For those of you who haven't exactly been paying attention to the whole "First day of school" speeches, you might feel left in the dark as to why others around you are freaking out and constantly pronouncing the two same vowels twice, similar to a monkey's mating call you think. Without further ado, here is the ultimate guide to succeeding in one of the most imposing assignments you will receive throughout the upcoming two years.
So, what exactly is the Extended Essay?
Well, as you could guess from the first letter of the title, it's pretty extended alright: 4'000 of your own words on any topic you would like, While this might seem like an unsurmountable challenge at first, the reality couldn't be any more different. You aren't completely alone in your assignmet, though, since your supervisor will be happy (kinda) to meet with you and discuss your progress throughout the way. This doesn't mean its a walk in the park either, because if you fail your Extended Essay, your chances of grabbing that coveted diploma are pretty much inexistent.
Help! I have no idea what to write about!!!
Ok stop right there. Take a breath. All good? Good. Think of the Extended Essay as your baby: you get to name it, take care of it, watch it grow and progress and maybe even get the approval of your peers on the amazing job you're doing. You might feel as if the earlier you get started the better, but instead take some time to really think about what you are most passionate about, because no topic, no matter how obscure, is too "taboo" for the IB board reviewing your EE. If you're writing about something that truly interests and fascinates you, you might soon realize you've written too much! Two years is a long time to write an essay, so make sure you're happy with your topic and I can guarantee that the words will come flowing out of your hands and onto your screen.
Another common preconception most people have is that a vague title is good for their EE as it will allow them to write enough to fill up the word count. I highly advise against this, as you will soon realize that you haven't managed to answer the question due to lack of a proper center of focus, losing you precious marks. Precision is your friend here.' The wording of the question will also help you in your answer. Let's look at the subject of history and two questions identical in content save for the nuances in their wording:
Question 1:
How did the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand lead to the start of the First World War?
Question 2:
To what extent did the assassionation of Archduke Franz Ferdinand lead to the start of the First World War?
The second question is better suited to an Extended Essay in history, as the "To what extent" element will allow to divide your EE into three distinct sections:
1. Reasons why his assassination led to the breakout of the war.
2. Other factors that lead to the breakout of the war.
3. Which was most significant?
Had a student chosen the first question, he/she would soon find themselves struggling with keeping their answer structured and organized, hence denying them the marks in that respective category.
What is the best way to get started?
If you're a procastinator like me, you'll hate the amount of time you're given to write your Extended Essay and will want to leave it to the last minute. I'm not the best person to advocate for an organized approach to writing an EE, as I wrote all 4000 words the night before the June deadline, but then again for some reason I can only write late at night so I guess it was worth the 2 hours of sleep. What I recommend is to force yourself into staying in an environment without any distractions whatsoever. That means you can forget about your bedroom no matter how "studious" its setup might be, or even your house for that matter (boredom-induced snacking is the 8th deadly sin ultimately leading to procastination purgatory). Instead, go to a local cafe or library (I can't recommend enough going to Uni-Mail to study inside the university building) along with all of your research and just write. Seriously, just force yourself to start somewhere and you will find that once that intiial barrier is crossed, the rest comes rather easily. You don't have to alienate yourself from society for a whole weekend either, but you will find that you can get large sections done in very little time with this approach. Writing completed earlier = More feedback = A better grade. Feedback is your friend. Simple.
If there's one last point I must mention - and this one is rather controversial - its to not worry too much about the end product. Concentrate on satisfying all the criteria for the Extended Essay and get as much feedback as possible, but at the end of the day it is impossible to rely on your predicted grade since the marking is known to be so unpredictable. However, that shouldn't stop you from being able to write something truly amazing which you can be proud of. It's not everyday that you're given the freedom of choice in school, so take advantage of this opportunity and express your ideas!
...Now close your tabs and get back to work.