What do I know about getting good marks in IB History?

IB History places an emphasis on different skills than traditional A-levels, it is a course designed to test your historical method rather than your factual knowledge. If we take the coursework as an example, candidates have to write an essay but not in the normal sense, it is divided into a series of sections that require both individual thought and to be placed in the essay as a whole. The design of these sections is to force candidates to not simply rattle of an idea, support it with ‘facts and conclude, but to engage with the nature of sources, think around the reading and ‘facts’ and to think with a greater awareness of historical themes and theories. This is a microcosm of the IB history course which demands more from the candidates own way of thinking than the A-level does.

In obtaining a 7 in Higher level IB I had to learn how to think in this manner and did so successfully, using it not only whilst sitting IB exams but also in my application for Oxford University and my first year of study there. This has given me an exceptional viewpoint as to what skills an IB historian has to develop differently to my peers who did the A-level. I not only understand these skills but also understand how to teach them, having undergone teaching in them at both college and university level.

The similarities between a good IB historian and a university level historian are remarkable and I believe that I can offer focused coaching in changing the mindset of how an individual approaches history that is demanded by both the IB and university.