The Extended Essay Writing the Research Question

© International Baccalaureate Organization 2009 AIMS of the Extended Essay  To provide students the opportunity to: pursue independent research on a focused topic develop research and communication skills develop the skills of creative and critical thinking engage in a systematic process of research appropriate to the subject experience the excitement of intellectual discovery.

© International Baccalaureate Organization 2009 What College Writing Is…  Academic writing done by scholars for scholars. “…being a scholar requires that you read, think, argue, and write in certain ways.”  Academic writing devoted to topics and questions that are of interest to the academic community. “When you write an academic paper, you must…find a topic or question that is relevant and appropriate.”

© International Baccalaureate Organization 2009 What College Writing Is…  Academic writing [presents] the reader with an informed argument. “To construct an informed argument, you must first try to sort out what you know about a subject from what you think about a subject.” --quoted from The Dartmouth Writing Project nt/ac_paper/what.html

© International Baccalaureate Organization 2009 REMEMBER Create a Working Bibliography

© International Baccalaureate Organization 2009 It’s Just One Question! How Difficult Can That Be? Developing Research Questions

© International Baccalaureate Organization 2009 If you still need to think about this:  Take out the Brainstorming worksheet (from Session 1)  Compose three urgent questions related to each topic: FOR EXAMPLE: Now that I think about it, I really want to know, ”What drove Sanford to betray King Leopold at the Anti-Slavery Conference?” Page 7

© International Baccalaureate Organization 2009 OR, “By examining the early Belgian Congolese trade, what can we learn about contemporary American trade agreements with nations that institutionalize inhumanity against their citizens?” Doing this will help you come up with a unified question that incorporates the topic---but it takes some thinking and discussion! Page 8

© International Baccalaureate Organization 2009 Let’s take time to peruse  Some examples with EXAMINER comments from IB Connected: Extended Essay Page 9

© International Baccalaureate Organization 2009 Practice! (Purposeful Questions Worksheet)  Step 1: Name your topic  Step 2: Suggest a question  Step 3: Add a rationale  Repeat the process as needed  NOTE: You cannot write a full statement of purpose/rationale until you have gathered and read some solid information on your topic. Once you have done so, you’ll almost be ready to write your research question.

© International Baccalaureate Organization 2009 Command Terms Can Become Question Stems  Account for — Asks candidates to explain a particular event or outcome. Candidates are expected to present a reasoned case for the existence of something.

© International Baccalaureate Organization 2009 Command Terms Can Become Question Stems  How — On its own this is a straightforward invitation to present an account of a given situation or development. Often a second part will be added to such an essay question to encourage analysis. Adding a second word such as "successfully", "effective", "accurate", or "far" turns a "how" question into one that requires a judgment. The candidate is now expected to provide his/her detailed reasons for that judgment.

© International Baccalaureate Organization 2009 Command Terms Can Become Question Stems  To what extent — Asks candidates to evaluate the success or otherwise of one argument or concept over another. Candidates should present a conclusion supported by arguments.

© International Baccalaureate Organization 2009 Command Terms Can Become Question Stems  Why — This short key word invites candidates to present reasons for the existence of something. Thus, the brevity of this command rather disguises a powerful requirement to present a detailed, reasoned argument. In effect it is similar to the invitation "account for".

© International Baccalaureate Organization 2009 Acknowledgements  International Baccalaureate Organization  Barbara Dirscherl Teacher Librarian Palm Harbor University HS Palm Harbor, FL  Dartmouth Writing Project  Sharon Vansickle English, TOK Marietta High School Marietta, Georgia