The ABC to the successful IB DP English A Higher Level coursework essay (20% of your mark)

As I promised in my previous post, the focus of attention of this entry will be the writing process itself. But first, let’s have a look at a checklist to make sure everything is ready to sit down and write. At this point:

• You should already have a chosen text.
• You should have read the text at least a couple of times: one first “innocent reading” and a couple of re-readings looking for the evidence that will support your hypothesis in the essay.
• You should have framed a title (see previous post for advice on how to do this).
• You should also have done some research on your chosen topic in order enrich your ideas.

It is now time to put your ideas together.

Before you write, make a plan. Different people think and therefore plan in different ways. Some use bullet points, others build charts, others design spidergrams. Whichever your preferences are, do not attempt to start writing without a plan; if you do so, you run the risk of going off subject or branching out in unintended directions, thus losing the focus of your essay. Your plan should contain information on the following:

• Hypothesis/thesis statement that is closely connected with your chosen title
• Points/Ideas that prove that hypothesis or develop the thesis statement
• Evidence that supports your points, usually in the form of quotes

This plan should then be developed into an essay through the addition of:

• Analysis of the evidence
• A conclusion referring back to your hypothesis/thesis statement + a reflection on your findings

So that the final product should be something like:

Considering that you are expected to write 1200-1500 words, the number of paragraphs suggested is tentative; how many points you will make will depend on the length of the analysis of each piece of evidence. IB examiners will not read more than 1500 words. The essay should be developed “over an extended period of time”[i], so that you should first plan your arguments, draft, get advice from your IB teacher (your IB teacher will give you regular feedback on your work, but they will not edit or correct your work directly) and finally produce a definitive version of your IB essay. You will be given marks both for the ideas presented in the essay (10 marks), and for the way you have organized your essay and the quality of your language (10 marks).

You are required to produce a formal essay, so it should be written in the appropriate register:

• mostly impersonal and precise,
• containing long and carefully constructed sentences
• without contractions (it’s / they’re) or abbreviations (short forms of words e.g. abbrev.= abbreviation)
• containing specialized and complex vocabulary. As you are expected to demonstrate “a deeper understanding of the nature of literary study”[ii], the use of appropriate literary terminology is an asset.

It should also be well structured and show evidence of good citation and referencing skills. All sources should be accurately cited so that the essay responds to the IB policy on academic honesty; in other words, plagiarism should be carefully avoided. There are several citation styles that you can choose from (MLA, APA, Chicago, among others) and it is important not to mix styles. Once you have chosen a citation style, you should stick to it throughout your work.

Finally, edit your work before submitting it. You can take these points into consideration, or find an editing checklist on line.

• Grammar
• Formatting
• Capitalization
• Punctuation, including quotation marks where necessary
• Spelling
• Lexical choices

And … this is it! There are no magical recipes to a successful IB DP English Higher Level coursework essay, but going step by step and working in a systematic, organized way will surely take you there.