Mistakes I made studying for my IB DP Exams that you don’t need to: some valuable tips from an IBDP teacher

Now that I am done with my International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme (IB DP) exams, I can think back to what I could have done better, or rather, what I shouldn’t have done. Here are some of the mistakes I believe I made which I would like to share with the next batch of IB students.

Mistake #1: Too much ‘reviewing my notes’, too few past papers 

When the spring before my IB DP exams finally rolled around, after two years of having my brain stuffed to the brim with information, formulas, definitions, facts, concepts and dates, I was so lost on how to even begin to revise all the material!

I thought it would be a great idea to go over all my notes from the past years and refresh the information in my mind. And to a certain extent it was a good idea. However, in retrospect, I spent far too much time going over notes because I never felt like I was quite ‘ready’ to start doing past IB DP papers. I thought I had to understand all the concepts and ideas perfectly (or at least very well) before I could begin to work on applying them. I didn’t realise I was NEVER going to feel ‘ready’ to start past IB papers. There will always be more you can learn, memorise and understand.

The other thing I didn’t realise is that doing past IB exam papers is actually a great way to memorise information, understand concepts and learn how to apply them. Doing past papers is a form of ‘active recall’ which has been proven to be by far the most effective study technique. Doing past IB DP papers forces you to actively dig through your brain to retrieve the relevant knowledge and teaches you to apply it in the same format you’ll have to use in your actual IB exams. Furthermore, you’ll quickly realise that there are a lot of patterns to be found in the style of questions asked and how to formulate your answers in such a way that you’re meeting the criteria. Practicing past IB DP papers is also a great way to realise where your strengths and weaknesses are, and this helps inform you the other parts of the IB syllabus where you need to revise more for the IB exam. 

Your IB teachers will be happy to provide you with some past papers, which you can go over with your tutors, if you have one, or with classmates. To grade them: practice doing it yourself using the set criteria (which is also a great learning tool).  Get yourself a study partner, or ask your older siblings, parents, friends, teachers or tutors. There are a lot of people keen to help you do your best. And if you’re doing an IB past paper and realise that the subject matter is something you’re shaky on, just do it ‘open-book’ and treat the whole thing as a learning experience. So, start doing past IB papers from day 1 of your revision.

Mistake #2: Not understanding that 60% effort will get you 80% there 

Some of you are taking economics and will recognise the concept of the law of diminishing marginal returns but for those of you that aren’t let me explain… The theory suggests that after some optimal level of capacity is reached, adding additional factors of production will actually result in smaller increases in output. Just bear with me for a second, the point will soon become clear! 

Now you might be wondering… why is this relevant to me? And the answer is because the theory applies to the time you invest in studying for your IB exams! Say you were initially planning not to study for your IB maths exam at all, increasing your studying time to 2h per week for two months leading up the exams will hugely improve your grade as many of the formulas and their applications are now fresh in your mind. If before you were going to get a 2 in maths, now you’re set to get a 4. Say you increase your studying time by a further 2h you’ll get to go over the material twice which will mean you can recall it better but the difference it makes to your grade is not as great as before. If with 2h of studying you were set to get a 4, with 4h of studying you’re likely to get a 5. If you add an additional 2h of studying to your week your grade will still increase but by even less than before, because at this point you’re investing this extra 2h in some really specific areas that you’re struggling with. One or two questions on the exam might be about that topic but understanding those concepts better hugely impacts your IB grade, now you will get a low 6. If you add an additional 2h you will be able to get a high 6. If you add a further 2h of studying you will get a 7. To add an additional 2h on top of this your grades will eventually actually start to drop as you are not getting enough sleep in order to study, not exercising, not eating well and thus your performance eventually decreases. I have illustrated the concept on the graph below 🙂 (*Economics students everywhere are groaning*)

So you know that going from 0h to 2h of studying almost doubles your grade, but going from 2h of studying to 4h of studying only increases your IB grade by 1 point, and going from 4h to 6h doesn’t even bring you into a higher grade bracket. And now consider the fact that you are not just studying for your IB maths exam but for a further 5 exams. You can’t invest 100% of your energy into every single subject you’re studying for. You have to prioritise some subjects over others. Investing 8 or 10 hours into IB maths per week to get a 6 or 7 might be a good idea if its your higher level subject and you want to study maths at university, but it might also be a complete waste of your time if you’re taking standard level maths, want to studying English at university and all you need to get into your university of choice is a 5. 

So ask yourself: “In what subjects do I need to invest 100% input for maximum advantage? And in what subjects would it be okay to invest only 60% input for an 80% output?” Realistically, this would all be impacted by what your strengths and weaknesses are, what your IB higher level (IB HL) and IB standard level (IB SL) subjects are and the type of subject. But my advice is to prioritise three subjects slightly over the others. You can’t give 100% to everything –  it’s just unrealistic and you will burn out!

Mistake #3: Not maximising the IB resources available to you

There are so many tools, people and resources available to you to help you succeed, you just have to use them! 

If you’re reading this then clearly you’re already going out of your way to seek information. Keep that up! With a quick search on Google or Youtube you can find so many resources. Whether it’s general things like the most effective IB studying method or having an IB Biology specific concept explained, the internet has it all. Ask your teachers if your school subscribes to any learning platforms, quiz sites, or anything else. Maybe you dislike the textbook you’re using for a particular class, check out your school’s library if they offer different textbooks that might explain the areas you’re struggling with better. You’ll be surprised how many great IB learning tools you can find once you start looking for them. 

Mistake #4: Not asking for help from the people around you

So many people want to see you succeed and are happy to help if you just ask! Your parents, family and friends are most likely all really happy to read over a couple IB essays for you or quiz you on your notes. I am almost certain that most of your IB teachers will be really happy to read over and correct a couple of extra past IB papers for you, if you just ask. 

If you need help don’t be embarrassed to ask for help. Don’t ever feel silly for needing a little extra support for something. Whether that’s just asking an IB teacher to sit down with you during your lunch break and explain something to you or hiring an IB tutor. Don’t ever feel awkward for taking up somebody else’s time with your questions, if they don’t have the time they’ll just say so and it’s no big deal. 

Well, I hope tips help you in preparing for your IB exams. If I had only knew about them before mine!