The Boston Globe published an article you might find useful:
TOK Essay
TOK Essay Tips
After looking through student outlines for the TOK Essay, here are some suggestions that might be helpful with common issues I saw (Please copy and paste this post in a Word Document and use it as a checklist when you submit your draft essay):
* In your thesis statement, rewrite the prompt in your own words and take a stand — what do you think and why?
* Be sure to define key words and concepts — what is knowledge? what is faith?
* The outline forms use paragraph boxes. However, don’t feel constrained by them. You do not have to follow it exactly — they are only a guide.
* Include information you have learned from the textbook and class handouts.
* Use original examples
* Be careful about making blanket statements — everything, always, etc.
* Be sure to include counter-claims.
* You do not have to have an answer for everything. If you have questions you are pondering, then say so.
* Periodically look back to the sample essays for reminders of things that worked and things that did not.
* Be explicit when you are talking about Ways of Knowing and Areas of Knowledge.
* Make sure everything you write is directly responding to the TOK prompt. If it says “consider CAS,” then discuss CAS. If it says “one more Area of Knowledge,” then discuss another Area of Knowledge in additions to one. Connect the topic sentence of each paragaph to your thesis statement/claim as well as the last sentence.
* You might find it useful to first think which Areas of Knowledge you are going to write about, then think of examples in those Areas that illustrate your points, and then consider which Ways of Knowing were used to learn those specific AOK examples.
* Don’t just give examples — tell stories.
TOK Essay Preparation
March 28th:
1) If you have not yet decided which TOK essay prompt you will choose, go to Theory of knowledge prescribed titles: November 2011 and May 2012 and review them again.
2) You will need to decide the best way for you to save and organize the research you do on the Web. I would like you to make that decision before the end of today. I am going to recommend one of two sites:
* Tizmos is very, very simple. Go to Tizmos and create an account. Be sure to open it on a new tab. You may choose to make it private or public, though I would recommend you make it private to guard against accidental plagiarism. This is an easy tool for you save the url addresses of any website you find that would be useful to your writing. Under “tag” you are given space to write notes.
* WebKlipper is also very simple, but, because it has more options than Tizmos (WebKlipper actually lets you make virtual post-it notes on webpages and allows highlighting), is a little more complicated.
If you don’t like either of those two sites, you can find more options here.
Every Friday, I will ask you to show me both the online notes you take and the notes you take on paper when we review the textbook and older hand-outs from earlier in the year.
3) Go to the “Perception” section on the sidebar of this blog, and take notes on anything you see or read that could be helpful to your essay.
4) Go to Mr. Ferlazzo’s TOK Delicious links and, on the right side, click on “perception.” Take notes on anything you see or read that you think could be helpful to your essay.
Though today may be a little hectic because you have to decide on your online bookmarking tool as well as your TOK essay prompt (if you haven’t already decided), our regular schedule for the next two weeks will look like this:
When we’re in the computer lab or have laptops:
* You will start by going to the sidebar to see the Ways Of Knowing or Areas Of Knowledge that we are focusing on that day and review those resources.
* Then you will go to Mr. Ferlazzo’s Delicious links for the same topic.
* Then, after twenty minutes (the time may vary — depending on how it goes, we may spend most of each period on only one topic and share at the end of class), you will share what you learned with someone who has chosen a different essay topic.
* Then we will repeat the same process with a different Way of Knowing or Area of Knowledge.
When we’re in the classroom:
* You will review your notes and hand-outs from the particular Way of Knowing or Area of Knowledge we’re reviewing that day.
* You will review that section of the textbook.
* You will share what you learned with a student writing on a different essay prompt.
* Repeat
TOK Essay Calendar
TOK Essay Calendar
MARCH:
March 21st Review Essay Rubric and grade sample essays
March 28th Continue reviewing sample essays; Decide on Essay prompt by March 29th; review textbook chapters & class materials(include blog).Mr. Ferlazzo checks notes on Friday
APRIL
April 4th Continue to review textbook chapters & class materials. Mr. Ferlazzo check notes on Friday.
April 11th Begin class “lessons” again; essay outline due on April 15th – no exceptions!
April 18th Spring Break
April 25th Lessons continue – one day prep and one day to teach in small groups; outlines returned on April 25th; begin work on first draft. This is the routine we will continue for the rest of the year.
May 13th First draft of essay due
June 3rd Final essay due – no exceptions
TOK Essay Advice
This TOK blog is providing advice for each of this year’s essay prompts.
They are worth reviewing.
ToK Essay Sentence Starters and Sentence Frames
Mr. Coey developed these helpful sentence starters:
ToK Essay Sentence Starters and Sentence Frames
Understanding Knowledge Issues:
- “When I read the prescribed title, I can see that the issue with knowledge is that …”
- “Of the ways of knowing, I know that ______________ and _______________ are two important ways of knowing related to the prescribed title because_______________________.”
- “The relationship between these ways of knowing can be described as ___________________.”
- “The strengths of these ways of knowing could be described as ___________________________
______________________________, and the limitations could be described as _____________
___________________________________________________________________________.” - “When I look at the prescribed title, it makes me think of the following questions:”
Knower’s Perspective:
- “As I begin thinking about my knowledge issues, I want to tell you about the time …”
- “In my _______________ class, we were learning about ________________________, and I can see how that experience relates to the knowledge issue for the following reasons:”
- “This knowledge issue reminds of the __________________________ theory I read about in _________________________________________ and it relates to the prescribed title by illustrating the idea of ___________________________________.”
- “I feel like I have developed as a critical thinker because I now know that _________________.”
Analysis of Knowledge Issues:
- “The prescribed title actually has this assumption about knowledge: ____________________”
- “My thesis statement is argumentative and it implies that knowledge is ____________________
___________________________________________________________________________.” - “From the example of ___________________________________, it can be claimed that we know that ____________________________________________________________________.”
- “Although ______________________________________________________ claims that knowledge is _______________________________________, we should consider that knowledge is actually _______________________________________________________.”
Conclusion:
- “What I really meant to say is ________________________________________.”
- “In conclusion, I am left with this question: _________________________________.”
“To understand knowledge, we must consider how knowledge ___________
TOK Essay
First, please go to the sidebar of this blog under “Essay Links” and visit as many websites there as you can. Make a list of the six most important things you feel you’ve learned from them, and at least three questions you have (more are preferable).
Second, here are two potential outlines for you to use to prepare your essay. Please pick the one that looks the best and print it out (you may also print out both if you would like).
You must use one of these forms to guide the outline to both your practice essay and your final essay. You do not necessarily have to actually fill out the form, but you must use it as a guide. Your practice essay outline will be due two weeks from the day we complete the introduction to the essay unit.
Third, look at this Planning Sheet and, if you decide it can be helpful, please print it out.
Fourth, look at these two TOK essays written by former students. Write down five things you notice about each.
Four, review these older Essay topics and choose one for your practice essay:
Fifth, pick the title you will write for your final essay from this list.
Sixth, go to this TOK blog and download and print-out Six steps to a ToK essay 2.
Seventh, review this preparation sheet. Write down what you think are the five most important points and why you think they’re important.
Theory of knowledge prescribed titles: November 2011 and May 2012
Theory of knowledge prescribed titles
November 2011 and May 2012
Instructions to candidates
Your theory of knowledge essay for examination must be submitted to your teacher for authentication. It must be written on one of the ten titles (questions) provided below. You may choose any title, but are recommended to consult with your teacher. Your essay will be marked according to the assessment criteria published in the Theory of Knowledge guide. Remember to centre your essay on knowledge issues and, where appropriate, refer to other parts of your IB programme and to your experiences as a knower. Always justify your statements and provide relevant examples to illustrate your arguments. Pay attention to the implications of your arguments, and remember to consider what can be said against them. If you use external sources, cite them according to a recognized convention.
Note that statements in quotations in these titles are not necessarily authentic: they present a real point of view but may not have been spoken or written by an actual person. It is appropriate to analyse them but it is unnecessary, even unwise, to spend time on researching a context for them.
Examiners mark essays against the title as set. Respond to the title exactly as given; do not alter it in any way.
Your essay must be between 1200 and 1600 words in length.
1.Knowledge is generated through the interaction of critical and creative thinking. Evaluate this statement in two areas of knowledge.
2.Compare and contrast knowledge which can be expressed in words/symbols with knowledge that cannot be expressed in this way. Consider CAS and one or more areas of knowledge.
3.Using history and at least one other area of knowledge, examine the claim that it is possible to attain knowledge despite problems of bias and selection.
4.When should we discard explanations that are intuitively appealing?
5.What is it about theories in the human sciences and natural sciences that makes them convincing?
6.‘It is more important to discover new ways of thinking about what is already known than to discover new data or facts’. To what extent would you agree with this claim?
7.‘The vocabulary we have does more than communicate our knowledge; it shapes what we can know’. Evaluate this claim with reference to different areas of knowledge.
8.Analyse the strengths and weaknesses of using faith as a basis for knowledge in religion and in one area of knowledge from the ToK diagram.
9.As an IB student, how has your learning of literature and science contributed to your understanding of individuals and societies?
10.‘Through different methods of justification, we can reach conclusions in ethics that are as well-supported as those provided in mathematics.’ To what extent would you agree?
Revised 2010 TOK Schedule
REVISED TOK SCHEDULE — 2010
Your TOK Essay will be due June 1st (outline due May 7th)
You will have one “practice” essay due April 1st (outline due March 12th), and another due on April 30th (outline due April 16th). Outlines and papers can be turned in early.
We will spend at least two days each week between March 15th and May 1st in the computer lab for you to work on your essays. Prior to March 15th, we will spend one-day each week in the Lab. After May 1st, if possible, we will spend three days each week in the Lab.
Talk with me if you would like to do your oral presentation a second time, and we’ll make time for it.
Week of February 22 Debrief Oral Presentations, Introduction to TOK Essay, Begin Natural Sciences
March 1st Natural Sciences
March 8th Human Sciences, Outline due for first Practice Essay
March 15th Finish Human Sciences, Begin Religion
March 22nd Finish Religion
March 29th Begin revisiting all Ways of Knowing & Areas of Knowledge two-to-three days each week, work on essays
during the other days. First practice essay due.
April 16th Outline due for second practice essay
April 30th Second Practice Essay due
May 7th Outline due for TOK Essay
June 1st TOK Essay Due
TOK Prescribed Titles For Essays — November 2010 & May 2011
The following is a copy of the official IB prescribed titles sheet:
Theory of knowledge prescribed titles
November 2010 and May 2011
Instructions to candidates
Your theory of knowledge essay for examination must be submitted to your teacher for authentication. It must be written on one of the ten titles (questions) provided below. You may choose any title, but are recommended to consult with your teacher. Your essay will be marked according to the assessment criteria published in the Theory of Knowledge guide. Remember to centre your essay on knowledge issues and, where appropriate, refer to other parts of your IB programme and to your experiences as a knower. Always justify your statements and provide relevant examples to illustrate your arguments. Pay attention to the implications of your arguments, and remember to consider what can be said against them. If you use external sources, cite them according to a recognized convention.
Note that statements in quotations in these titles are not necessarily authentic: they present a real point of view but may not have been spoken or written by an actual person. It is appropriate to analyse them but it is unnecessary, even unwise, to spend time on researching a context for them.
Examiners mark essays against the title as set. Respond to the title exactly as given; do not alter it in any way.
Your essay must be between 1200 and 1600 words in length.
1. Consider the extent to which knowledge issues in ethics are similar to those in at least one other area of knowledge.
2. How important are the opinions of experts in the search for knowledge?
3. “Doubt is the key to knowledge” (Persian Proverb). To what extent is this true in two areas of knowledge?
4. To what extent do we need evidence to support our beliefs in different areas of knowledge?
5. To what extent are the various areas of knowledge defined by their methodologies rather than their content?
6. “There are no absolute distinctions between what is true and what is false”. Discuss this claim.
7. How can we recognise when we have made progress in the search for knowledge? Consider two contrasting areas of knowledge.
8. “Art is a lie that brings us nearer to the truth” (Pablo Picasso). Evaluate this claim in relation to a specific art form (for example, visual arts, literature, theatre).
9. Discuss the roles of language and reason in history.
10. A model is a simplified representation of some aspect of the world. In what ways may models help or hinder the search for knowledge?