Information about Ib Group 4 Subjects

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This article is part of the International Baccalaureate series.

IB programmes: Primary Years Programme Middle Years Programme Diploma Programme

Institutions: The IBO United World Colleges

Lists: Acronyms IB people IB schools

IBDP curriculum: Group 1 subjects Group 2 subjects Group 3 subjects Group 4 subjects Group 5 subjects Group 6 subjects Extended Essay Theory of Knowledge Creativity, Action, Service

The Group Four of IB Diploma Programme subjects, subtitled experimental sciences, consists of biology, chemistry, physics, Design Technology, and environmental systems. The last subject is only available at the Standard Level (SL). There is also a pilot programme, ecosystems and societies, available at certain schools that counts for both a Group 3 and a Group 4 subject. Students taking two (or in exceptional circumstances, three) Group 4 subjects may combine any of the aforementioned except for environmental systems and biology.

Structure and assessment

Group 4 subjects follow roughly the same format. Each subject has its Subject Specific Core (SSC), i.e., material taught at both the standard and higher levels. Students sitting the Higher Level examination study the Additional Higher Level (AHL) material. Lastly, there is a list of options for each subject from which two are chosen. Higher Level students are sometimes unable to choose certain options that are available to Standard Level students because the AHL already covers it. Ideally, students choose the options based on their own abilities and preferences, but in practice the options are usually chosen by the school (based on the school's scientific facilities as well as the discretion of the instructor). Students spend one-fourth of the 190 hours of SL instruction (240 hours for HL; however, both numbers are merely recommendations and are not enforced) doing practical work in the laboratory. Group 4 subjects at the Standard Level are tailored for students who do not see themselves in further science instruction after leaving the programme.

Assessment of a Group 4 subject comprises the following:

• Internal assessment of the practical work (24%)
• Paper 1 - multiple choice questions on the SSC (20%)
• Paper 2 - free response questions on the SSC (32% at SL, 36% at HL)
• Paper 3 - free response questions on the options (24% at SL, 20% at HL)

At the Standard Level, the examinations are respectively 45 minutes, 1 hour and 15 minutes, and 1 hour long. At the Higher Level, they are 1 hour, 2 hours and 15 minutes, and 1 hour and 15 minutes long. Calculators are not permitted for Paper 1, but they (as well as a provided formula booklet and periodic table) are permitted for papers 2 and 3.

Biology

Note: The biology syllabus is undergoing revision for the May 2006 examination session. Please edit this section as updates become known.

Biology is the science of life and living organisms. Aside from instruction relevant to this, students are given the chance to learn complex laboratory techniques (e.g., DNA extraction) as well as develop mindful opinions about controversial topics in biology (e.g., stem-cell research and genetic modification). The syllabus lists thirteen topics, to be covered in an order varying from school to school: 1 - Cells; 2 - Chemistry of Life; 3 - Genetics; 4 - Ecology and evolution; 5 - Health and human physiology; 6 - Nucleic acids and proteins; 7 - Cellular respiration and photosynthesis; 8 - Further genetics; 9 - Human reproduction; 10 - Defense against infectious disease; 11 - Nerves, muscle, and movement; 12 - Excretion; 13 - Plant Science

The options: A - Diet and human nutrition; B - Physiology of exercise C - Cells and energy; D - Evolution; E - Neurobiology and behaviour; F - Applied plant and animal science; G - Ecology and conservation; H - Further human physiology.

The theory is covered in detail on a number of websites [1][2]

The Internal Assessment for Biology includes the submission of a number of lab reports covering certain skills like ability to plan an experiment, ability to present data and ability to process data. Overall these count for 24% of a students final grade.

Group 4 project

All students of the Diploma Programme in any of these subjects will compulsorily complete a Group 4 project, an empirical activity which pertains to each of the Group 4 subjects. Students from the each of the different subjects will form groups, select a topic, and present how their science is relevant to the topic. For example, a successful Group 4 project on jello could comprise of a biology student describing jello's contribution to human nutrition, a chemistry student describing the chemical constituencies of jello, and a physics student describing the deceleration of movement of an object when it passes through jello. The students collaborate on the Group 4 project report, which includes a personal summary of their involvement in the project. Some schools choose to have this formatively assessed, others do not. In consequence, for some schools the Group 4 project is almost entirely a formality, counting for very little of a student's final mark. [jk it's worth 100%]