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Those pursuing IB History will understand precisely that the IA (internal assessment) is the most terrifying of all the horrors.
All History students, regardless of whether they are studying HL or SL, must make a cut.
If you're an HL scholar, the IB History IA is valued at 20% of the overall marks and
If you're an SL scholar, it's worth 25%.
As a result, it accounts for a significant portion of your final rating!
Since the History Internal Assessment is an inquiry into a topic or theme of your choice and interest, you must pick something that intrigues you deeply. This will do writing and perfecting your study much simpler.
Bide your time thinking about and polishing up your IB History IA topics since it will affect how your effort is evaluated and, as a result, your grade.
Identification and assessment of sources, investigation, and reflection are the three components of a History IA. This gives your IA some framework, and it is highly suggested to label these three parts explicitly in your writing. This will make it easier for the reviewer to understand your IA and demonstrate that you understand what each piece is about! To know more about the structure, check out IB History IA: This Ultimate Guide Will Get You A 7.
Today we'll review numerous factors to give you some helpful IB History IA ideas. Things we'll be covering today are:
Choosing Your Ancient History IA Topic
Almost invariably, a poor research topic contributes to a flawed study. When selecting a research purpose, exercise extreme caution. The IA is a research project in the past. Choose a topic that has sparked controversy among historians. Questions with apparent solutions should be avoided. Also, keep an eye out for issues that aren't conducive to the investigation. In addition, your topic theme should have the following:
- Been in the field of history
- Should be at minimum 10 years old
- Ought to be a matter which can be appropriately addressed in about 2,200 words
- Should be a subject for which you seem to have enough references
- Has to be related to something you're entirely involved or interested in.
42 Fantastic IB History IA Ideas To Make Things Easier For You
Now that you know what to remember when picking your topic let us give you a sneak peek into 42 IB History IA Ideas exclusively compiled for you! However, keep one thing in mind- these are simply suggestions to open a pathway of ideas for you. You can always jazz up the argument but stick to the theme or vice versa.
Also, remember to consult your teacher throughout the topic-picking process because they're your real mentors.
Now let's get you started!
- The reasons for the genesis and expansion of Islam in the pre-historic years
- The impact of significant intellectual, social and aesthetic breakthroughs during the seventeenth century
- Fidel Castro's reign of 1959
- This is a vast topic where you can discuss Cuban nationalism.
- Cover its political, economic, social, and cultural policies.
- Highlight the treatment of opposition parties
- Fidel Castro's successes and failures.
- Origins of the Arab–Israeli confrontation of 1945 to 1979
- The Mexican revolution of 1884
- The causes and repercussions of railroad building in modern nations
- The 26/11 attack on Taj Palace Mumbai
- The influence of neo-colonialism and reliance on global and cross-American commerce growth.
- A case study of military dictatorship in Benin
- You can pick any other country of your choice.
- Discuss the reasons for their rise to power
- What was their impact on the country's economic and social policies?
- Highlight the repression and treatment of the opposition.
- The Greenham Common Peace Protesters
- An investigation of British politics' role during the 1880s responses towards the Jack the Ripper incidents.
- Your central topic theme could revolve around political bias, thus making your IB History IA a socio-political report.
- Reasons for the communism crisis of 1976 and 1989
- African and Asian nationalist and liberation struggles
- Post-World War II Eastern and Central European republics
- An examination of the 1989 events in Tiananmen Square
- Carry out an examination of the idols glorified by the Western press and Deng Xiaoping's martyrs of the Tiananmen Square incident
- Analyze the evolution and significance of the labour trades unions during the nineteenth century in a European country
- Impact of India and Pakistan's partition in 1947 on both the countries
- An in-depth look at the Cold War's beginning and ending factors
- What was the starting point?
- What triggered the allies?
- Who acted as a catalyst for the resolution?
- Role of protagonists and antagonists
- Reasons underlying the Boston massacre of 1776
- How did Lenin's and Trotsky's involvement in the Soviet Union's growth change between 1918 and 1924?
- How and why did Eastern European communist governments break apart during the late 1980s?
- Is George Grosz's artwork relevant to Weimar German historians?
- Significant circumstances aided Hitler's ascension to dominance in 1933
- The attack of 9/11 on the twin towers
- Dresden attack of 1945
- You can take any attacked city/town.
- What were the effects on its citizens?
- Discuss the irreversible damages (if any)
- Piedmont-Sardinia's key role in Italian unification between 1850 and 1861.
- The accomplishments and shortcomings of Napoleon III's domestic policy.
- What was the significance of Thomas Aquinas' Summa Theologica in the medieval Church?
- This topic can be moulded as per your needs.
- Cover why it was significant.
- You must write in a way that analyses multiple aspects of this topic.
- During the Cultural Revolution, how did Chinese communists utilize Chinese theatre as publicity or to propagate certain ideologies?
- During 1846 and 1880, why did Disraeli perform such a significant role in British politics?
- How well can the Teutoburg Forest fight be replicated using archaeological field research?
- What were the cultural, financial, and governmental ramifications of Sputnik's release in the United States and the Soviet Union at around that juncture in the Cold War?
- For this topic, keep it narrow.
- Include a niche discussion aspect; otherwise, it may be too broad and fragmented, with too many things to convey.
- When it came to reporting on the Soviet and American governments throughout the Cuban Missile Crisis, how did the American press, The Wall Street Journal, The British Daily and The Times differ?
- How did the construction and operation of the Palace of Versailles express respect for the Italian Baroque style and Greek mythology?
- What made Margaret Sanger a prominent public campaigner for birth management in the United States?
- Discuss her rise
- Explore the reasons through which she gained prominence.
- During the Third Reich, how effective was Hitler's promotion of the family's optimal outcome?
- What could be learned from the city of Paris in the year 1163 during the Church of Notre Dame construction?
- You can take any historic monument construction.
- Explore the impact of these architectural developments on the city
- Factors like trade, commerce, population, awareness, and recognition can be considered.
- The impact of attacks on such monuments can also be highlighted.
- What impact did the trading system have on Norwich's advancement?
- In which context did the Farm Security Administration of the New Deal utilize photojournalism to promote its initiatives?
- This question has a great scope of driving critical thinking, so make sure you do not leave any stone unturned.
- How did tabloid accounts of Kennedy's assassination differ, and how trustworthy were they?
- How did the British and Argentine media portray the Falklands/Malvinas War differently?
- How did British World War II soldiers who served in Europe contrast to those who served in the Pacific?
Sources For Your IB History IA
You should always utilize recognized and factual evidence for your IA. Some sources on the internet suit the bill, but you should always be cautious and observant while using internet sites. That isn’t to say you can’t quote stuff from the internet; it just means you must cautiously assess the websites you utilize. You can always check Wikipedia pages, but you must never cite it in your IA. If the Wikipedia material is accurate, seek the primary sources of information mentioned at the end of the page and find them in a bookstore or digitally. Read the report, ensure the origin is trustworthy, double-check the data, and then reference the primary author.
Remember, your primary sources of knowledge should be trustworthy publications and peer-reviewed scholarly papers and not some random blogs.
Be on the lookout for various relevant, credible sources that can assist you in answering your history IB topic. Try to get at least 8 to 10 high-quality references. Employing intelligent and practical search terms is critical while conducting internet research.
A lot of marks also revolve around how you discover reliable and authentic channels. Thus, it’s not enough to Google it!
How Will Your IB History IA Make The Cut?
The internal assessment is beneficial since it enables individuals to be creative and conduct more profound research on a topic in history that they are interested in. An excellent IA should show that you are passionate about the subject. It should also indicate that the learner has studied and can reflect on how much they have understood.
On the other hand, a high-quality IA can be a simple and sophisticated piece of art. A good score will be earned by a student with a well-defined and clearly addressed research topic, follows a systematic framework, and has transparent personal participation that exhibits expertise.
What To Avoid When Writing Your IB History IA
- Do not structure it like an average research paper:
The history of internal assessment is a scientific study of the past. This is different from your average research paper. Fundamentally, you'll offer the reader a historical topic and then lead them through the steps a historian would take to address it. While it is a beneficial practice, it is just a contrived format you will rarely encounter again during your academic journey. It is essential to understand that the IA is not scored objectively. As a result, it's critical to use subheadings to properly distinguish each component. Another significant distinction between the IA and an average research article is that Section 1 does not constitute a thesis declaration. You provide a research topic in Section 1. As you progress into the other sections, your suggestions and answers to that topic will progressively take shape.
- Do not exceed the word limit:
The IA should be at least 2,000 but at most 2,200 words long. Excessive use of the phrase cap results in a two-point penalty in Part F. Although there is no compulsory consequence for IAs falling under 2,000 words, IAs that fall under the word limit lack the information needed to be displayed and, thus, do not welcome a good score. It is recommended that you place the word count of each section at its end and the total word count on the first page itself. This figure needs to include citations or a bibliography. The majority of word processors will tally the words for you.
- Do not skip the proofreading stage:
Make sure you give yourself enough time to perform this task. We propose that you focus on it progressively during the session. Do not try to complete the writing task in less than 24 hours! Make every effort to finish your draft version long before the timeframe. Request somebody to proofread your work, such as a colleague, an English or History teacher, or even your family. Though they may need to become more familiar with the structure or scoring method, they will be able to pinpoint grammatical errors, readability issues, and confusing sections of the text.
- Refrain from compromising your bibliography: Every research must contain a bibliography and proper citing of all materials, although they are not counted as part of the total word limit. As you proceed, jot down your bibliography. Going back and searching where your data comes from takes time and effort. You must cite your sources whenever you utilize their words, ideas, or material in your writing. This implies you must offer a citation if you use an author's precise language, rephrase them, or summarise their thoughts. You might be charged with plagiarism, and your work could be rejected if you don't reference your sources. MLA is the standard reference style for students in all departments; however, certain subjects/departments prefer different formats, so double-check with your teacher to be sure.
Don’t Forget To Have Fun!
Regardless of whether you have fun with history or despise it, if you devote serious thought to composing your IB History IA, you will rise up as a fan of the subject since it entices you to test the envelope, explore areas lying further than the academic concepts you've learned in class, and also use critical reasoning abilities required to start investigating an event in history.
So, have fun with this assessment and make sure you follow this advice to the letter to get the most significant scores. Nail IB is here to have your back, so if you need help, you have to get in touch with our professionals, who will help you out.
Let's get writing!