Turning your notes, data sheets, outlines, annotated bibliographies…
into a Summary of Evidence (Part B)
What is the Summary of Evidence?

It is a Description of evidence
o Examples: context, key people, places, and/or events

These are salient pieces of information
o This is not a list of everything about your topic
o These are facts and sources relevant to your topic/question

Goal for sources: 6-12 reputable sources
o 2 primary, 2 secondary, 2 historiography, At least 1 print/hard copy source

Summary of Evidence = 500 - 600 words

Full credit for the summary of evidence (according to IB): “The factual material is all relevant to the
investigation and it has been well researched, organized, and correctly referenced.”

Visuals are NOT included in the summary of evidence
o Examples: Chart, table, painting, poster, graph, photograph
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Visuals are included in an APPENDIX (the last pages of the project)
Visuals are described and referenced in the summary of evidence
Visuals are analyzed in Part D: Analysis

There is NO ANALYSIS in the summary of evidence

You are going to ANALYZE this information in Parts C & D…but that’s later…
o
o
Part C: Evaluation of Sources
 Select 2 sources to critically evaluate (aka O-P-V-L)
Part D: Analysis
 Your original writing, addressing your question, using the evidence
Submit your evidence to http://www.turnitin.com

MAK IB 20th century World per. 8:
 ID: 9072735
 Password: fidelcastro (lowercase & all one word)

MAK IB 20th century World per. 9:
o ID: 9072754
o Password: juanperon (lowercase & all one word
B: Summary of Evidence (500-600 words) [6 marks]
0
1-2
3-4
5-6
There is no relevant factual material.
There is some relevant factual material, but it has not been referenced.
There is relevant factual material that shows evidence of research, organization, and referencing.
The factual material is all relevant to the investigation and it has been well researched, organized, and
correctly referenced.
Summary of Evidence Components
You must link your overview of evidence to your research
question
Strong Summary of Evidence Sections are devoid of YOUR
OWN analysis (but should be specific when referencing the
analyses/interpretations of reputable historians)
Example
If your question was:
"To what extent was the United States
firebombing of Dresden in 1945 an act of
terrorism?" you may want to approach it like this:

Widely accepted definitions of terrorism
 Make sure you define terrorism so you can
evaluate whether the bombing fits the
description.
o You may include different
definitions from different views,
which can be evaluated later in
section D.

Historical context: Events during WWII that
may help the reader judge whether it was an act
of war or terrorism.
o Present evidence that puts the event
into historical context, like the fact that
Germany had bombed London, or was
currently implementing the Final
Solution.

Multiple viewpoints: Evidence that supports
the idea that the bombing was indeed a terrorist
act VS. Evidence that suggests the bombing
was simply an act of war
o Research 2-3 views that argue that it
was terrorism.
o Try to get primary sources of people
involved in the actual decision and/or
were affected by the bombings
o Research 2-3 views that argue is was
NOT terrorism, but an act of war.
o Alternatively, part of the historical
context could be the US knew the war
was won by this time; but bombed
them anyway!

Go BEYOND these suggestions!
Evidence should NOT be organized by source (as it is in your
notes / on your data sheet)
The goal is NOT to include every piece of information, but only
salient pieces of information. Present ONLY information that
will help you answer your research question; do not waste words
providing lengthy background information.
Limited or poor sources negatively affect score
A quote is not a fact – it needs context
You must include your Part C sources in Part B
Footnote EVERYTHING!
You should include:

Multiple sources:
o Primary sources: Archives, presidential libraries,
declassified information…
o Secondary sources: Newspaper and journal articles
from the time period
o Historical interpretations: Journal articles and
historiography

Define all key terms

Historical Context: Background information, Key events, US
vs. USSR, Democracy vs. Communism…

Multiple viewpoints/historical perspectives
o If you have evidence that supports only one possible
answer, then you will have nothing to evaluate and
analyze in Part D

Go BEYOND these suggestions!
Summary of Evidence Planning Table
How are you going to organize section B? You are DESCRIBING facts & information. These are the key pieces of evidence that you
will use in sections C & D. There is NO ANALYSIS in the summary of evidence. Do not get lazy  CITE EVERYTHING that is
not your own words!
Section 1:
Section 2:
Section 3:
Section 4:
Section 5:
Section 6:
Example:
To what extent was Hitler solely responsible for the outbreak of the Second World War?
Section 1:
Hitler’s Actions 1933-1941
Section 2:
Hitler’s Personality and Political Beliefs
Section 4:
The role of other countries (Italy, USSR,
USA…)
Section 5:
The role of the International System (R.
Overy’s Historical argument)
Section 3:
The role of Britain and France (AJP
Taylor’s historical argument)
Section 6:
Other reasons (Tim Mason’s argument that
German domestic pressures drove Hitler to
push for war)
Considerations for Organization:

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Use the groupings from the summary of evidence planning table to create topics/sub-topics for your evidence
OR Consider chronological structures (Motivations  Developments  Impacts)
Be sure to include PRIMARY, SECONDARY, and HISTORIOGRAPHY sources in each topic/sub-topic/grouping
Cite everything using University of Chicago style FOOTNOTES
Summary of Evidence Examples:
**Notice the use of sub-topics**
How did the Red Guards carry out their role in the development of the Chinese 1966 Cultural Revolution?
Marks: 3 out of 6: Referencing is not always complete; some material needs to be cited and is not. The first citations for sources are
not complete and therefore not correct. The section includes some relevant material which is organized and referenced (not always in
correct form).
Summary of Evidence Examples:
*Note  You are not going to use bullet format*
Iranian Revolution (1977-1979)
A Case Study of Power Struggle Spawned from an Inept Leadership
To What Extent was the Iranian Revolution Stolen by the Islamic Fundamentalists?
Moderators Comments: Criterion B



There is much information provided but it is not always accurate. While referencing is present, it is not always complete
(note the lack of page numbers, for example). Terms of importance that need explanation could have been included in a
glossary and indicated in section B. The frequent references to “excerpts” do not always help clarify matters unfortunately.
While relevant factual material showing evidence of research, organization and referencing is therefore present, the award
falls into the level 3–4 markband.
Received: 4 of 6 marks
Using University of Chicago Citations
University of Chicago style is the preferred citation method of historians and academic scholars writing about history
Sources
 The Chicago Manual of Style: http://www.chicagomanualofstyle.org/tools_citationguide.html
 Purdue University Online Writing Lab (OWL): https://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/717/01/
A well-researched History IA should have 6-12 reputable sources
 2 primary, 2 secondary, 2 historiography, At least 1 print/hard copy source
 No encyclopedias!
o No references to Wikipedia, Encarta, WorldBook, Groliers, Facts on File…
Types of Scholarly Notations
 Footnotes: represented in superscript numbers at the end of a quote or fact (aka – anything that is not your
original writing, anything that has been taken from another source)
o Footnotes are used within text and appear at the bottom of the page (the foot of the page)

Bibliography: List of citations for ALL of the material that you researched – even if you didn’t write about it

Works Cited: List of ONLY the resources that have been cited previously in your writing
Footnotes/Citations:

Keep track of all sources (in University of Chicago style) on your data sheets and in your easybib accounts:
http://www.easybib.com/

Using Microsoft Office: References  Insert Footnote
o http://office.microsoft.com/en-us/word-help/insert-delete-or-edit-footnotes-andendnotes-HP001226522.aspx

Citations must include ALL pertinent information
o Be sure you are using the correct citation (see: All 59 Options tab in easybib)
 Ex. If it is a primary source document (such as from a Presidential
library), but sourced from an online database  Use Database tab
 JSTOR articles  use Database tab  select JSTOR

Make sure that ANY Internet sources contain stable URLs and Dates of Access

IBID: Latin for ibidem, meaning "the same place"
o If you reference the same source on the same page (consecutively), you may use IBID in lieu of rewriting
the same citation again
 Books may be referenced using IBID, but different pages must be specified. Ex. IBID, 54
o Never use IBID as the 1st footnote of a new page in your IA

Format of Footnotes must be the same (No space between citations or 1 space between citations – but not a mix
of the 2)
Summary of Evidence Checklist:
Source Material:
Questions
Do You have AT LEAST 6
LEGITIMATE sources?
Do you have a BALANCE of
source material?



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

Are your sources
RELAVANT to your topic
and question?
Do you need MORE sources
to balance your argument or
prove your point?
Organization:
Questions
Is your evidence GROUPED
by theme or topic?
Does each grouping include a
VARIETY of source
material (primary, secondary,
and historiography)?
Is the material presented in
PARAGRAPH form?
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Clarification
NO dictionaries
NO encyclopedias
Limited or poor sources negatively affect score
Primary sources: Archives, presidential libraries,
declassified information, artwork…
Secondary sources: Newspaper and journal articles
from the time period
Historical interpretations: Journal articles and
historiography
Has your topic shifted?
Do you need to reword your questions?
Do you need more sources?
Could your argument be reinforced with 2-3 more
sources?
DO NOT exceed 12 sources
Additional (especially visual) evidence may be
placed in appendices
Yes
Somewhat
No
Clarification
Chronological, M-D-I, Thematic or topical
groupings
Labels/Headings for each grouping
DO NOT group by source
At least 3 types of sources should be included in
each grouping/sub-topic
Evidence must connect to research topic, question,
and grouping(s)/sub-topic(s)
DO NOT use bulleted points
Yes
Somewhat
No
Clarification
Descriptions include: historical or political context,
key people, places, and/or events
Devoid of YOUR analysis (but should be specific
when referencing the analyses/interpretations of
reputable historians)
DO NOT to include every piece of information
Present ONLY information that will help you
answer your research question
Relevant to your topic/question
Please do so WITHOUT referencing dictionaries or
encyclopedias
Historical Context: Background information, Key
events, US vs. USSR, Democracy vs.
Communism…
DO NOT waste words providing lengthy
background information
If you have evidence that supports only one
possible answer, then you will have nothing to
evaluate and/or analyze in Part D
Yes
Somewhat
No
Content:
Questions
Is the summary
DESCRIPTIVE (not
analytical)?
Have you included ONLY
SALIENT pieces of
information?
Have you defined ALL KEY
TERMS?
Have you included
HISTORICAL CONTEXT?
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Have you included multiple
POVs / historical
perspectives / arguments?

Turn Over 
Summary of Evidence Checklist:
Citations:
Questions
Have you used University of
Chicago Citations?


Have you FOOTNOTED
EVERYTHING?


Are your links to STABLE
URLs?

Clarification
Use a citation generator: easybib, bibme,
knightcite…even Microsoft Word….
Easybib: You may need to use the “All 59 options”
menu
If the information is not your own it must be cited
You may use Ibid (see examples/details at:
http://libguides.radford.edu/content.php?pid=49958&sid=558025)
Jstor provides stable URLs…just a hint…
Yes
Somewhat
No
Additional Information:

A quote is not a fact – it needs context

Timelines, charts, maps, works of art, and additional data may be added as appendices

The Summary of Evidence includes everything that you are going to address in Parts C & D
o If you add NEW information in the ANALYSIS section  you have to GO BACK and add it to the
Summary of Evidence

The Summary of Evidence should be between 500-600 words
o Early versions may exceed the word count
 You will cut out what you don’t need later in the process
o The final version of the Summary of evidence should be approximately 550 words
o Include a word count at the bottom of your summary of evidence
The summary of Evidence is worth 6 marks:
0
1-2
3-4
5-6
There is no relevant factual material.
There is some relevant factual material, but it has not been referenced.
There is relevant factual material that shows evidence of research, organization, and referencing.
The factual material is all relevant to the investigation and it has been well researched, organized, and
correctly referenced.
…Now, go back and edit/add to/reformat your Summary of Evidence 
Turn all of the “no” and “somewhat” responses into “yes” responses…