Chapter 9 Getting the Grade
Part 1 The Essay
What is the Essay
• The TOK essay is a 1200-1600 word essay
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written on one of 10 prescribed topics
The essay is 70 percent of the entire TOK grade
Graded externally
All other things being equal, the 1600 word
essay will naturally be better than the 1200 word
essay because it can discuss more information
and develop the components of the thesis better
How IBO has changed the essay
grading criteria
• Four criteria instead of six
• This:
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A Understanding knowledge issues
B Knower’s Perspective
C Quality of analysis of knowledge issues
D Organisation of ideas
Instead of this
– A Knowledge issues
– B Quality of analysis
– C Breadth and links
– D Structure, clarity and logical coherence
– E Examples
– F Factual accuracy and reliability
Summary of important differences
• 1999 Criteria E and F are incorporated into the 2006
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criteria B and D respectively
The new criterion B entails personal experience,
examples, “candidate voice,” original thinking skills, and
a creative, relevant approach to the knowledge issues
The new criterion D “Organisation” combines 1999
criteria D and F
Breadth and Linking are incorporated into new criterion
A. The new Criteria A still assesses the focus on relevant
knowledge issues
Relevance to topic is of prime importance
Interpreting the Questions
• Interpreting the prescribed topics correctly
is absolutely crucial if there is to be any
hope of writing a successful essay. This
point cannot be stressed enough!
Interpreting the Questions
• Always pay close attention to the wording
of the questions
• Identify the primer. Learn what to write
about. Learn what to ignore
• Discuss the proper terminology
• Make sure the essay is balanced
• Address every aspect of the question
Understanding the Grading Criteria
Criterion A (10p)
Understanding Knowledge Issues
• Relevance- Of utmost importance
• A relevant knowledge issue is one
that clearly applies to the prescribed
topic you are writing about
• Unclear thought is unclear writing.
Be sure to clarify your thoughts
before beginning the essay
Steps to the relevant essay
1. Read the topics carefully and contemplate upon them
2. Pick a topic that you feel comfortable writing about.
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Pick one you like
Interpret the question and be sure to understand what
it is asking for
Decide what areas or ways you want to discuss,
keeping in mind any specifics dictated by the topic.
“Specifics” means a wide range of topics (e.g. personal
attributes, belief, faith, and the like) that are included in
the topics which need to be discussed. These need to
be discussed along with the areas of knowledge and
ways of knowing
Steps to the relevant essay (contd.)
5. Find relevant knowledge issues within those
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areas. Spend a fair amount of time coming up
with good ones. Make sure you can explain
how they apply
Devise ways to tie them into the question
Begin writing and be critical of what you write.
Will someone who is not you understand your
point? Does the writing relate directly to the
demands of the topic?
Linking
Linking strategies
• Be sure to discuss knowledge issues in
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connection with the areas of knowledge or ways
of knowing
Do not discuss areas or ways in a
compartmentalized fashion but instead in an
interconnected manner
As a rough guideline, or a “rule of thumb,”
discuss three areas of knowledge or ways of
knowing thoroughly
Linking strategies (contd.)
• Use a combination of areas and ways in the
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discussion to include more elements in the same
space
Read and understand the questions
Always discuss the subjects mentioned in the
prescribed topic. Make links between them when
there is more than one
Do not sacrifice quality for quantity. Simple
listing of several areas of knowledge will harm
the grade
Criterion B Knower’s Perspective
(10p)
• The overall idea with knower’s perspective is to
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demonstrate that the student has gained an
understanding of Theory of Knowledge at such a
depth, that it becomes possible for the student
to utilize the course concepts on a personal level
TOK wants students to reflect upon the world
around them and critically examine both the
things they know and the reasons they claim to
know them
The knower’s perspective criterion wants to get
to this level of personal reflection
Strategies for success with
Knower’s Perspective
• Show personal engagement with the topic by
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being original and creative in the way knowledge
issues are approached
Be sure that the essay reads like “your” essay
and not someone else’s. See to it that it reflects
your personality and your thoughts about the
knowledge issues being discussed
Use different types of examples from different
types of sources
Make sure to include at least one personal
example in the essay
Strategies for success with
Knower’s Perspective (contd.)
• Make sure all examples are tied in well and that
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they actually make the point they are supposed
to make. The reader must be able to finish the
sentence, “What this example shows is…”
Use the I-form occasionally to give the essay a
personal touch; especially in the personal
example section
If the topic asks for a personal opinion or a
decision, then give one. Just be sure to reason
well and examine alternative points of view
Criterion C: Quality of analysis of
knowledge issues (10p)
• This criterion grades how well the points
made in the essay are developed,
justified, and argued
Justifying the points in the essay
• When making an assertion or taking a stand on an
issue in the TOK essay, ask yourself, “Have I given a
justification for the claim I have just made? What is
it?” If you cannot answer these questions then no
reader will understand the justifications for your
point
• The reader should be able to finish the sentence,
“This is a valid and believable claim because…”
• If the reader can not finish the sentence, then there
is no reason for him or her to believe the claim or
consider it valid. Thus the assertions are
unsupported and invalid
Logical coherence
• What logically coherent means is that the
assertions made in the essay and the
support (or justifications) for the
assertion, must work together in a way
that the justifications clearly and logically
support those assertions
Thoughts to keep in mind regarding
logical coherence
• Make sure the supporting justifications in the
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essay really do logically support the claim being
made. Do they do what they are supposed to
do? Would an outsider be able to follow the line
of thought?
Do the claims make logical sense?
Would the arguments be logically convincing to
someone who is not you? They should be.
Counterclaims
• To have a convincing analytical argument, one
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must also show an awareness of other points of
view
The best arguments explain not only why their
own standpoints are the right ones, but also why
opposing standpoints are not as good
In the TOK essay it is a necessity to examine the
knowledge issues from divergent points of view.
This examination shows a high level of
awareness about the knowledge issues
Summary for counterclaims
• Always explore the issue from more angles
than one
• Identify and evaluate counterclaims
• A counterclaim need not necessarily be an
opposing or contradicting argument. A
counterclaim can be another explanation
for something or another way of thinking
about an issue
Summary for counterclaims
(contd.)
• Not every claim one makes in the essay needs to
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have a counterclaim. The key is to see to it that
some alternative explanation is offered for some
of the assertions.
Opinion questions offer an excellent opportunity
to include counterclaims; by their very nature,
they lead to an easy application of both claims
and counterclaims.
Summary for counterclaims
(contd.)
• The poor paper will not identify or consider
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counterclaims in any way
The mediocre paper will mention or at least
acknowledge the existence of some specific
counterclaims
The good paper will discuss counterclaims and how they
relate to, and what they mean for the issue being
discussed
The excellent paper will thoroughly discuss
counterclaims and what they mean in regards not only
to the issue being discussed, but also what they mean
for the stance in the paper
Criterion D Organisation of ideas
(10p)
Summary of Criterion D
• Are the sources being used filling a function or
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are they in the essay just for “looks?”
Are sources referenced in a bibliography?
Double check to make sure that anything
assumed to be common knowledge really is
common knowledge
Check the facts. Do not chance with factual
inaccuracy
Summary of Criterion D (contd.)
• Avoid generalisations. Are statements
making an unwarranted assumption?
• Develop a clear introduction, body, and
conclusion
• Use topic sentences in paragraphs
• Discuss one thought at a time in
paragraphs
Summary of Criterion D (contd.)
• Consider ambiguity. Avoid numerous
pronouns in sentences
• Use linking words to help organize essay
• Make sure the language does not hinder
understanding
• Make sure the essay is relevant. This is of
primary importance
Final thoughts about the essay to
keep in mind
• Do not ever change an aspect of the
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prescribed topic
The only way to bridge the gap between
your mind and the reader’s mind is the
essay
When writing your essay make sure you
use the “Checklist for a good essay” and
see to it the different elements on the
checklist are addresses sufficiently