Introduction to IB Economics Internal Assessment

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IB DP Economics IA Portfolio

• First Session May 2013

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Introduction

• What is IA in Economics?
• Part 1
• Internal assessment is an integral part of the
  economics course and it enables candidates to
  demonstrate the application of their knowledge of
  economic theory to real-world situations without
  the time constraints of written examinations. It
  can be used as a motivating factor, increasing
  the liveliness and relevance of economics
  classes.

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Introduction

• What is IA in Economics?
• Part 2
• The portfolio enables candidates to follow up
  aspects of economics in which they are
  particularly interested. It enables them either
  to focus on international issues to broaden their
  understanding of the global impact of economics,
  or to focus on issues particularly relevant to
  their own country or region.

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Introduction

• What is IA in Economics?
• Part 3
• Economics students at SL and HL produce a
  portfolio of three commentaries based on articles
  from published news media. Each article must be
  based on a different section of the syllabus.
• Microeconomics
• Macroeconomics
• International economics
• Development economics

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Rubric requirements

• Requirements are necessary for the production of
  the commentaries.
• If these requirements are not met students will
  lose marks under criterion F rubric requirements

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Rubric requirements

• Word limit
• Students must produce a portfolio of three
  commentaries. Each commentary must not exceed 750
  words.
• Note Moderators will not read beyond 750 words
  for each commentary.
• The following are not included in the word count.
• Acknowledgments
• Contents page
• Diagrams
• Labelsof 5 words or fewer
• Headings on diagramsof 10 words or fewer
• Tables of statistical data
• Equations, formulae and calculations
• Citations (which, if used, must be in the body of
  the commentary)
• References (which, if used, must be in the
  footnotes/endnotes)
• Please note that footnotes/endnotes may be used
  for references only. Definitions of economic
  terms and quotations, if used, must be in the
  body of the work and are included in the word
  count. Please note that a citation is a shorthand
  method of making a reference in the body of the
  commentary, which is then linked to the full
  reference in the footnotes/endnotes.

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Rubric requirements

• 2. Articles
• Each article must be based on a different section
  of the syllabus.
• 3. Sources
• Students must use a different source for each
  commentary.
• 4. Contemporary articles
• Students need to look for articles relating to
  current events and these must be published no
  earlier than one year before the writing of the
  commentary.

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Rubric requirements

• 5. Contents
• Each portfolio must contain
• a summary portfolio coversheet
• a commentary coversheet for each commentary
• three commentaries, accompanied in each case by
  the relevant article.

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Internal assessment criteria - HL SL

• The internal assessment requirements are the same
  for both SL and HL students.
• Overview
• There are five internal assessment criteria for
  each commentary.
• Criterion A Diagrams 3 marks
• Criterion B Terminology 2 marks
• Criterion C Application 2 marks
• Criterion D Analysis 3 marks
• Criterion E Evaluation 4 marks
• Total 14 marks
• There is one internal assessment criterion for
  the whole portfolio.
• Criterion F Rubric requirements 3 marks
• Each commentary is assessed individually for the
  first five assessment criteria (criteria AE) and
  then criterion F is applied to the whole
  portfolio.
• The maximum for the portfolio is 45 marks (14
  marks x 3 commentaries) 3 marks 42 3 marks.

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Internal assessment criteria Criterion A
Diagrams

• This criterion assesses the extent to which the
  student is able to construct and use diagrams.
• Level Descriptor
• 0 The work does not reach a standard described
  by the descriptors below.
• 1 Relevant diagrams are included but not
  explained, or the explanations are incorrect.
• 2 Relevant, accurate and correctly labelled
  diagrams are included, with a limited
  explanation.
• 3 Relevant, accurate and correctly labelled
  diagrams are included, with a full explanation.

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Criterion B Terminology

• This criterion assesses the extent to which the
  student uses appropriate economic terminology.
• Level Descriptor
• 0 The work does not reach a standard described
  by the descriptors below.
• 1 Terminology relevant to the article is
  included in the commentary.
• 2 Terminology relevant to the article is used
  appropriately throughout the commentary.

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Criterion C Application

• This criterion assesses the extent to which the
  student recognizes, understands and applies
  economic information in the context of the
  article.
• Level Descriptor
• 0 The work does not reach a standard described
  by the descriptors below.
• 1 Relevant economic concepts and/or theories are
  applied to the article.
• 2 Relevant economic concepts and/or theories are
  applied to the article appropriately throughout
  the commentary.

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Criterion D Analysis

• This criterion assesses the extent to which the
  student can explain and develop appropriate
  economic theories and/or concepts in the context
  of the article.
• Level Descriptor
• 0 The work does not reach a standard described
  by the descriptors below.
• 1 There is limited economic analysis relating to
  the article.
• 2 There is appropriate economic analysis
  relating to the article.
• 3 There is effective economic analysis relating
  to the article.

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Criterion E Evaluation

• This criterion assesses the extent to which the
  student synthesizes his or her analysis in order
  to make judgments that are supported by reasoned
  arguments.
• Level Descriptor
• 0 The work does not reach a standard described
  by the descriptors below.
• 1 Judgments are made that are unsupported, or
  supported, by incorrect reasoning.
• 2 Judgments are made that are supported by
  limited reasoning.
• 3 Judgments are made that are supported by
  appropriate reasoning.
• 4 Judgments are made that are supported by
  effective and balanced reasoning.

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Criterion F Rubric requirements

• This criterion assesses the extent to which the
  student meets the five rubric requirements for
  the complete portfolio.
• Each commentary does not exceed 750 words.
• Each article is based on a different section of
  the syllabus.
• Each article is taken from a different and
  appropriate source.
• Each article was published no earlier than one
  year before the writing of the commentary.
• The summary portfolio coversheet, three
  commentary coversheets and the article for each
  commentary are included.
• Level Descriptor
• 0 The work does not reach a standard described
  by the descriptors below.
• 1 Three rubric requirements are met.
• 2 Four rubric requirements are met.
• 3 All five rubric requirements are met.

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Format of portfolio coversheet

• PORTFOLIO
• Higher Level / Standard Level Economics
  Internal Assessment Portfolio Coversheet
• Candidate Name Candidate Session Number

Date of writing the commentary Title of the Article Source of the Article Date of the Article Section of syllabus linked to commentary Word Count



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Format for commentarys coversheet

• COMMENTARY COVERSHEET 

Economics commentary number
Title of the Article
Source of the Article
Date of the Article
Word Count
Sections of the syllabus the commentary relates to
Candidate Name
Candidate Session Number
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Checklist for Students Part 1
S. N0 Checkpoints for individual commentaries 1 2 3
1 On each commentary, have you noted the title of the extract? source of the extract? date of the extract? word count of the commentary? date the commentary was written? section(s) of the syllabus to which the commentary relates? This is best done as a commentary coversheet.
2 Have you included the extract?
3 Is the commentary within the word limit (750 words maximum)?
4 Have you labelled your diagrams accurately?
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Checklist for Students Part 2"
S. N0 Checkpoints for individual commentaries 1 2 3
5 Have you highlighted the relevant parts of the extract if it is lengthy?
6 If the extract is in a different language from the working language of the school, have you provided a translation of the relevant parts?
7 If you have used sources or references other than the extract, have you cited them correctly?
8 Have you checked that each extract is from a different source, that is, it is not taken from the same news media as ones you have used in other commentaries?
9 Have you kept a second copy of your extracts and commentaries for your file?
10 Have you put your portfolio in a suitable folder (not individual plastic wallets)?
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How to choose an extract?

• The nature of articles
• The choice of an appropriate article is the most
  crucial aspect of writing a successful
  commentary. The article used does not have to be
  purely economic, as the application of economic
  theories and concepts can be observed in many
  areas. Articles without any obvious economics are
  sometimes the most effective, allowing students
  to introduce economic analysis where it is not
  immediately apparent.
• Articles that include substantial economic
  analysis, such as in The Economist, while
  allowable as a source, may leave little
  opportunity for further analysis.

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How to choose an extract?

• Suitable articles
• Articles must be chosen from the news media
  newspapers, magazines or the internet. Students
  need to look for articles relating to current
  events, and these must be published no earlier
  than one year before the writing of the
  commentary.
• The World Wide Web is a good source of articles.
  However, news media websites are the only
  appropriate sources. The use of blogs is not
  allowed for internal assessment unless these are
  associated with recognized news organizations.
  Students must take care to record correctly the
  actual date the article was published, not just
  when it was posted on the internet.
• Graphic sources (for example, pictures, cartoons
  and advertisements) are not to be used as source
  articles these do not qualify as articles for
  the purpose of this internal assessment.
• Students must take care not to choose articles
  where there is little room for their own analysis
  and evaluation.

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How to choose an extract?

• Time period of articles
• It is advisable for the students to collect
  articles for their commentaries throughout the
  course. However, commentaries must be written
  within a year of the published date of the
  article.

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How to choose an extract?

• Language of articles
• In most cases the article chosen will be in the
  same language as the commentary. If an article in
  another language is used, the student must
  provide an accurate translation of the whole
  article. Students must also include the original
  article in their portfolio.
• If students wish to use a long article, the
  selected part(s) must be highlighted, both on the
  translation and the original. (See Length of
  articles.)

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How long should an extract be?

• Shorter articles are often a good choice as they
  tend to be focused on just one or two economic
  theories/concepts. A rough guide is approximately
  one full side of A4/letter-size paper (in font
  1012 with normal line spacing) and no longer
  than two sides of A4/letter-size paper. It is
  important to note that moderators (external
  examiners) will not read beyond two sides of
  text.
• Articles that are too short will not usually
  provide enough interesting issues for students to
  analyse.
• If students wish to use a long article, they must
  include the original article in its entirety,
  with the selected part(s) highlighted. This helps
  students to stay focused. Students must remember
  that the teacher and moderator will only read the
  highlighted section(s) and it is crucial,
  therefore, to highlight all the relevant sections
  in the commentary.

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Who should choose the extracts?

• Students must select their own extracts. Teachers
  should not give a single extract to a group of
  students. It may be that two or more students
  choose the same extract. If this is the case,
  teachers may permit this but should ensure that
  the commentaries are the work of the individual
  student and are not group work.
• Commentaries must not be based on any material
  used for class activitiesthat is, students must
  not consider class material eligible for their
  commentary.

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What information should the teacher provide at
the start of the course?

• The teacher should explain the requirements of
  the assessment criteria and the portfolio to
  highlight the required procedures. All students
  should have an individual copy of the assessment
  criteria. This helps when students are writing
  their commentaries and the criteria act as a
  guide to how marks will be allocated.

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How much feedback can the teacher give?

• Teachers should set internal deadlines for the
  submission of each commentary. In each case
  teachers may give advice on both the choice of
  extract and the commentary (written or oral) up
  to the date of the internal deadline. After this
  point commentaries must be collected and should
  not be available to students for any alterations.

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How many commentaries may a student write?

• In terms of best practice students may write one
  or two practice commentaries and then they should
  write the required three commentaries at regular
  intervals throughout the rest of the course.
  Teachers should not be part of the selection
  process if more than four commentaries are
  written. It is not in the best interests of
  students to write large numbers of commentaries
  as this will detract from their other course
  activities.

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Is it essential that the commentaries are word
processed?

• Tidy presentation and legibility are important
  qualities that are easier to achieve through word
  processing.

How important is it to meet the word limit
requirements?

• The word limit requirement is exact. Each
  commentary must be no more than 750 words. If any
  single commentary is outside of the word limit
  requirement then marks will be lost. There is no
  flexibility on this limit.

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How does the student reference the source of the
extract?

• All that is required is the title, source and
  date of the extract. The source should be on the
  printed article as well as the date, not just
  written on the cover sheet or honesty is
  compromised.

How specific do the references to sections in the
syllabus have to be?

• Students do not need to make very detailed
  references to sections in the syllabus. They can
  be very simple references, for example, section
  3 rather than section 3.1.1

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Should every criterion be demonstrated in every
commentary?

• This must be the case if the very highest levels
  in criteria C, D and E are to be reached by the
  students.

What does it mean to say "effective use of
diagrams" in criterion B level 4?

• Any diagram used in a commentary should be
  explained and should be made relevant to the
  discussion. Whenever numerical data is provided
  in an extract, it should be incorporated into the
  diagram.

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How much definition is required to reach level 4
in criterion C?

• Good students will show thorough understanding
  of terms either by defining them or by using them
  accurately.

What does it mean to evaluate economic theories
in the context of real-world examples in
criterion E, compared to analysis in criterion D?

• Evaluation implies a judgment of a theory and an
  application of the theory to a given situation,
  with awareness that the theory may not provide an
  accurate description. Analysis implies
  application of the theory

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How is the portfolio assessed?

• The teacher marks all three commentaries
  individually and then applies the final criterion
  to the completed portfolio to get a final mark.

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Remember this for better IAs

• Economist Henry Hazlitt wrote,
• "The art of economics consists in looking not
  merely at the immediate but at the longer effects
  of any act or policy it consists in tracing the
  consequences of that policy not merely for one
  group but for all groups."

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Additional Support

• List of sources for article

http//www.sachinsachdeva.com/p/blog-page.html
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• I wish you all the best for
• Enjoyable Experience
• While completing
• Economics IA Portfolio
• For scoring grades you deserve
• MAY GOD BLESS YOU!