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Physics IA Help Sheet

The document provides guidelines for students completing an Investigation Assessment (IA) in IB Physics. It states that the IA should involve 10 hours of lab work and a 6-12 page write-up in the style of a scientific paper focusing on an aspect of physics that interests the student. The investigation can involve traditional lab work, simulations, or a combination. It is assessed on personal engagement, exploration, analysis, evaluation, and communication and counts for 20% of the final grade. The document provides detailed criteria and recommendations for each assessment category to achieve the maximum marks.

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132 views3 pages

Physics IA Help Sheet

The document provides guidelines for students completing an Investigation Assessment (IA) in IB Physics. It states that the IA should involve 10 hours of lab work and a 6-12 page write-up in the style of a scientific paper focusing on an aspect of physics that interests the student. The investigation can involve traditional lab work, simulations, or a combination. It is assessed on personal engagement, exploration, analysis, evaluation, and communication and counts for 20% of the final grade. The document provides detailed criteria and recommendations for each assessment category to achieve the maximum marks.

Uploaded by

alex.blesson
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd

IB Physics BISM3 /Sept/ 2022

IA Guide

For the investigation you should spend about 10 hours on lab work. The
write-up should be 6 – 12 pages (more or less will be penalised). It should
be in the style of a scientific paper and focus on one aspect of physics that
interests you.
It counts for 20% of the final grade and is assessed according to 5 criteria.

The investigation can be a traditional lab report or based on a simulation


(using Physics engine software, such as Algodoo). You could also do
hands-on lab work supported by a simulation.

Use the following headings:

● Introduction
● Research Question
● Variables
● Scientific Theory
● Method
● Conclusions and Evaluation
● Bibliography

Listed below are are the assessment criteria with some tips on how to
achieve the maximum mark:

Personal Engagement (max = 2 marks)

● State reason why the topic is interesting.


● Explain the research you carried into the topic
● Explain how you designed the experiment

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IB Physics IA

Exploration (max = 6 marks)

● Identify the variables involved in the research.


● Explain the Scientific Theory
● Describe the Method and explain how you controlled variables to
make sure it was a FAIR TEST.
● Discuss adaptations to the method to reduce error.
● Mention safety and environmental issues

Analysis (max = 6 marks)

● Display your results clearly in a table.


● Show units and uncertainties
● At least 5 values of the independent variable for a linear
relationship (and more for non linear).
● At least 3 repeated readings of the dependent variable.
Calculate the mean and range. Use half of the range to calculate
the uncertainty for the dependent variable.
● Use error bars to show uncertainty on your graphs.
● Show the maximum and minimum gradients and the uncertainty
for the intercept.
● Use the data to find a relationship or a value.

Logger Pro can be used to plot high quality graphs:

You can download a free 30 day trial using the link below:

Logger Pro Demo

Page 2
IB Physics IA

This video explains how to use Logger Pro to draw a graph

How To Use Logger Pro To Plot Your Data

Evaluation ( MAX = 6 marks)

● Write a detailed conclusion with reference to the scientific theory


● Back up statements with evidence from the results.
● Explain the limitations of the method and how uncertainties
affected the results.
● Discuss improvements made to the method in order to reduce
uncertainties.
● Outline future experiments that could be carried out, to investigate
the topic in more depth.

Communication (Max = 4 marks)

● The write up should be organised into short sections with relevant


sub titles.
● The scientific terminology should be used correctly.
● Not more than 12 pages.
● All information should be relevant to the research question.
● The units for measurements are correctly shown.
● Show how any mathematical equations used are derived from first
principles.

PJa/BISM/Oct 2021

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