Things to Know About IB Economics Changes

1. Things to Know About IB Economics Changes If you take your IB exams in the coming year, you will be studying the new Economics course! Changes happened in the year 2022 because the syllabus of economics is the same from the last 9 years so you will be the guinea pig of new material. We at ReWiser took the time to collate the new subject guide and compare it with the old one to see how different the syllabus would be! We have highlighted some of the differences that you need to be aware of. Keep reading to understand. Revised Approach Dependent on Holistic Content Assessment What do you mean by "holistic" in the context of the updated IB Economics syllabus? This means that assessment brings together different curriculum aspects instead of breaking them down and testing them one by one. For this reason, IB Economics students should actively seek connections, similarities, and differences between the concepts in the courses. With the "big picture" in mind, consider making Venn diagrams a part of your study timetable. The change in assessment does not mean that students cannot use previous IB Economics material to prepare for the updated tasks. Rather, we would recommend that students practice answering them from a broader perspective.

2. Revisions to Paper 1 and Paper 2 Both SL (Standard Level) and HL (Higher Level) students are required to write Papers 1 and 2. Only HL students go with an additional task called Paper 3. Earlier, Paper 1 had Section A and Section B, which tests Microeconomics and Macroeconomics concepts. Section A and Section B had 2 subsections, with the first usually requiring explanation and the second generally requiring discussion. For both Section A and Section B, students had the option to choose any one question to answer out of two. All subsections were compulsory for the selected question. The structure of Paper 2 was also similar. It consisted of Section A and Section B which covered International and Developmental Economics. Both questions had four subsections, and students again had a choice of questions. From May 2022, Paper 1 has become an "extended response paper that now assesses the entire syllabus" in keeping with the new holistic nature of IB Economics. Paper 2 consists of both quantitative and qualitative data based on real-world scenarios or case studies. For the revised version of Paper 2, students should feel comfortable working with both math and written text related to economics. Graphic literacy is a requirement, so students should be familiar with a variety of visual representations of economic data throughout the calendar year. Revisions to the Internal Assessment Portfolio The Revised Internal Assessment Portfolio requires students to analyze 3-course concepts from the list: Scarcity, Choice, Efficiency, Equity, Economic Welfare, Sustainability, Change, Interdependence, and Interference. Students should use this assignment to demonstrate how their three selected concepts apply to the real world. To prepare for this assignment throughout the school year, students must keep up with major developments in the world of economics. Ways to do this can include reading financial news in publications such as The Wall Street Journal, which will help students become familiar with financial terminology, relevant graphs, charts, and trending topics. Students need to be aware of these major changes in the IB Economics syllabus to avoid unpleasant surprises and prepare for their best. To know more, you can also read IB's official explanation of these amendments. If you need any personal assistance, reach out to our experts here. We are extremely happy to help in whatever way we can.