British International School, Puxi Candidate name Candidate number Title of Personal Engagement: / 2 This criterion assesses the extent to which the student engages with the exploration and makes it their own. Personal engagement may be recognized in different attributes and skills. These could include addressing personal interests or showing evidence of independent thinking, creativity or initiative in the designing, implementation or presentation of the. Descriptor 0 1 2 evidence of personal engagement with exploration a) personal interest is addressed b) shows independent thinking c) enthusiasm and passion is evident limited with little independent thinking, initiative or insight clear with significant independent thinking, initiative or creativity justification given for choosing the research question and/or the topic under does demonstrate personal significance, interest or curiosity demonstrates personal significance, interest or curiosity d) creativity in design, presentation and implementation e) innovative method is used evidence of personal input and initiative in the designing, implementation or presentation of the little evidence evidence f) unique exploration g) unusual use of data The question could be a result of observations made in the student s own environment or ideas that the student has had as the result of learning, reading or experimenting in class. The does have to be ground-breaking research, but there should be an indication that independent thought has been put into the choice of topic, the method of inquiry and the presentation of the findings. The topic chosen should also be of suitable complexity. If the research question is very basic or the answer self-evident then there is little opportunity to gain full marks for exploration and analysis as the student will have the opportunity to demonstrate his or her skills. 1
Exploration / 6 This criterion assesses the extent to which the student Establishes the scientific context for the work, states a clear and focused research question and uses concepts and techniques appropriate to the Diploma Programme level. where appropriate, this criterion also assesses awareness of safety, environmental, and ethical considerations. topic of the is identified and relevant research question described some relevance is stated but it is focused relevant but fully focused relevant, fully focused and clearly described a. The research question is clear and focused b. Individual ideas have been translated into a workable method b. Selects the independent and dependent variable to investigate. c. Identifies the important control variables background information provided for the a. scientific context is addressed b. student shows understanding of the topic c. Physics related to the RQ is addressed d. The thinking behind students ideas is explained using their subject knowledge e. The information is targeted at the problem rather than being a general account of the topic matter, in order to demonstrate focus on the issues at hand. appropriate methodology of the, consideration of factors for reliability and sufficiency of data a. States how the independent and dependent variable will be changed. b. States how control variables are fixed, with values where appropriate. c. Selects appropriate apparatus d. Range of independent variable is stated and appropriate. superficial or of limited relevance and does aid the under-standing of the context of the limited to research question, few if any factors considered mainly relevant and aids the understanding of the context of the mainly appropriate but some limits on significant factors entirely relevant and enhances the understanding of the context of the highly appropriate, all or nearly all factors are considered evidence of awareness of the significant safety, ethical or environmental issues that are relevant to the methodology of the d. Addresses safety e. Addresses ethical issues. f. Is aware of environmental issues limited awareness some awareness full awareness 2
Analysis : / 6 This criterion assesses the extent to which the student s report provides evidence that the student has selected, recorded, processed and interpreted the data in ways that are relevant to the research question and can support a. insufficient to support sufficient; could a valid support a detailed and valid raw data a. Headings are explicit and the correct units for raw data are included in the table headings. b. Appropriate, estimated uncertainties for raw data are included. c. Uncertainties are given to one or two sig fig only and the data is consistent with this uncertainty. e. Plans to collect between 8 and 10 data points. f. Plans to repeat data collection or to increase the number of readings, whichever is more appropriate data processing, accuracy and consistent with data a. Processes raw data into a form suitable for graphical representation. b. An example of the calculation steps involved in the processing is given. c. Processed data tables are clear and neatly presented, with correct headings and units. e. The precision of processed data is consistent with that of the raw data. (i.e. no more precise). f. The same number of decimal places is used for all data in a given column. impact of uncertainties on the analysis d. A reasonable method is used to propagate uncertainties e. An explanation for the choice of uncertainties is given interpretation of processed data a. Plots an appropriate best-fit line graph, with trend line drawn. b. Graph axes are labelled and include the correct units c. Points are plotted accurately. d. Error bars are included for at least one variable. e. Uncertainties in the gradient are calculated by an appropriate method. (i.e. max/min gradients or using graphing software). some basic but too inaccurate or insufficient to lead to a valid little evidence of the impact of uncertainties incorrect or insufficient interpretation that may lead to an invalid or very incomplete relevant but incomplete. Could support a simple or partially valid sufficient raw data carried out that could lead to a but with significant inaccuracies and inconsistencies in processing some evidence of the impact of uncertainties broadly valid interpretation leading to an incomplete or limited sufficient data processing with accuracy so as to enable a to the research question to be drawn that is fully consistent with the experimental data full and appropriate evidence of the impact of uncertainties correct interpretation allowing a completely valid and detailed 3
Evaluation : / 6 This criterion assess the extend to which the student s report provides evidence of evaluation of the and the results with regard to the research question and the accepted scientific context. statement a. The is justified using scientific ideas, where appropriate. Graph analysed. b. Conclusion is based on data c. The magnitude and direction of any systematic uncertainty is stated. d. Unforeseen random uncertainties (anomalies) are correctly identified. e. The percentage uncertainty is calculated from the processed data, where appropriate. and accepted theory a. Calculated physical quantities are compared with referenced accepted values, where appropriate. b. The answers the RQ c. The is explained in the context of science with respect to the wider world strengths and weaknesses of the, such as limitations of the data and sources of error, are discussed and provide evidence to a clear understanding of the methodological issues involved in establishing the a. Comments on the overall quality of the procedure used and data collected, using evidence from the processed data. b. Significant weaknesses and limitations in the process, equipment used and management of time are identified. c. Has some appreciation of the significance of each weakness. d. Has some appreciation of whether each weakness would cause a systematic or a random uncertainty. realistic and relevant suggestions for the improvement and extension of the a. Weaknesses and limitations identified are addressed. b. Realistic improvements are suggested. c. Suggestions state exactly what should be done to reduce random uncertainties. d. Suggestions state exactly what should be done to reduce systematic uncertainties outlined but relevant to the research question or supported by the superficially compared to the accepted scientific context outlined but are restricted to an account of the practical or procedural issues faced very few outlined described, relevant to the research question and supported by the some relevant comparison to accepted scientific context described and provide evidence of some awareness of the methodological issues involved in establishing the some described described in detail and justified, entirely relevant to the research question and fully supported by the correctly described and justified through relevant comparison to the accepted scientific context discussed and provide evidence of a clear understanding of the method-logical issues involved in establishing the are discussed 4
Communication : / 4 This criterion assesses whether the is presented and reported in a way that supports effective communication of the outcomes. Descriptor 0 1 2 3 4 presentation of the a. A complete and clear, anated diagram of the experiment set up has been used b. A clear method of important steps is given that allows the reader to reconstruct the c. Special relevant elements of the procedure can be included d. A representative sample of raw data and transformed data and graph is included in the body of the essay e. The graph has proper labels and max and min lines f. Information produced by excel is clearly defined/explained/described report structure a. The organization allows for an uninterrupted flow in the body of the essay b. The report contains all required elements: Introduction, RQ, Background research and aim/hypothesis, apparatus, method with diagram, safety/ethical/environmental issues, controlling variables, data collection and processed data including graphical representation, and evaluation, bibliography c. Citations listed in the body of the essay are in the bibliography d. Source diagrams are referenced report relevance a. the report length does exceed 12 pages b. The outline follows a scientific research paper c. The report is focused and easy to follow d. The report contains all important information e. The report is broken down in manageable sections Terminology a. Formulae are in the same format and just cut and pasted b. Proper units and numerical values with its units and uncertainties are used c. Precision of the processed data is consistent with the input data. d. Uncertainties are appreciated and processed correctly d. Correct physical terminology is used d. New terms or unusual terminology are clearly explained unclear, making it difficult to understand the outcomes well structured and is unclear: the necessary information on outcomes is missing or is presented in an incoherent or disorganized way the understanding of the focus, process and outcomes of the is obscured by the presence of inappropriate or irrelevant information there are many errors in the use of subject specific terminology and conventions clear, any errors do hamper understanding of the outcomes well structured and clear: the necessary information on focus, process and outcomes is present and presented in a coherent way relevant and concise thereby facilitating a ready understanding of the focus, process and outcomes of the the use of subject specific terminology and conventions are correct; any errors do hamper understanding 5