If you’re learning how to write essays in IB Psychology or looking for good tips to pass on to your students, I would suggest the following “Three Rules of Threes.” #1: Three Parts to an Essay Every good essay has three parts (excluding the introductions and conclusions): Central argument/s Supporting Evidence Counter argument/s The central argument is where you address …
Free flashcard maker
When it comes to revising for tests and exams, it’s hard to go past flashcards as an excellent way to review. While digital versions, such as quizlet, have their benefits, I personally have always preferred to have hard-copies in my hands. But who has the time to spend hours and hours writing out flashcards? What if you’ve got messy handwriting? …
How to go beyond “describing” and into “application” of studies
One of the most common mistakes IB Psychology students make is they don’t explain studies, i.e. they don’t apply the study to show how the study is relevant to the question. Instead, students summarize aims, methods and results and that’s it. This is description. What’s missing? An applied conclusion. Describing a study = summarizing aims methods conclusions Explaining a study = summary …
7 exam tips for evaluating studies
When you’re preparing for your exams and you’re aiming for a 7, here are some tips that will help you study smarter, not harder. Tip #1: Ignore internal validity, including… Hawthorne effect Screw you effect Demand characteristics Participant expectancy effect I think you should avoid focusing on internal validity factors when you’re trying to explain limitations. Why? Here are a …
Paper 3 Review Pack Now Ready!
Download FREE preview here! The pack contains everything you need to get a 7 in Paper Three. Example answers (with examiner comments) Practice papers Key terms glossary Explanation of all learning outcomes Tips on how to write exam questions Don’t let Paper Three bring you down!!! Paper Three is the one that most IB Psychology students struggle with and it …
How do you “explain the problem/issue” in essay introductions?
In the new IB Psychology curriculum, students have to “explain the problem/issue raised in the question” to get 2 marks for their essays (Paper 1, Part B and Paper 2). But what does this mean and how do you do it? In this post, I’ll explain what I think it means and will show a simple framework for how students …
Tips for writing “Discuss research related to…” essays
In the new IB Psychology syllabus it’s fair to anticipate numerous questions that will require students to discuss research related to particular topics. This will be especially true in the options. Here are some possible questions: Discuss research related to neuroplasticity. Discuss research related to attachment. Discuss research related to bystanderism. You can find an example essay here: Sample Essay from …
How to explain the use of a research method
In both the “old” and “new” IB Psychology syllabi, students have to be able to discuss the use of research methods (and brain imaging techniques). Before we see how to do this, it’s important to make one clarification first: the IB considers the following to be research methods: Experiments (including true, natural, quasi and field experiments) Case studies Correlational studies Interviews …
Lesson/Revision Idea: The Two Minute Drill
How it works… Put two minutes on a timer (I use a trusty kitchen timer) Project a possible exam question, maybe one for a topic that you’ve been working on or revising Students have two minutes to outline a plan of how they’d answer that question A4 pieces of paper cut in half are good to use Collect all answers …
10 Example Exam Answers!
CRACK THE IB CODE WITH OUR EXAM PREP PACKS These example answers will show you how surprisingly simple it is to get a 7! These ten example answers (+ 2 bonus answers) demonstrate how to write excellent answers by following a very simple structure. They also include examiner-style commentaries that explain what is required to get top marks. UPDATE: WE ARE WORKING ON EXAMPLES FOR THE NEW SYLLABUS …
Quizlets: Enculturation and Acculturation
The following Quizlets will help students revise key terms and studies for the enculturation and acculturation topics covered in IB Psychology: A Student’s Guide. Enculturation/Acculturation Key Terms Quizlet (Link) Enculturation/Acculturation Key Studies Quizlet (Link) A link to these have been included in the unit plan in the Social Influence Teacher Support Pack (Part I). Travis DixonTravis Dixon has been teaching for …
So you want to assess population validity?
If you’re reading this it might be because you’ve written something like this in your answer and tried to fob it off as critical thinking: “One of the limitations of this study was that it has a small sample size and so lacks population validity.” The thing to remember when trying to show critical thinking is that it takes …
T.E.A.C.U.P…and why I don’t use it.
Yesterday I posted about how to evaluate psychological theories in three simple steps. I mentioned John Crane’s popular acronym T.E.A.C.U.P, which stands for: testable, evidence, applications, construct validity, unbiased and predictive validity. (It can be found on John’s website, too). This is an alternative to my “Let’s make a DEAL” framework for evaluating theories. You can see that my DEAL framework …
Let’s make a D.E.A.L – evaluating theories in three simple steps
I teach my students to look for three things when evaluating theories: Evidence Applications Limitations Let’s make a D.E.A.L Most students are capable of independently explaining these three things. When teaching essay writing on theories I teach students to use my own “Let’s make a D.E.A.L” strategy and not TEACUP. D.E.A.L Describe the theory Explain the Evidence Applications of the theory …
It’s so easy to get a 7 in Paper One…
….or at least, it should be. Note: This is for the old syllabus, exams 2011 – 2018 Let’s crunch some numbers… 70% is the mark to get a 7 (approximately). 4% of IB Psych’ students get 7s. 46 marks are available in Paper One. 32/46 will get you 70%. So by looking at the above numbers, let’s see one possible …
Exam Tip: How to explain an etiology of a disorder…
Explaining an etiology of a disorder can be quite tricky for some students because they focus on the disorder in general. But in order to have a really effective explanation you’re better to focus on specific symptoms. A three step approach to explaining an etiology When learning an etiology or planning an exam answer, you can follow these three simple …
How does testosterone influence aggression?
Understanding how testosterone can influence aggression can be a little tricky, so this post is designed to provide extra help. This post is designed to support the materials in Topic 2.4 of our textbook, IB Psychology: A Student’s Guide. Common Errors Here is what an over-simplified (and incorrect) explanation for testosterone and aggression might look like: So in writing, this …
5 Types of Exam Questions in IB Psychology
There are 5 types of exam questions in IB Psychology, Papers One and Two. While the general structures that we recommend for exam answers can be applied to all of these types of questions, they do have their own sets of pitfalls that students should be aware of. And as with anything, there are some exceptions and special cases of …
The Top Ten Most Valuable Studies from the Criminology Unit
Personally, I think the most useful studies to know in-depth in order of appearance are: Bechara et al.’s study on the vmPFC, Iowa Gambling task and decision making (2.2)(link) Feinstein et al.’s case study on SM (2.3)(workbook) Radke et al.’s experiment on testosterone and the brain (2.4)(textbook) Cohen’s culture of honor experiments (2.5)(in workbook) Passamonti et al’s experiment on serotonin …
Quizlet: Love and Marriage Review (Chapter 5)
Along with other fun review activities like Jeopardies and Kahoots, making Quizlet class sets is a quick and easy way to build a resource that students can use to study with, either in class or in their own time. Love and Marriage Quizlet: Chapter Five Review – Available HERE! If your students enjoy Kahoots, they might also like quizlet-live, which …
Quizlet: Intro to Psych’ Review (Chapter One)
I could have sworn I posted this already, but I can’t find it so here it is again. If I did, please let me know! Along with other fun review activities like Jeopardies and Kahoots, making Quizlet class sets is a quick and easy way to build a resource that students can use to study with, either in class or …
3 things all essays should have…
I’m a simple man. This is why I love the motto: “keep it simple, stupid!” I especially love keeping it simple when it comes to exam preparation. The more complex, intricate and nuanced we make our instructions on how to do well in exams, the less time there is to spend on developing the skills necessary for success in the …
Lesson Idea: Reviewing Studies
I came up with this basic idea yesterday as I was putting together my student workbook for the Love and Marriage unit. In this entire unit (Chapter 5 of the student’s guide) there are four key studies applicable to the following topics: Hormones and behaviour (Bio) Evolution and behaviour (Bio) Methods and Ethics (Evolution – Bio) Methods and Ethics (Hormones …
Experiment Results: Is an evaluation distinguishable from a discussion?
After writing and sharing a recent post, I got some questions regarding the validity of my claim that a good evaluation and discussion are indistinguishable. So I decided to put it to the test by writing an example essay following the essay structure I advise for students and seeing if it was obvious which command term was being used. I gathered …
Top 5 Tips for IB Psych’ Success
As a short review activity to begin my first Grade 12 (Year Two) class for the year I asked my students to come up with “5 Tips for IB Psych’ Success” that I could then share with the Grade 11 (Year One) students. I thought their list was pretty spot-on, so I thought I’d share it here. #1. Ask Questions …