Section 3: Reflection
Requirements for Section 3 - 400 Words
This section of the internal assessment task requires students to reflect on what undertaking their investigation highlighted to them about the methods used by, and the challenges facing, the historian.
You will be assessed on:
Identifying the challenges historians face
Identifying the methods historians use
connecting to your investigation
Rubric
1-2 mark
The reflection contains some discussion of what the investigation highlighted to the student about the methods used by the historian.
The reflection demonstrates little awareness of the challenges facing the historian and/or the limitations of the methods used by the historian.
The connection between the reflection and the rest of the investigation is implied, but is not explicit.
3-4 marks
The reflection is clearly focused on what the investigation highlighted to the student about the methods used by the historian
The reflection demonstrates clear awareness of challenges facing the historian and/or limitations of the methods used by the historian.
There is a clear and explicit connection between the reflection and the rest of the investigation.
Tips for Section 3
TOK - This section is directly connected to TOK, so ask your TOK teacher to provide you the curriculum document or follow the links here
Challenges vs. Methods - Challenges are issues historians face as they research, such as interpretation of sources, researching for sources, ethical issues, etc... Methods focus on your writing process, such as why did you organize the investigation the way you did. If you are not sure, follow the link to look at the methods historians use.
Connecting with the investigation - When you answer this section, make sure for each challenge and method, you directly reference a part from your section 2. For example, do not say "I cross-referenced my sources," but instead write "This evidence from source A was cross-referenced with Source B when it said ...."
FAQ for Section 3
How many words are Section 3? - This should be around 400 words
How many points is Section 3 worth? - 4 Points, making this worth the lowest part of the IA
How many challenges and methods should you use? - In total, aim for 3, however there should be at least 1 challenge and 1 method minimum.
How do I know which challenges and methods to use? - If you follow the outline document, there are a list of questions. As well, there are a list of questions in the TOK guide (old curriculum document has statements as well)
Student Exemplars - Section 3
Section3ExemplarA.pdfSection3ExemplarB.pdf