6 Tips to Make a Successful IB Science IA

The science Internal Assessment is a research project that all people in an IB science course must do. It requires several hours of experiments and research, and in the end, you must condense everything into a 6-12 page report, and so if there is no guidance on it, scoring high in the IA is very hard. However, since the IA is worth 20% of the overall grade for the course, getting high marks on it is very important to succeeding in an IB science. Because of this, the Giant Press team has asked seniors of the Class of 2020 who have finished their IAs for tips on how to carry out the whole process of this investigation to help juniors that will soon start this process. Check out the best below:

1. Start early

This may seem obvious, but beginning your science IA process early is essential in making a good job in it. This goes from researching and evaluating potential topics for your investigation - you should start thinking about this before the start of the senior year - to commencing your experiment in the laboratory. That way, you will have plenty of time to find a theme that you like and can use for your IA, and also to solve any problems that might come up during the process.

2. Research about your topic before the experiment

Before going to the laboratory and begin experimenting, it is crucial to do substantial research on your IA topic. Make sure you know and understand all scientific concepts and facets involving your project, so that you can design a successful experiment and write a thorough report. A senior who was interviewed stated that he did not research enough on his topic, and after writing the first draft of the IA report, his teacher said that many concepts and claims were incorrect, causing him to lose many marks. Therefore, performing this initial research is imperative to doing well in your IA.

3. If something goes wrong, fix it as soon as possible

If something in the research or experiment phase does not work, you need to find a solution for it quickly, otherwise, it will impact the whole process of the project. These errors might prevent you from continuing a part of your experiment, and if you do not fix them in time and turn your IA in with them, your grade could be seriously affected. This is why beginning the IA process early is important so that there is enough time to correct mistakes on your research if they come up.

4. Always have a ‘Plan B’

This is linked to the tip above, as, if you prepare contingency plans before starting your experiment, fixing problems becomes very quick and easy. For example, if you have a step in your procedure or a method of measuring something that might not work, create a backup plan that can quickly replace ‘Plan A’ in case it fails. You could go as far as having an entire ‘backup IA’, a new research project that can be used in case the main one does not work. While doing my chemistry IA, I reached a point where my project simply did not work, and I had to rush to find and design an entirely new one in just a couple of days, something that would have been much easier if I had a contingency plan.

5. When writing the IA report, do it in several ‘steps’

A science IA is composed of several sections, such as the introduction, procedure, calculations, data analysis, and evaluation. Do not try to write all of them in one day, it is too much work for a single day - personal experience - and the final result will be not be good. Instead, try to spread the workload through a span of a few days or weeks; that way, you will have enough time to recheck your report and make sure it is of quality to get high marks.

6. Do not be afraid to ask for help

This is something very important, and usually, students underestimate how helpful their teachers can be in making an IA. After all, they are the ones that will grade the report, and so they know what is necessary and expected of you to succeed and get high marks on it. Therefore, don’t be afraid to ask them for help in designing your experiment, structuring your report, or even finding a project for your IA; they will always be ready to help.

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