only given to three significant figures (although some are given to seven significant figures). What happens if more significant figures are used in a calculation?

Question 6. Infra-red spectroscopy

Students can now identify specific compounds from their infra-red spectra as the characteristic ranges for the absorbance by specific functional groups are given in Section 20.

Question 7. 1H NMR spectroscopy

Students can now distinguish between similar organic compounds by looking at their 1H NMR spectra and using the number of signals, any splitting patterns, their integration traces and the chemical shifts (listed in Section 21).

Question 8. UV-VIS spectroscopy

From their UV-VIS absorbance patterns the colour of an aqueous solution of a transition metal ion can be deduced using the colour wheel in Section 15.

Question 9. Deducing an equation

Section 1 lists many equations. Some of these can be used to deduce other equations which are not listed.

Question 10. Indicators

The colour of an indicator in a solution with a known pH can now be deduced from data in Section 18.

The ten questions can be accessed from the student page Practice multiple choice questions involving the data booklet. Students have direct access to the questions unless you restrict it.
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