Historical Investigation Proposal
Whether you’re carrying on in IB history or not, you are responsible for completing this
task if you want a top mark in EWC4UW. Those of you taking IB History in Grade 12 will
complete work on this beginning stage of the Internal Assessment (the Historical
Investigation) in your grade 12 IB history class. Because this assessment requires
reading and research outside of class, it’s compulsory that you choose your topic,
gather some primary and secondary sources, and write your research question before
you leave school in June. Also, we encourage you to complete your reading and
research over the summer months.
Step One
Review the syllabus for IB History, found on the CHY/CHI 4UW websites. We
recommend that you choose a topic from this syllabus. Choosing a topic from the
syllabus will allow you more choice on the May exams of your graduating year. You
may not choose the same topic that you did in your grade 11 History course, and you
may not choose the same topic as your Extended Essay. We recommend a topic
chosen from the HL option: History of the Americas, or from Route 2 Prescribed
Subjects: 20th Century World History Topics. If you are unclear about topic choice,
please ask your EE teacher or an IB History teacher for clarification. Your topic must be
related to events occurring prior to the year 2000.
Step Two
Choose your topic and complete some preliminary research on it. Ensure that there
are enough resources for you to access. The resources must be available in ENGLISH.
Step Three
Narrow your focus after conducting your preliminary research. The conflict between
French and English Canadians in Quebec during the Quiet Revolution is a great topic
for an historical investigation; however, you must focus on one specific incident about
which you can create an arguable thesis. For example, Prime Minister Trudeau faced a
crisis in 1970 when the FLQ kidnapped prominent members of government, forcing the
Prime Minister to declare martial law, using his powers under the War Measures Act. A
narrowed topic for an Historical Investigation could focus on only the few days in
October of 1970 leading up to this crisis, examining the reasons why Trudeau enforced
this act and the success or failure of his actions. The more focused your topic is, the
better your investigation will be.
Step Four
Create a research question for your Historical Investigation. There are several
exemplars posted on the CHY/CHI websites. Your question should begin with the
words “Why” or “How” or “To what extent”. This should be an open ended question.
The answer to this question will be the thesis of your Historical Investigation. Have your
research question approved by your teacher.
Step Five
Gather sources to complete your research. You may need to review the research
steps that you learned in grade 10 and grade 11 History. There are several tutorials
available on the school’s website to help you.
We recommend 6 to 10 sources for your research. These must be academic sources.
Books, academic journals and primary sources are your best resources. Questia and
The Virtual Library have all of these types of sources. If you need assistance using the
Virtual Library, please ask for help. You may also wish to visit one of the University
Libraries.
Step Six
Complete a proposal for your Historical Investigation. Keep a copy for yourself and
hand a copy in to your teacher. We will keep these in a file and give the file to the grade
12 History teachers. Continue with your research over the summer, gathering
information and recording it, along with the source, for your Summary of Evidence.
Historical Investigation Proposal
Your Name:____________________________
General Topic: ___________________________________________________
Reason for your interest in this topic:
Research Question (focus!):
List of sources, both primary and secondary, properly formatted in Chicago Style, with a
BRIEF description of each (what have you found in this source that will help you with
your investigation?):
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