Theory of Knowledge
Internal Assessment 2008
Guidance for Students
Presentation dates:
Monday 16th June to Thursday 19th June 2008
Schedule for Internal Assessment.
Thursday 8th and
Friday 9th May
Friday 16th May
Thursday 22nd and
Friday 23rd May
Thursday 5th and
Friday 6th June
Thursday 12th and
Friday 13th June
Monday 16th to
Thursday 19th June
Friday 20th and
Thursday 26th June
Introduction and discussion of the task in ToK lesson
Proposal forms returned to ToK staff. Work in pairs to refine
proposals.
Lesson time to plan and prepare.
Time during Year 12 HE week to plan and rehearse.
Final advice from ToK staff.
Internal Assessments in SSC or Room 230.
Completion of Self-evaluation report in ToK lesson.
VERY IMPORTANT NOTE - If you know that you will be absent
for this lesson, please ensure that you give your form to your
ToK teacher before you leave. If we do not have the form
before the summer holiday you will fail the presentation, and
thus fail ToK.
The Task
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You will work in pairs to make a presentation
The presentation will be no more than 12 minutes
You will make the presentation with your partner to a group of students and two
staff assessors.
You MUST work with someone in the same ToK class as you.
Additional information about the task

This presentation may take many forms, such as a lecture, simulation, sketch,
interview, debate, dramatised reading, roleplay. You may use supporting
material such as videos, overhead projections, posters, questionnaires, songs,
costumes, props. The more imaginative your work is the better!

You may not read a pre-prepared piece of text aloud to the class.

Your presentation should take a contemporary issue that you feel is of relevance
to you. You should explore it in a way that allows you to apply ToK thinking to
the issue. Examples of possible presentations are shown in this booklet and
should give you some starting points when coming up with your own ideas.

Each pair in a teaching group MUST have a different focus to their
presentation.
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After the presentation you will need to complete the self-evaluation report
included in this booklet. This should be handed in during the lesson on Friday
20th and Thursday 26th June June. VERY IMPORTANT NOTE - If you know that you
will be absent for this lesson, please ensure that you give your form to your ToK
teacher before you leave. If we do not have the form before the summer
holiday you will fail the presentation, and thus fail ToK
Some questions to consider when selecting a topic:
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What is the topic? Is it narrowly defined?
What knowledge do you have of the topic? Is this enough?
What biases do you hold about the topic?
What interest groups exist? Who are these people? Why are they
interested?
How do these groups present the issue? Why is it presented this way?
What ‘expert’ knowledge is there? Where does it come from?
Is this knowledge valid?
What would opponents argue? Are their ideas well founded?
What possible solutions are there to this issue? How plausible are they?
What is the best course of action for individuals? For groups?
Nicholas Alchin’s Ten Top Tips for ToK Presentations!
1.
Make sure that you familiarise yourself with the assessment criteria: notice,
for example, that whatever your topic the focus must be on knowledge issues and that
you should choose a contemporary issue.
2.
Choose a concrete topic that interests you and find the ToK in it: ToK can be
found almost anywhere, so use the opportunity to do something which you will enjoy
doing. Do not choose, say, the death penalty just because you have a book on it. Your
presentation will come across better if you choose something that means something to
you personally; your own school, recent events in the news, cartoons, books, films are
often fertile ground for presentation topics. Some of the most effective presentations
start with an everyday story and go on to draw out the ToK aspects.
3.
You should be exploring an issue; this means that you should present different
points of view – even if they contradict each other and even if you disagree with them.
You can try to reconcile different points of view or explain precisely why they are
incompatible. You do not have to choose one point of view as ‘correct’, but you should
avoid the rather vacuous, ‘so there are different points of view all of which are equally
valid’ approach. Do not be afraid of giving your own opinion; you can point out that
there are problems with your opinion, but be honest and say what you really think!
4.
Try to cover the facts as quickly as possible and get to the abstract ToK
principles. If you have chosen a topic where there are important facts that the audience
needs to know, then you should get through these quickly – there are no marks for
dissemination of information. The focus of the presentation must be analysis, not
description. If you can’t summarise the facts in a couple of minutes, then you give
people a SHORT, properly referenced summary to read beforehand.
5.
Once you have drawn out the abstract ToK principles you should try to see
what the implications of these principles are, and perhaps use these implications to
reflect on the validity of the principles. For example, if you are considering the
argument for the death penalty which states that murderers lose the right to life, the
principle seems to be ‘an eye for an eye’. But you could ask, ‘What do we do with a
thief? Or a rapist?’ The answers to these questions may or may not lead to a
reformulation of the principle.
6.
Consider carefully how to communicate the structure in your presentation. It
may be clear in your mind, but the audience may not find it so easy. It can help to have
one or two overheads with the main points in bullet form, using a large font.
7.
Try to state explicitly the problems of knowledge that you are looking at. This
will help you retain clarity and make it easier for an examiner to give you high marks in
criterion A. If you use an overhead then this is an obvious place to list the problems.
8.
If appropriate, use a film clip, slides, photos, newspaper cutting, or any other
prop. Your presentation will probably be far more interesting if you can use something
other than your voice.
9.
In your conclusion try to summarise (very briefly – in one or two sentences)
what you have said, and try to end with a forward looking view. This might be a
summary of the main principles you have identified or some issues which have arisen
and which have not been answered. Do not just reiterate your arguments. The end
should ‘feel’ like a conclusion and not just be a ‘well, that’s it’.
10.
Think carefully about your choice of partner!
On the day of the presentations…
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Presentations will be held in both the SSC and 230 (Careers). Make sure that you
know which session and which room you are in, and excuse yourself from your
lessons in advance.
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Think carefully about what equipment you will need and arrange for it to be
there. Arrive before the start of the session (before school or at long break) to
make sure everything is set up as you need it.
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You will have 12 minutes to present to the group. A bell will sound ONCE when
you have one minute left, and TWICE when you have reached 12 minutes. At 13
minutes we will tell you to stop!
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After this there will be a 3 minute question and answer session. All students in
the audience and the teachers marking you will be able to ask questions.
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There will be 5 minutes between each presentation for the next group to set up.
This will not be enough time to load complex files onto the computer, so make
sure that this has been done before and that they are working. If there is a
technical problem you will have to go ahead anyway.
Assessment Information
The ToK Internal Assessment counts for one third of your final ToK grade. Most
students find the IA more accessible than the ToK essay, and their marks therefore tend
to be higher in this area. The IA tests your ability to:
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Relate the abstract elements of the ToK programme to a concrete, contemporary
issue.
Use imagination and original thinking.
Show explicit recognition of relevant personal viewpoints, values and biases, and
acknowledge the viewpoints of others.
Give a thoughtful account of the implications of knowledge claims.
Present points in a clear and informative way.
As with any assessment you must read the assessment criteria carefully and ensure that
you are giving the assessors what they want to see! Notice that you are directly marked
for the problems of knowledge you identify, the level of analysis and the application of
ToK thinking to the issue you have chosen. You ARE NOT marked on how much
information you present to the audience.
Clarity will form an important part of your mark. Presentations that exceed the time
limit, include too much factual information, or are disorganised are likely to lose a lot of
marks within this criteria.
The Presentation Assessment Criteria
(taken from the Diploma Programme ToK Guide)
A
Identification of knowledge issue
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Did the presentation identify a relevant knowledge issue involved, implicit or embedded
in a real-life situation?
Achievement
level
0
Descriptor
Level 1 was not achieved.
1–2
The presentation referred to a knowledge issue but it was irrelevant to the
real-life situation under consideration.
3–4
The presentation identified a knowledge issue that was in some ways
relevant to the real-life situation under consideration.
5
B
The presentation identified a knowledge issue that was clearly relevant to the
real-life situation under consideration.
Treatment of knowledge issues
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Did the presentation show a good understanding of knowledge issues, in the context of
the real-life situation?
Achievement level Descriptor
0
1–2
The presentation showed some understanding of knowledge issues.
3–4
The presentation showed an adequate understanding of knowledge issues.
5
C
Level 1 was not achieved.
The presentation showed a good understanding of knowledge issues.
Knower's perspective
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Did the presentation, particularly in the use of arguments and examples, show an
individual approach and demonstrate the significance of the topic?
Achievement
level
0
D
Descriptor
Level 1 was not achieved.
1–2
The presentation, in its use of arguments and examples or otherwise, showed
limited personal involvement and did not demonstrate the significance of the
topic.
3–4
The presentation, in its use of arguments and examples or otherwise, showed
some personal involvement and adequately demonstrated the significance of
the topic.
5
The presentation, in its distinctively personal use of arguments and examples
or otherwise, showed clear personal involvement and fully demonstrated the
significance of the topic.
Connections
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Did the presentation give a balanced account of how the topic could be approached
from different perspectives?
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Did the presentation show how the positions taken on the knowledge issues would have
implications in related areas?
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In awarding the higher achievement levels, the emphasis should be more on the quality
of the consideration of connections than on the quantity of connections mentioned.
Achievement
level
0
Descriptor
Level 1 was not achieved.
1–2
The presentation explored at least two different perspectives to some extent.
3–4
The presentation gave a satisfactory account of how the question could be
approached from different perspectives, and began to explore their
similarities and differences.
5
The presentation gave a clear account of how the question could be
approached from different perspectives and considered their implications in
related areas.
Examples of presentation topics (taken from the Diploma Programme ToK Guide)
It should be noted that these are merely examples, meant only to illustrate the kinds of
topics appropriate for TOK presentations. In particular, they are included to provide a
concrete sense of what is meant by “real-life situation/contemporary problem” and to
show how a knowledge issue can be identified in it and then treated from different
perspectives. As well as guiding the selection of appropriate topics, the examples also
illustrate ways that topics may be treated in the presentation, in accordance with the
assessment criteria.
Real-life situation/contemporary problem: Global warming
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Knowledge issues: “Can we be certain that global warming is taking place?” or,
“Does language (or the use of statistics, graphs, photographs) affect our view of
whether or not the planet is undergoing global warming?”
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Format: Students analyse and critically evaluate video and newspaper clips
involving the views of experts, politicians and activists who defend or dispute
the notion that the planet is suffering from global warming. Each member of the
group draws attention to different aspects of the evidence—the nature of the
words used, statistics and graphs, photographs.
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Knower’s (student’s) point of view: As a group, students suggest that the
evidence in favour of global warming seems compelling, but underline that in
some cases it is difficult to separate some protagonists’ positions and how they
are formulated from the interest groups they represent.
Real-life situation/contemporary problem: Intensive agriculture
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Knowledge issue: “How can we know whether intensive farming methods are
always harmful?”
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Format: Inputs by students representing the views of farmers in different
circumstances from different parts of the world, cross-examined by a presenter
and members of the audience.
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Knower’s (student’s) point of view: It may be easy to take a view on (to think we
know) what is right in our own situation. Looked at globally the question is much
more complicated.
Real-life situation/contemporary problem: Reliability of media reporting of science
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Knowledge issues: “What constitutes responsible journalism? How can we know
whether scientific conclusions are justified?”
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Format: Summary and analysis of a newspaper article reporting on a new
scientific study showing that a diet that contains no fat can lead to more weight
gain than a similar diet that contains some fat (the original stimulus). Discussion
of the quality of the newspaper article (what information ought it to contain, so
that we can make a good judgment about the reliability of the claims made?)
and of the scientific study it describes (how can we tell whether the evidence
cited in the scientific study justifies its conclusions?).
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Knower’s (student’s) point of view: It is easy to tell that some newspapers are
more concerned with entertainment than with truth. How easy is it to tell how
much credibility to give to more serious stories?
Real-life situation/contemporary problem: What makes a work of art?
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Knowledge issues: “What is it that distinguishes an ordinary bag of rubbish from
a major work of art that just looks like a bag of rubbish? Can anything be art—
and, if so, what makes it into art?”
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Format: Skit of a TV talk show discussion about an incident when an artwork in
an exhibition, consisting of a plastic bag full of rubbish, was mistakenly thrown
out by a cleaner. Students role-play the host of the show, the artist of the work
in question, a visual arts critic and a gallery owner, all of whom offer other
examples of contentious contemporary art and their ideas about what
distinguishes these artworks from non-art.
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Knower’s (student’s) point of view: Why are people prepared to dismiss
contemporary art without understanding much about it, while often blindly
believing scientific claims, however outlandish and improbable?
Real-life situation/contemporary problem: Demonstrations in China against the issue
of a new history textbook in Japan
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Knowledge issues: Who should decide, and on what grounds, what history
should be taught in schools? What part does the notion of historical truth play
here?
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Format: Arguments for and against the Chinese attempt to tell the Japanese
what they should teach about the actions of the Japanese army in China during
the second world war. Should other countries be able to have a say in what the
Chinese teach their children? What, in general terms, should determine a history
curriculum?
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Knower’s (student’s) point of view: Is history too important to be left to
historians?
Real-life situation/contemporary problem: What evidence is there about how
dinosaurs looked and behaved?
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Knowledge issues: Are the methods of paleontology more like a science such as
physics, or more like history?
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Format: Showing and discussion of a clip from the TV documentary Walking with
Dinosaurs on how dinosaurs lived, showing a detailed scene from the life of a
particular dinosaur, with a commentary presented as if this were a real scene.
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Knower’s (student’s) point of view: How far is it legitimate for TV programmes to
go, to make their subject matter entertaining?
Additional Information
If you are having difficulties with the ToK presentation talk to partner and of course
discuss your ideas with your ToK teacher. In addition you may find pages 276 to 281 of
Dombrowski, Rotenberg, Bick Theory of Knowledge Course Companion (2007) Oxford University
Press, also has a lot of useful advice about how to approach a TOK presentation.