Three selected essays in each subject, with independent breakdowns and original assessment material where available. No account or email required.
27 essays · 9 subjects
Archived IB exemplars and assessed essays. Scores belong to the original assessment session; each breakdown identifies its source.
IB excellent essay collection · 2011
A student-created drawing system becomes a mathematical investigation through conjecture, modular angles, classification and proof.
Selected excellent essay; numeric mark not stated
A numerical exploration of the brachistochrone problem begins with straight segments, then uses calculus to compare candidate curves. The essay develops a cycloid solution and connects its computational findings to Bernoulli's argument, showing why convincing numerical evidence still needs a mathematical justification beyond tested examples.
A separate one-page examiner commentary accompanies the essay. It praises the investigation and identifies an overlong middle section; it does not state an individual numeric mark or letter grade.
Examiner mark: 32/36 (legacy criteria)
This essay models where a rugby conversion should be taken to maximize the angle between the goalposts. Trigonometric calculus and circle geometry produce matching results, before the model considers the crossbar, practical approximations and limitations arising from ball flight, player accuracy and changing weather conditions.
The examiner mark sheet is embedded on PDF page 3 and records 32/36. No separate narrative examiner commentary is included with this selection; the teaching analysis is our own.
IB excellent essay collection · 2011
A controlled experiment compares plant appearance, chlorophyll content and photosynthetic electron transport across three horticultural insecticides.
Examiner mark: 35/36 (legacy criteria)
A controlled investigation measures dragonfly nymph movement under different light, temperature and pH conditions. Three behavioural measures, graphical comparisons and significance tests turn observations into an argument. Its strongest teaching feature is the distinction between suggestive patterns, statistically supported differences and conclusions limited by sampling.
The final two PDF pages (29–30) contain the examiner's criterion comments, holistic review and 35/36 total under the historical rubric. The file letter A is an exemplar identifier; no letter grade is asserted.
Examiner mark: 35/36 (legacy criteria)
A maze experiment investigates whether larger woodlice alternate turns more frequently. Preliminary studies establish the behaviour and compare two species before the main size investigation. The paper connects a null correlation to competing explanations, offering useful lessons about replication, biological mechanisms, sampling limits and interpretation.
PDF p. 3 contains an examiner mark sheet recording 35/36. PDF p. 4 is a supervisor report, not examiner commentary. No separate narrative examiner review is supplied; the teaching notes are based on the paper.
IB excellent essay collection · 2011
A two-factor experiment examines how ultraviolet light and cyanuric-acid stabilizer change hypochlorite decay in pool water.
Examiner mark: 36/36 (legacy criteria)
This investigation compares five amounts of sodium borohydride in the reduction of vanillin to vanillyl alcohol. Chromatography tracks conversion, while yield and product checks inform a green chemistry compromise. The evaluation distinguishes reaction completion from recovered product and identifies limits in timing, replication and measurement.
The examiner mark sheet is embedded on PDF page 3 and records 36/36 under the legacy criteria. No separate narrative examiner commentary is included with this selection; the teaching analysis is our own.
Examiner mark: 34/36 (legacy criteria)
The essay investigates how four chloride salts and their concentrations affect silver nanoparticle aggregation. Absorbance measurements track changes over time and support comparisons between salts. A mathematical calibration estimates particle size, while the evaluation explains how instrument resolution, sedimentation and large uncertainties constrain the conclusions.
The source includes an examiner mark sheet on PDF page 3 recording 34/36 and handwritten annotations in the essay. No separate narrative commentary PDF is included; the teaching analysis does not attribute untranscribed annotations to the examiner.
IB excellent essay collection · 2011
Galaxy images and spectra are used to estimate the Hubble parameter and cosmic age, followed by a discussion of model assumptions and uncertainty.
Examiner-described top-range achievement; numeric mark not stated
A recurve bow provides a practical test of energy transfer beyond a simple spring model. The investigation combines force measurements, integration and video analysis of arrow motion to estimate efficiency at different draw lengths, then evaluates measurement uncertainty, release technique and limitations in interpreting results.
A separate one-page examiner commentary accompanies the essay. It describes achievement at the low end of the top range without providing a numeric mark or individual letter grade.
Examiner-described excellent achievement; numeric mark not stated
A scaled street-lighting model tests how lamp height affects average illuminance and its uniformity across a road. Measurements at nine positions are compared with physical models and historical design criteria, leading to a proposed spacing ratio and a careful discussion of extrapolation and experimental limitations.
A separate one-page examiner commentary accompanies the essay. It describes the achievement as excellent but gives no numeric mark or individual letter grade.
IB excellent essay collection · 2011
The paper considers how effectively public information, taxation and regulation reduced overconsumption of spirits in Singapore.
Complete original PDF · 37 pages.
Examiner mark: 31/36 (legacy criteria)
This local study asks whether lower incomes can create welfare gains through changes in tobacco, alcohol and leisure consumption. Surveys and interviews are compared with national evidence and externality diagrams. The argument is useful for studying conflicting evidence, local context and the limits of attribution.
PDF pp. 3–4 contain 31/36 examiner assessment forms; p. 3 includes short handwritten criterion comments. PDF p. 2 is a separate supervisor report. The summaries below paraphrase only the examiner's legible notes.
Examiner mark: 33/36 (legacy criteria)
A policy model follows a proposed tax from prices through consumption to healthcare spending. The essay combines published elasticities, research interviews and a small questionnaire, then calculates a conditional range of outcomes. Its value lies in exposing assumptions, distributional effects and uncertainty across each stage.
The examiner mark sheet on PDF p. 3 records 33/36 under the historical rubric. No separate narrative examiner commentary is supplied. The policy estimates belong to this 2013 essay and are not current healthcare forecasts.
IB excellent essay collection · 2011
A focused decision question asks whether an agricultural organization should enter a new overseas market.
Selected excellent exemplar
A historical strategy study compares a proposed airline merger with an existing alliance. Industry research, company profiles and two force-field analyses explain why the balance of advantages might change. It demonstrates focused strategic comparison while revealing the risks of subjective weighting and unquantified benefits throughout.
A complete examiner review is supplied in the separate one-page commentary. Selection is verified by the IB's 2011 excellent-essay collection; no numerical mark or letter grade is stated. The business scenario is historical.
Selected excellent exemplar
This strategic decision study weighs forestry responsibility against cost pressure at IKEA Sweden. Secondary research, company information, PEST analysis and stakeholder mapping build a recommendation that distinguishes immediate savings from longer-term risks. It is particularly useful for studying focused scope, conflicting interests and evidence gaps.
The separate one-page examiner commentary reviews this selected essay from the IB's 2011 collection. It supports the excellent-exemplar label but gives no numerical mark or letter grade. The recession scenario is historical.
IB excellent essay collection · 2011
The investigation weighs British strengths against German mistakes to explain the battle’s outcome without turning into a narrative chronology.
Examiner mark: 31/36 (legacy criteria)
An investigation of the December 1972 bombing campaign weighs American political and military objectives against its immediate outcomes. Comparing competing accounts, negotiations and eyewitness testimony, the essay distinguishes securing a settlement from achieving lasting strategic success, making the definition of success central to its historical argument.
PDF page 3 contains a complete typed criterion commentary and the recorded 31/36 total. The essay itself is dated 2013 on its title page; the source collection is labelled May 2015. Commentary is embedded in the same PDF.
Examiner marks: 34/36 and 33/36 (legacy criteria)
This essay investigates the Danish population's contribution to the rescue of Danish Jews in 1943. It weighs civilian networks, warnings and decisions by German officials, and Swedish assistance, using testimony and historical accounts to distinguish public willingness to help from the conditions that made escape possible.
The two examiner totals appear on PDF page 3. Handwritten annotations occur within the essay, including pages 15 and 20–22, but faint handwriting is not reliably legible and is not paraphrased here. The commentary link opens the same PDF.
IB excellent essay collection · 2011
The essay compares programme design, community support, socioeconomic context and funding in Indigenous Australian and international education settings.
Examiner mark: 33/36 (legacy criteria)
A literature-based investigation compares task-oriented and ego-oriented coaching climates through achievement goal theory and self-determination theory. It considers motivation, anxiety, competence and performance, then qualifies its conclusions through athlete differences and social context, showing why a coaching recommendation needs more precision than a simple preference for one climate.
The examiner assessment form on PDF page 3 records 33/36. The supervisor report on page 2 is separate from examiner feedback. No substantive narrative examiner commentary accompanies this selection.
Examiner mark: 32/36 (legacy criteria)
This investigation evaluates whether emotional intelligence improves workplace performance by comparing definitions, assessment methods and occupational studies. Its most useful methodological thread concerns the gap between association and improvement: measurement problems, alternative explanations and reverse causality complicate claims that emotional intelligence itself produces better results at work.
The examiner mark sheet is embedded on PDF page 3 and records 32/36. Body pages include marking ticks but no substantive prose examiner commentary was identified. The page 2 supervisor report is not treated as examiner feedback.
IB excellent essay collection · 2011
Three Shakespearean characters are compared through one interpretive lens: how early-modern English attitudes toward France shape their representation.
Examiner marks: 36/36 and 34/36 (legacy criteria)
A comparative reading of The Tenant of Wildfell Hall and The Woman in White examines narrative structure, animal imagery and property. The essay links close analysis to Victorian expectations, exploring how female voices and material independence challenge convention while narrative framing and unresolved tensions complicate claims of liberation.
Two examiner totals are recorded on PDF page 3. Faint handwritten annotations occur across PDF pages 8–16; these are not reliably legible and are not paraphrased here. The commentary link opens the same PDF.
Examiner mark: 31/36 (legacy criteria)
An English A language investigation compares selected rap lyrics from different periods through address, slang, allusion and rhetorical effects. Close readings trace shifts in the chosen songs' presentation of community, gender and self-promotion, providing a useful example of language analysis alongside a clear need to limit genre-wide conclusions.
The examiner mark sheet appears on PDF page 3. Legible handwritten examiner comments appear on pages 5, 7, 8, 13 and 17. This image-based PDF was read visually, including these comments; the commentary is embedded in the same file.
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