Activities
Whose ideas should we take seriously?
Since we have limited time and resources, we cannot consider everyone's ideas or claims to knowledge. How should we decide whose ideas are worth spending time on? This question is not only a difficult...
Assessment
Essay Free
TOK essay is an external assessment component in TOK. It is completed in the second year of the IB. This chapter will introduce us to the essay requirements and its assessment instrument as well as offer...
Assessment
Opportunities and pitfalls of the M25 essay titles
As the May 2025 examination session comes to a close, we reflect on the prescribed titles in relation to our students' performance in the essay task this year. What lessons can we draw for future ToK...
Assessment
Reflections on May 2023 PTs
Here are some comments on the PTs from the May 2023 examination session from a senior examiner after having marked around 600 essays. The may be helpful for teachers using these essay titles for practice...
Assessment
What does a ten look like?
I get asked at workshops what does a student need to do to get a 10/10 for the ToK essay. Does the essay need to be perfect. My answer is: 'no the essay does not need to be perfect, but it does need to...
Assessment
What is a 'tweakable' good essay?
Quite often we come across essays which score reasonably well but could have done much better with a little bit of tweaking. The teacher plays a big role here, not only in supervising the student in choice...
Assessment
Essay activities
This section proposes activities that can be added to lessons or assigned as homework. The aim of the activities is to practice the skills necessary for writing essays. We shall add to these activities...
Assessment
Three teacher interactions for the essay
The teacher is required to make three interventions with students preparing their ToK essay. Given that care must be taken in terms of how much help is given to students or how much student collaboration...
Assessment
Commentaries on student essays
Here is a collection of actual student essays. My thanks go to the many anonymous students and their teachers who have allowed me to use their essays for training purposes over the years. They are not...
Assessment
Administrative procedures: essay
This page details the administrative procedures, important dates and deadlines and files to upload for the assessment of the ToK essay. It is obligatory for all IB schools to have an internal deadlines...