Internal vs. External Assessment Flashcards

Which of the following IB components is marked by a teacher and then externally moderated by the IB?

Answer: Theory of Knowledge (TOK) Exhibition

The TOK Exhibition is an internal assessment. This means it is marked by the student's classroom teacher against IB criteria. To ensure global standards are applied consistently, the IB then requests a sample of the marked work from the school and an external moderator reviews the teacher's application of the markscheme. The TOK Essay, Extended Essay, and final examinations are all examples of external assessments, which are sent directly to the IB to be marked by appointed examiners.

A teacher has marked all of their students' History Internal Assessments. The IB requests a sample of these assessments for moderation. If the IB moderator determines that the teacher has marked consistently, but too harshly, across the entire sample, what is the most likely outcome?

Answer: The marks of all students in the teacher's class will be adjusted upwards.

The purpose of moderation is to ensure that a teacher's marking aligns with the global IB standard. If a moderator finds that a teacher has been consistently too harsh, a moderation factor is applied that adjusts the marks for the entire cohort of students in that subject at that school. The IB does not re-mark individual assessments in isolation during this process; rather, it adjusts the whole set of marks to bring them in line with the global standard.

Which statement accurately describes the primary difference in the assessment process for the Extended Essay (EE) and a Group 4 (Sciences) Internal Assessment (IA)?

Answer: The EE is graded by an external IB examiner, while the Science IA is graded by the classroom teacher and moderated by the IB.

The Extended Essay (EE) is a purely external assessment; the final 4,000-word paper is sent to and graded by a trained external IB examiner. In contrast, the Internal Assessment (IA) for a Group 4 subject like Physics or Biology is marked internally by the student's teacher, and then a sample of the work is sent to the IB for moderation to ensure the teacher's marking is aligned with international standards.

A student is working on two major IB tasks: their TOK Essay and their TOK Exhibition. Which of the following correctly identifies who is primarily responsible for marking each component?

Answer: TOK Essay: External IB Examiner; TOK Exhibition: School Teacher

The TOK course has two assessment components with different processes. The TOK Essay is an external assessment, marked by an IB examiner, and accounts for 2/3 of the final TOK grade. The TOK Exhibition is an internal assessment, marked by the student's own teacher, and accounts for 1/3 of the grade. The teacher's marking on the Exhibition is then subject to external moderation by the IB.

The primary goal of the IB's external moderation of internal assessments is to ensure:

Answer: Global consistency and fairness in marking standards across all schools.

Moderation is a quality control process designed to ensure that a teacher's application of the IB assessment criteria is consistent with the global standard. It ensures that a student in one school is assessed to the same standard as a student in any other school worldwide, thereby guaranteeing fairness and reliability in the final grades. It does not involve re-marking all students' work or providing individual feedback from examiners.

Which of the following assessments is an example of a purely external assessment in the IB Diploma Programme?

Answer: A student's 4,000-word Extended Essay

The Extended Essay is a compulsory core component that is always externally assessed. The final essay is uploaded to the IB and marked by a trained external examiner. The other options—language orals, mathematics explorations, and science lab reports—are all examples of Internal Assessments (IAs), which are marked by the teacher and then externally moderated by the IB.