Internal assessment—general guidance

Introduction
The task for internal assessment is a philosophical analysis of non-philosophical material. Internal assessment is an
integral part of the course of study in philosophy at both HL and SL, accounting for 20% of the final mark at HL and
30% at SL. It allows students to apply their knowledge and understanding of philosophical ideas and concepts
through the completion of a philosophical analysis. The students are required to produce a philosophical analysis of
non-philosophical material in order to demonstrate their philosophical skills.
The internal assessment exercise is marked out of 30. Students at both HL and SL must produce a philosophical
analysis of 1,600–2,000 words. This word limit does not include the bibliography or references. It also does not
include the 200-word description that is necessary for lengthier non-philosophical material (for example, texts
containing over 200 words, play/film/movie scenes, television scenes, radio shows, lengthier extracts from novels).

Students should identify an issue raised by the non-philosophical material and analyse it in a philosophical way.
This analysis must relate to a philosophical issue or argument raised by the study of the course.

Suitable material for analysis includes:

 novels, plays, poetry, song lyrics
 films/movies, television and radio shows
 cartoons, paintings, photographs or other visual images
 newspaper articles/letters
 Internet sites
 advertisements
 pamphlets
 propaganda.

Students should select a short piece of non-philosophical material to analyse. A newspaper article can stand alone
but where novels or plays are used, no more than two pages should be selected for analysis, and in the case of a
television or radio show, film/movie or play, no more than two scenes should be used. If the source material
contains 200 words or fewer, students must include a copy of it. If the source material contains more than
200 words, the student must include a description of no more than 200 words. All stimulus material must be
accurately referenced.

The emphasis should be on the depth and quality of the philosophical analysis, and not on the length or the
intellectual level of the source material used. It is not the artistic or technical quality of the source material itself that
is being assessed, but the appropriateness of the source material to the legitimate philosophical issues raised by the
student. Moreover, the internal assessment is not, for example, a critique of a painting or sculpture chosen as the
non-philosophical material, nor is it a literary appreciation of a poem chosen. Rather it is the analysis of a
philosophical issue that arises from the non-philosophical source.

Students are encouraged to produce work that engages actively with the philosophical issue(s) arising from the non-
philosophical source, rather than producing general pieces with a loose or vague connection to a broad issue, raised
only at the start by the source material. Students should be encouraged to focus discussion on specific aspects of an
issue, and not produce a general overview of a whole area of debate. The best pieces wrestle with the question raised
by the source material, showing how the issue is raised, sustaining philosophical analysis throughout, and making
reference when appropriate to the source material. Weaker pieces give the impression of pre-written essays with the
source material artificially “tagged on”.

Students should select their own non-philosophical material in consultation with the teacher.
Please note that from September 2008 the Vade Mecum will be published annually under the title of Handbook for
procedures for the Diploma Programme.

Nature and purpose of the internal assessment

The internal assessment exercise allows students to be rewarded for doing philosophy under ordinary time
conditions, without the time constraints associated with written examinations. It reflects common activities used in
teaching and doing philosophy. Internal assessment is an integral part of the philosophy course at both HL and SL.
Through this activity, students will demonstrate their ability to apply their philosophical knowledge and
understanding to real-life examples or situations, show how non-philosophical material can be treated in a
philosophical way, and challenge their philosophical reflection.

Thus, the internal assessment exercise is a chance to explore philosophical ideas and develop philosophical skills in
an area chosen by the student. This area should relate to a philosophical issue or argument raised by the study of the
course, as detailed in the subject guide. This selection should be made with the guidance and support of the teacher,
but the initiative for selecting the issue or argument should come from the student.

In completing the internal assessment, students will demonstrate:

 their ability to choose appropriate stimulus material for analysis
 how non-philosophical material can challenge their philosophical reflection and be treated in a
philosophical way
 how they can apply the skills of philosophical analysis to material of a non-philosophical nature
 their understanding of philosophical arguments, concepts and perspectives
 their ability to apply their philosophical knowledge and understanding to concrete examples or situations.

Management of internal assessment

Integration into classroom activities

Work for the internal assessment exercise should be incorporated into normal classroom activities and be related
clearly to one of the themes or a text being studied as part of the philosophy syllabus.

Time allocation
It is recommended that 20 hours of class time at both HL and SL should be allocated to this assessment component.
During these 20 hours, students may be able to complete more than one philosophical analysis. Students can then
select their best piece to be submitted for final assessment.

Formal requirements
Teachers must point out to students that assessment criterion A assesses whether or not they have met all of the
formal requirements.

The formal requirements are that students must adhere to the word limit (1,600-2,000 words) and must provide the
following information:
 title
 part of the syllabus to which the exercise relates
 number of words
 bibliography and references
 a copy or description of the non-philosophical material used for their philosophical analysis. Texts of over
200 words and film/movie scenes or television scenes/radio shows (no more than two scenes) must be
described in no more than 200 words (which do not form part of the total word count of the exercise).
Meeting the formal requirements above enables students to meet the conditions necessary to carry out effective work
in this component.

Guidance and authenticity

The teacher plays an important role in advising students on the philosophical analysis. In particular, it is the
responsibility of the teacher to ensure that students are familiar with:
 the formal requirements for the internal assessment exercise
 the assessment criteria that are used to assess their work
 the amount of guidance students are allowed to receive from their teacher regarding the development and
presentation of the exercise.

Teachers must discuss the activity with their students before they start work on the philosophical analysis and
provide guidance regarding the development and presentation of the exercise. Students should also be encouraged to
initiate discussions with the teacher to obtain advice and information. Teachers must explain clearly to students that
work must be entirely their own and that students are required to sign a written declaration to this effect, verified by
the teacher, when submitting their work. If, however, a student could not have completed the work without
substantial support from the teacher, this should be recorded on the appropriate form from the Vade
Mecum (form 3/CS). Other relevant information about the nature of the guidance from the teacher can also be
entered on form 3/CS. Information about the nature of any group work undertaken can be mentioned on form 3/IA.

As part of the learning process, teachers can give advice to students on a first draft of the philosophical analysis.
Advice on improving the work can be given, but this first draft must not be heavily annotated or edited by the
teacher. Constant drafting and redrafting is not allowed, and the next version handed to the teacher after the first
draft must be the final one.

Submission of internal assessment

Teachers must assess the work students submit using the internal assessment criteria. The mark for each criterion for
the exercise should be written on the appropriate forms from the Vade Mecum (forms 3/CS and 3/IA). Copies of
these forms are available on the philosophy page of the online curriculum centre (OCC).
For information on the selection of the samples of internal assessment that need to be sent to the external moderator,
the teacher should consult the relevant section of theVade Mecum and consult with the IB coordinator in the school.
A selection of sample scripts to be sent to the external moderator will be generated electronically by IBCA and
communicated to the teacher by the IB coordinator.

Suggested classroom activities

Preparation work for the exercise should be incorporated into normal classroom activities. The internal assessment
component is a good opportunity for a teacher to highlight with the class the emphasis in the course on encouraging
students to develop the ability to reason and to argue, and to take a personal and independent position on
philosophical issues.
Some suggested activities that could be done during this time include:
 discussing different types of non-philosophical source material and presenting examples of how these may
be developed into specific pieces of philosophical analysis
 discussing how the analysis will be completed and handed in
 presenting and discussing the nature of the internal assessment and the assessment criteria
 encouraging students to bring examples of possible source materials to class and identify the philosophical
issues they might stimulate, providing opportunities for the class to discuss and write about the
philosophical issues prompted by the non-philosophical source material
  providing opportunities for the class to engage in personal research by giving advice on resources and
material that might assist their reflection on the philosophical issues selected
 exposing students to different approaches to engaging in philosophical reflection and analysis
 providing the chance for students to develop the quality of their philosophical analysis, and to produce draft
versions of their philosophical analysis, through interaction with the teacher and the class
 providing a chance for them to reflect further, to expand their ideas and to develop the scope of their
analysis.

Suitable non-philosophical source material and topics for internal assessment

Source material Topic and relation to course

Honda advert (shown on television, where the components of a Honda “An exploration of Strawson’s notion that people are greater than the
car are laid out separately and in such a way that a chain of cause and sum of their parts.” Freedom and determinism. Core theme.
effect causes each part to help drop a ramp from which the finished car
runs off).

A copy of the painting (anonymous, but attributed to Piero della “The notion of the ideal city.” Prescribed text, Plato’s The Republic.
Francesca), The Ideal City (a renaissance city square with a dominant
central construction surrounded by impressive, symmetrical buildings,
reflecting an artist’s design for an “ideal city”).

A photograph of Mother Teresa of Calcutta at work in her Missioners of “Is the presence of evil and suffering in the world justified by the
Charity Home in Calcutta. presence of compassion as a response to it?” Problems of evil and
suffering. Optional theme 3: Philosophy of religion.

Mafalda’s cartoon asking why adults are afraid of some children’s “An evaluation of the distinctive features of philosophical questions.”
questions. Exploring philosophical activity. Paper 3, unseen text.

An extract from a news article in Le Monde on attempts by the French “A critical discussion on Mill’s concept of the Harm Principle.”
government to tackle problems associated with student unrest in Paris in Prescribed text, JS Mill’s On Liberty.
2006.

Poem Born Yesterday by Philip Larkin in which the poet—on the birth of “A critique of Aristotle’s application of the doctrine of the mean to the
a friend’s daughter—wishes moderation on her for her life, so that she notion of human flourishing.” Are some virtues more important than
avoids extremes which could be damaging. others? Optional theme 2: Theories and problems of ethics.

A traditional Inca myth that narrates the origin of human beings. The “A discussion on the value of myths for understanding the human
Gods created the human beings, they tried to improve them, then being condition.” Interpretations of the human condition from world
tired, they left them as they were. perspectives, for example, Eastern, African, Latin American, Western
traditions. Core theme.

The opening scene from the film AI: Artificial Intelligence. “Can machines love?” Could machines be persons? Core theme.

A newspaper article in El Pais about how early 21st century studies in “Why might a philosopher use the concept of mind to understand the
physiological brain disorders are guiding research into children’s relation of the brain to human activity?” Exploring philosophical activity.
behaviour. Paper 3, unseen text.