Tips for Paper 2
To be successful on Paper 2, students need knowledge and understanding of research methodology and of how to apply concepts to a previously unseen study.Paper 2 Section A is on the research methodology of the class practicals and Section B asks students to discuss a study with regard to two or more concepts. Here are a few tips, based on my students' Paper 2 answers and feedback in their end of year 1 exams.
General tips
Timing
It is easy for students tend to spend too long on Section A, and be left with little time for Section B. This blog post helps you see how the time should be allocated. If students feel confident about Section A, they should consider starting with the Section B essay. If they spend no more than 40 minutes on it, they can spend the rest of the time (50 mins) on Section A. Most of the 5 minutes reading time given by the IB for each paper should be spent reading the study for Section B, and choosing the relevant concepts.
Preparation
Student preparation for Section A can come in the form of answering practice 2A questions about each of their practicals. For Section B, group activities in applying concepts to unseen studies are the best preparation. Each concept can be written on a card, and chosen by a student who has 5 minutes to prepare their answer, which they present to the rest of their group. Overlaps between bias, measurement and causality are to be expected and show students how the same material can be used in different ways. Psychological terminology should be practiced, as it must be used throughout both sections of the paper.
Paper 2A (20 marks)
Reference to own class practical
Specific reference to their own class practical is only relevant for Q1 and Q2. The assessment criteria of Q3 and Q4 are completely focused on the research methodology itself, rather than the student’s class practical. For Q1, students should state the topic, and then describe the aim and procedure of whichever practical they have been asked about, making sure to give as much detail as possible, in less than 10 minutes. There is no need for them to describe their ethical considerations here, as responsibility may be asked about in Q2.
For Q2, a concept will be given, and it needs to be explained in relation to the student’s class practical. It will be relevant to the method in Q1, so a question about causality is unlikely if the method in Q1 is interview/focus group, for example, whereas responsibility and measurement would be relevant to any method. Two ways in which the concept is explained as relevant to the class practical are enough to gain the top mark band.
Response organization
The answers to Q3 and Q4 need careful planning. For Q3, the student should write two paragraphs, one on the similarities between the two methods and one on the differences between them. Two of each is enough.
To answer Q4, the student needs to imagine exactly how they would address the same topic using a different method, which will be given in the question. They should produce a plan for the aim and procedure, in as much detail as they did for their original method in Q1. This time, they should also explain the ethical considerations relevant to this method.
Paper 2B (15 marks)
Students will be asked to discuss a research study with regard to two or more concepts. They will have between 4 and 6 concepts to choose from. The study will be relevant to a context, but students will not need to know the areas of study from the context, nor the learning outcomes.
Instead they should think of their response in three parts:
- understand and critically discuss the concepts (Example: the supposed objectivity of measurement)
- make clear links between the study and this critical discussion of the concepts (Example: how measurement is used in the research and its effectiveness or otherwise)
- draw a conclusion about the links between the study and the concepts chosen (Example:what does this suggest about how measurement was used in the study, and the validity of the findings?)
Most of my students found they had the relevant knowledge to answer the questions, but they struggled with time management and organisation of their answers. Hopefully some of this advice will help your students this year.
If you have any questions about Paper 2, feel free to ask them here.