The IB Diploma Program is renowned for its holistic approach to education, which aims to prepare students not only for university but also for a fulfilling career. One of the components that fosters this all-around development is the Extended Essay (EE). This independent research project is an opportunity to showcase your research skills, critical thinking, and ability to express complex ideas. Along with it, it allows delving deep into a topic of your choice within your chosen subject. If you are curious to know more about the building blocks of our world, or considering a degree in a Chemistry-related subject, you may consider writing an IB Chemistry Extended Essay.
This guide will explain in detail the dos and don’ts of Chemistry Extended Essays, help you choose a good topic, as well as clarify its marking criteria.
What is a Chemistry Extended Essay?
The Extended Essay (EE) is one of the core components of the IB Diploma Program. In a nutshell, it’s a self-directed piece of research that you write independently but under the guidance of a supervisor. The result of this investigation is a formal academic paper or dissertation of around 4,000 words.
An EE topic can be chosen from one of your six IB subjects. It is even possible to combine two subjects if you want to go for an interdisciplinary approach. This is called World Studies. If you find Chemistry fascinating and would like to know more about it, you can conduct your EE research on this very subject.
Completing an EE is one of the requirements for obtaining an IB diploma. The IBOputs an emphasis on such work as it helps develop essential research and writing skills, which will be beneficial for any student throughout their academic journey. Moreover, Extended Essays allow you to explore a topic that genuinely interests you and gain more profound knowledge in that area.
Last but not least, a well-written EE can impress university admissions officers and showcase your academic abilities. This is especially true for Chemistry Extended Essays since they are challenging to write. For this reason, many students opt out of choosing Science Subjects Extended Essays. your willingness to take on this challenge might separate you from the crowd.
Assessment Criteria for IB Chemistry EE?
When it comes to assessing Chemistry Extended Essays, it is based on five criteria:
- A: Focus and Method (6 marks);
- B: Knowledge and Understanding (6 marks);
- C: Critical Thinking (12 marks);
- D: Presentation (4 marks);
- E: Engagement (6 marks).
Overall, you can gain 34 marks if your Chemistry EE meets all the criteria. Now let’s take a closer look at their specific requirements.
Criterion A: Focus and Method
Your EE topic, research question, and methodology must be clearly defined and explained. Your task here is to specify in detail what exactly you’re investigating, why, and with which methods. In particular, you need to make sure that:
- Research question is relevant to the chosen topic;
- The discussion of the essay is appropriate to the research question;
- You are able to address the research question within 4,000 words;
- You use relevant sources and methods to investigate your topic;
- You explain why these sources and methods are appropriate.
Criterion B: Knowledge & Understanding
As it is evident from this criterion, you must show your understanding of the topic and the methods you use to explore it. Specifically, it is important that:
- The selection of the used sources and materials is relevant to your research;
- You apply them appropriately to showcase a clear and coherent understanding of the topic;
- You accurately use terminology and concepts related to the topic.
Criterion C: Critical Thinking
This criterion alone is responsible for 35% of your total marks. Needless to say, it is critical that your essay addresses these requirements.
As its name suggests, it assesses how effectively you used your critical-thinking skills to conduct and analyse your research. To earn all 12 marks, you should ensure that your work ticks all these boxes:
- Your research is appropriate to Chemistry and the chosen research question;
- Your whole research is focused on answering the research question;
- You gathered enough evidence to support conclusions;
- Your arguments follow logically from your research, and your conclusion accurately reflects the evidence you’ve presented;
- Your arguments are well-structured and coherent;
- You critically evaluated your research.
Criterion D: Presentation
Your Extended Essay in Chemistry must be not only logical and evidence-driven but also well-structured. In other words, it should stick to the format and standards of academic writing to promote effective communication. You will get all 4 points if you meet the following:
- Your essay has a clear introduction, body paragraphs, and conclusion;
- It is correctly formatted (this includes the appropriate font, spacing, citations, etc.) and its layout allows easy understanding of your arguments;
- Your EE report flows smoothly and logically, and your ideas are connected in a way that is easy to follow.
Criterion E: Engagement
Criterion E evaluates how passionate and involved you were in your research. It looks at how you thought about your topic, made decisions, and dealt with challenges along the way. Awarding 6 marks, it mostly focuses on your ability to reflect on your work. In particular, it checks if:
- Your reflections show how excited you were about your topic and how much effort you put into your research;
- You talk about how you faced and overcame challenges during your investigation;
- You show that you were curious to learn more about your topic;
- You tried new approaches or thought of original ideas. If yes, you need to mention them.
Please keep in mind that your supervisor’s comments and your RPPF (Reflections on Planning and Progress Form) will also be considered when assessing your engagement.
How to Choose IB IB Chemistry Extended Essay Topics
As it is clear from the assessment criteria, a strong and engaging EE topic is paramount. But coming up with such a topic is easier said than done. Many students make a critical mistake right at the stage and don’t choose a suitable topic. It is a no-go if a topic is too broad or too narrow, too complicated to be investigated with available resources and limitations, or not at all engaging … It can be a hard decision as there sometimes seems to be just too many things to consider.
Let us explain what makes a good IB Chemistry EE topic.
Chemistry vs. Interdisciplinary
First of all, you need to ensure that your essay primarily explores chemical concepts, i.e. matter and its transformations.
Some topics, however, may balance between two disciplines. For example, you might want to study the impact of different sweeteners on yeast growth. Here, you can opt for an interdisciplinary approach, and explore the topic from a Biochemical point of view. In this case, you should register your Extended Essay under World Studies and rely on the syllabi of both IB Chemistry and IB Biology.
Balance Between Depth and Breadth
You need to avoid broad topics that are too general. A well-defined, narrowly focused topic will help you create a more insightful analysis. In fact, you will be able to show your grasp of chemical principles more effectively with a narrow topic. Wider subjects covered within 4,000 words can lead to rather superficial overviews.
For instance, a topic such as ‘Biodegradation of bioplastics’ is too broad. However, if you narrow it down to something like ‘The effect of temperature on the rate of biodegradation of bioplastics’, you can conduct a focused experiment and present a meaningful analysis.
We recommend avoiding topics extensively covered in the syllabus and textbooks – they are likely to be seen as unoriginal. Your EE essay requires you to make some contribution to the field. Still, if you are able to find interesting research opportunities in seemingly simple topics and your supervisor finds it promising, go for it.
Feasibility Considerations
Another consideration is to ask yourself whether you are able to meet all assessment criteria with a particular topic. This often requires a balance between theoretical understanding and practical application of chemical concepts. In other words, there should be sufficient publications providing background and evidence for your investigation. At the same time, an EE requires an experimental approach. Therefore, if you feel that your chosen topic will require methodology and materials that might not be easily accessible, it is best to explore other options.
Speaking about lab experiments, you must always keep safety in mind. Try to avoid topics requiring toxic chemicals, carcinogenic substances, or radioactive materials. No matter which research question you will end up with, there must be proper safety measures in place and if possible, qualified supervision. You should discuss these measures in your essay.
Real-World Relevance
When writing a compelling EE in Chemistry, it’s necessary to establish a clear connection between your research and its practical applications. Evaluators will be looking for this aspect in your work.
Your essay should demonstrate how the chemical principles or reactions you’re investigating have tangible impacts beyond the laboratory setting. You can explain, for example, how your findings might contribute to solving a current problem, improving an existing process, or opening up new opportunities for future research.
What Makes a Good IB Chemistry EE Topic?
With so many criteria to consider, how can you know that you have a good IB Chemistry Extended Essay topic? Here are the signs that your topic hits the mark:
- A clear Chemistry emphasis even if your topic balances between two disciplines;
- Not too broad and complex, but not too simple either to allow for in-depth exploration;
- Enables you to showcase your understanding of chemical principles and theories;
- Demonstrates real-world relevance or practical applications;
- Feasible within word limit constraints and available resources;
- Preferably outside of the IB Chemistry syllabus;
- Offers potential for meaningful conclusions or future research directions;
- Provides opportunities for experimental work or data collection;
How Should the Topic be Treated?
When writing your IB Chemistry EE, you may use one of the following approaches:
- Experimental investigation;
- Literature-based research;
- Theoretical model analysis.
Regardless of which approach you choose, it’s important that you have sufficient data for a thorough evaluation and can accurately research the topic using accessible resources.
It is not obligatory to conduct lab experiments for your IB Chemistry Extended Essay. Still, a hands-on approach is welcome since it adds depth to research and provides firsthand experience with chemical processes.
If you choose this route, you must describe your methods in detail. Be as precise as possible – write it as if you explain it to someone who is going to repeat your experiment. Having said that, data collection alone isn’t the point of the Extended Essay. In fact, it tests your ability to analyse and interpret these data. To do so, you will have to rely on appropriate scientific techniques, specifying which ones and how you used them.
Next, you need to draw a conclusion of your experiment and compare your results with existing models or theories. For this step (and also in order to provide a theory behind your work), you should do careful literature research. Clearly, your Chemistry textbooks won’t be enough. We recommend consulting scientific journals (such as Chemistry Review, New Scientist, Focus, etc.), science databases, reputable online resources, and, whenever possible, seek personal communications from experts.
Finally, for the sake of maximising your points, you must demonstrate critical thinking. Among other things, this involves acknowledging limitations in your research and the effects they had, identifying unresolved questions, as well as suggesting improvements and new areas for further investigation.
Summary
An IB Chemistry Extended Essay is an excellent preparation for your future independent research activities. You will need this experience to write a top-scoring Chemistry IA, let alone essays for your university courses.
But if there is just too much on your plate and you’re not sure if you can pull it off? After all, failing your EE along with TOK and CAS puts your IB diploma at risk. TutorsPlus is here for you whenever you have doubts, questions, or simply need an expert opinion. We are proud to have some of the most knowledgeable IB tutors and teachers, not only in Chemistry but also in other disciplines. If your goal is an Extended Essay that really showcases your knowledge and skills, you can rely on us.
Don’t hesitate to call us at 022 731 8148 contact us at info@tutorsplus.com and we’ll help you with choosing a great EE topic, suggest appropriate literature, review your methodology and analyses, and simply make sure that your work meets the highest academic standards.
By Sara Lloyd
Sara has been an education consultant for TutorsPlus for 15 years, and is an expert on international IB education. She is also a parent of two lively children.
