Assessing the early components

About six months before the written examinations in May and November, the IBO mails examination stationery to each school. This includes various coversheets, the visual arts candidate record booklet and folders in which to enclose the extended essays. Most of this stationery is required for the early assessment components that must reach examiners about six weeks before the written examinations begin.

The early externally assessed components include:

• the extended essay
• theory of knowledge essay
• language A1 world literature
• language A2 written tasks.

These components help ensure that the diploma has a broad and rigorous assessment that is not dependent simply on the written examinations in May or November. Internal assessment of candidates’ work by their teachers provides further breadth and rigour. The teachers’ marking is moderated by the IBO to ensure that all marks are awarded to a consistent standard.

Spreading the deadlines for the submission of candidates’ work keeps examiners and IBO administrative staff very busy throughout the whole year. In fact, if the marking and moderating of the early components coincided with the written examinations, the administration of assessment would become an almost impossible task, requiring several thousand more examiners.