Student

Introduction

It is your job as a supervisor to make sure that all the students you are responsible for have a clear idea about the all the requirements and the whole process of researching and writing an Extended Essay. They should understand clearly why they are doing it and how it fits into the whole IB philosophy. The requirements should include all your own school’s internal requirements (such as deadlines) as well as the official requirements of the IB.

Recommended responsibilities

There are twelve recommended responsibilities of the student listed by the IB in the IB Extended Essay Guide. Many of these are very similar to some of your responsibilities as a supervisor.


In essence the student should:

  • Develop and use a Researcher’s reflection space as a planning tool through the whole process.

  • Prepare for the three mandatory reflection sessions by using the Researcher’s reflection space.

  • Share their thoughts, ideas and reflections from the Researcher’s reflection space with their supervisor during the reflection sessions.

  • Choose a subject and consequent topic that fits into an approved IB subject.

  • Plan carefully how, where and when they will locate resources for their essay before deciding on the final topic and research question.

  • Schedule their time to allow for both the researching and writing of their extended essay. This should include including extra time for possible delays and unforeseen problems.

  • Use their Researcher’s reflection space to keep a record of all sources as their research progresses, rather than trying to reconstruct a list at the end.

  • Ensure that they make the most of their supervision and reflection sessions by arriving at the meetings fully prepared to discuss their work.

  • Ensure that they have a clear idea of the structure of the essay before beginning to write it.

  • Thoroughly check that the final version of their extended essay is free from errors by proofreading it.

  • Ensure that the version they submit for assessment is the final version with all the sources correctly and consistently referenced.

  • Observe all the official IB regulations relating to Extended Essays.

Managing the responsibilities

The onus is on the student to fulfil these responsibilities but it is your job as supervisor to provide them with the information they need to achieve this. It is also your task to encourage them and support them throughout the whole process. You must not do it for them but you must equip them thoroughly to do the job well. Some of this can be achieved by providing them with written information such as the obligatory guidelines and assessment criteria. Other written materials you can also use to help them include access to (or actual copies of) examples of excellent Extended Essays written in past years and a prepared checklist. Much of the rest will be achieved through dialogue and discussion.

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