Updated: How to make

a great TOK Presentation

Pavel S. Ivanov, PhD
Internal Assessment
• TOK Presentation is the TOK IA
component
• Contributes 1/3 to the final grade
• 10 marks for TOK presentation is a
maximum
• The goal is to apply TOK thinking
to a real-life situation (RLS) and
to analyze in depth an
‘extracted’ knowledge question
 Presentation Logic
Your presentation should focus on a particular
Knowledge Question (KQ). BUT…
• Start with a substantive Real-Life Situation (RLS)
• Extract a ‘good’ KQ from RLS an show explicitly
the link between them
• Map your KQ to different AOKs/ perspectives/
aspects
• Explore each AOK/perspective/aspect from a TOK
viewpoint
• Provide a Conclusion
• Make a loop from Conclusion back to your RLS
• Generalize to another RLS / other RLSs
Real-Life Situation (RLS)
• Can be anything from your own experience,
including something happened in the past to
something happened with somebody else or
in the world (not with you) some time ago
and discussed extensively in the society,
media or your community
– but not from Ancient World, Medieval Ages, etc.

Hint: RLS should enable you to

put a TOK-style
Knowledge Question
What is a ‘good’ Knowledge Question (1)
KQ should …
• Relate to methods and
mechanisms of producing
knowledge rather than to a
piece of knowledge
• Be an open, 2nd order question
• Be of general nature, i.e.
applicable to various RLSs
rather than to a chosen one
• Allow further development via
discussion of knowledge
What is a ‘good’ Knowledge Question (2)
Example 1: Is plagiarism always
wrong?
• This question is about
plagiarism (Ethics) rather than
about knowledge
• This is a closed question (a
simple answer could be: ‘Yes,
it is wrong!’)
• While numerous RLSs apply
they all might be quite similar
What is a ‘good’ Knowledge Question (2)
Example 2: RLS is about the theory
of spiral galaxies
• Question: ‘Can we put trust in
astrophysical knowledge if there is
no way to check it directly?’
• This question relates to a
particular discipline (astrophysics)
• HOWEVER, a good KQs can be
extracted from this RLS, e.g.
• What type of evidence is enough for the
knowledge to be trusted?
• What might count as evidence for a
scientific theory?
Topics for TOK Presentation (examples)
• Should Internet be censored?
• Is «love» only an emotion?
• Can parents decide what gender to assign a newborn with an
intersex condition?
• Do religions promote terrorism?
• Bermuda Triangle or how to explain unexplained phenomena?
• Is global warming a conspiracy?
• Is religion the only basis for ethical principles?
• Is it ethical for celebrities to look and act the way they do when
they know the impact of their image on today’s youth?
These topics mostly relate to various RLSs and are not KQs!
They should be used to ‘extract’ a good KQs
KQs for TOK Presentation (examples)
• How do people’s assumptions influence their behaviour?
• To what extent is the success of knowledge contingent on
where and when it was developed?
• What might be the source of value for knowledge that
appears to have no applications?
• What is the relative influence of concepts and facts on
forming of conclusions?
• What aspects of knowledge are impacted positively or
negatively by the trade-off between accuracy and simplicity?
• To what extent can emotions be a source of personal
knowledge?
• …
KQs for TOK Presentation
(recommendations)
• Theoretically, ‘To what extent…?’ is Ok but
formally such a KQ may be answered as ‘To some
extent’ leaving limited way for further exploration
• KQs started with ‘How does …?’, ‘In what way…?’,
‘What are the mechanisms of…?’ provide much
more ground for in-depth analysis
• Use only the 2nd order questions, i.e. those
addressing knowledge about knowledge
Further development of KQ
Map your KQ to 2 to 4 different areas/aspects/
perspectives via the following scheme:
• Put a claim
• Briefly explain what you mean
• Support your claim with arguments and then
use examples, facts, etc. to prove it
• Put counterclaim whenever possible
• Don’t forget to make a link to
your KQ
Provide a balance between
shared and personal knowledge
What does ‘a perspective’ mean in TOK?
• The term ‘perspective’ relates to the fact that the same
problem / KQ can be viewed or thought of differently
• There are many perspectives to analyze including
– Historical
– Cultural
– Critical
– Personal
– Political
– Religious
– Specific perspectives within particular AOK
– …
• You have to be open to alternative perspectives and at
the same time be able to assess them critically
Dealing with WOKs: common mistakes
and misconceptions
• WOKs are discussed too directly or are just listed
in relation to this or that AOK / perspective
• WOKs are often treated in a oversimplified way,
their multifaceted role in getting knowledge is not
properly analyzed
• It is stated that only a few WOKs enable us to get
or to shape knowledge in a specific AOK
• The fact that WOKs regularly interact with each
other is often ignored
Dealing with WOKs: recommendations
• It is not recommended to include separate slide(s) on
WOK(s) in your presentation
• Try to avoid an oversimplified view of WOKs such as
– ‘sight as a sense is needed to read books’
– ‘memory and language allow to transfer knowledge to new
generations’
• WOKs are more complicated than they may appear
• Use a holistic approach to analyze the role of WOKs in
getting and/or shaping knowledge in the context of the
AOK / perspective you consider
• Don’t ignore the fact that all WOKs are important in each
AOK. However, their roles may differ dramatically
Conclusion and the back loop
• Your KQ should not be answered by ‘Yes’ or
‘No’ and usually has no definite answer at all
• Base you conclusion on what you have
learned from the development of KQ
• Interpret the original RLS using new
knowledge you’ve got or provide a new
insight
• Discuss other RLSs which your KQ and
Conclusion are applicable to to
illustrate the broader context of the KQ
Presentation Logic Diagram

For each of 2
to 4 AOKs/
perspectives
you should
provide

• Claim
• Brief
explanation
• Arguments to
support
• Facts and
examples as an
evidence
• Counterclaim
• Brief yet explicit
link to your KQ
TOK Presentation formats
• TOK Presentations may take many forms
– lectures, interviews, debates, etc.
– you are allowed to use multimedia, costumes, or
props to support the presentation
– pre-recorded inserts within a presentation are
permissible
• However, the presentation cannot be an essay
read aloud to the class
• The presentation itself must be a live experience
and not a preliminary recorded speech
• You present to the audience
• The presentations are video recorded
 Four Assessment Criteria
Do(es) the presenter(s) succeed in showing how TOK concepts
can have practical applications?
Specifically, has the student:
1. described clearly the Real-Life Situation that forms the
launching point for the presentation?
2. extracted and clearly formulated a single Knowledge
Question from the Real-Life Situation?
3. identified and explored various perspectives in relation to
the Knowledge Question, and deployed arguments and
examples within this exploration?
4. related the findings of and insights from the analysis back
to the chosen Real-Life Situation and showed how they
might be relevant to other Real-Life Situations?
TOK Presentation Assessment
Instrument (from TOK Guide)
Presentation Planning Document
Presentation Planning Document: rules
• EVERY student must complete and submit this
document (TK/PPD)
• This is a planning form, so fill it in while you are
working on your presentation rather than after you
have finished it
• Include in the form the concepts, ideas and logical
links you will be developing when you deliver your
presentation
• You have to complete pages 1 and 2 only
– use skeleton or bullet point form
– type in a standard 12 font
– do not exceed 500 words
• You should give the teacher a hard copy of the
TK/PPD before you start presenting
Presentation Planning Document:
expected content
• It is compulsory for students to do their planning using the TK/PPD. To
begin, candidates have to describe a real-life situation, then extract a
knowledge question from it and thirdly explain the links between them.
• In the Outline, candidates are asked to include arguments and
perspectives which, in turn, require consideration of related KQs.
Candidates are also instructed to answer in the context of their real-life
situation – they must not forget the interaction between the real world
and the TOK world.
• Under the Conclusions box, candidates are instructed to show the
significance of their conclusions AND indicate how they may be relevant
to other RLSs.
• TK/PPD should generate a sense of progression, it must show how the
thinking has progressed from beginning to end, and the end is
evidenced by the conclusions with explicit demonstration of their
significance.
• Use TOK vocabulary and show evidence of second order TOK thinking.
Planning TOK Presentation
Planning the TOK Presentation
Planning TOK Presentation
Concluding Remarks
• Presentations can be made individually or by groups of no
more than 3 students
– each member of a group will get the same mark
– not every student should speak for the same amount of
time…
– … but it should be evident that all members of the group
participate actively and make comparable contributions
– approximately 10 minutes per
presenter should be allowed
(maximum of approx. 30 min per
group)
– follow-up discussion and peer
comments are not included in this
timing
Concluding Remarks (cont.)
• KQs and RLSs should be unique in each
presentation
• Group presentation provides much more time
for KQ development
– do not ignore such a possibility !!
• Audience participation is
allowed during the
presentation, not just in
follow-up discussion
THANK YOU !

pavel.s.smart@gmail.com