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IB History - How to get a grade 7 in Standard Level history.
A 10 point plan (because these things are always come in tens).
Let’s assume it’s September of DP1 and you have found this page right at the beginning of the course. For you, the most important advice is at the beginning of the following list. If you do the first things on the list, you will probably learn to do the later stuff on your own. If this is you, well done and good luck. |
However, in the real world most students are not like that. For most students visiting this page on the site, it is probably much, much later in the course and you are looking for advice on how to optimise the few months, weeks or even days that remain before your final exams. Don’t worry, this corner cutting list is mainly for you, just jump ahead straight to number 6.
Long-term advice |
1. Try to get interested in the history. Many teachers will assume that you chose IB history in Group 3 because you like history. I know this isn’t true. You chose it because it is familiar, or because you don’t like the geography teacher or simply because you had to choose something. Maybe you wish you are in an A Level school where you only have to do science. Anyway, now you’re here, so make an effort. If you find things boring, it’s usually because you don’t understand those things. The content of the history lessons is very easy to predict (one damn thing after another) so read ahead (or watch YouTube videos made by people who are interested). The more you know, the easier it becomes to know more. And try to cultivate curiosity. Get used to asking "why" and "what if" about everything. Challenge assumptions, explore multiple perspectives, and connect history to current events. |
2. Get into a good routine. It is never too early to do this (but it can become too late). Regularly spending 20 minutes reading ahead is an example of a good routine. Set time aside to do what you should do, but will not do if you don’t set time aside. This is exactly like trying to get fit. If you want to get fit, you have to do stuff that you don’t want to do when you’re unfit. What’s painful at the start becomes easier, automatic and even pleasurable over time. Set small realistic goals to begin with (read for 10 minutes) and build on them. Rather than muscle and lung capacity you will be developing knowledge and your capacity to concentrate. The more you know the easier it will be to concentrate. |
3. Learn how to learn (and revise) better. This is true of all subjects. You have been learning for about a decade, and you are pretty good at it, but try and get better. Break down the distinction between learning and revision. Good revision techniques work all the time, not just before tests. Passive reading is never enough. Write stuff down by hand from memory (don’t type). Try teaching somebody else. Cultivate and ask good questions (see above) and assume the answer is always yes and no. Always assume that whatever historical event you are studying is to some extent like another event you have studied before (or something on the news). Where have you seen this before? In what ways is this similar or different? Why is it important? If you are having to think, you are asking good questions. |
4. Use AI. Everything I have written so far I have been saying to students for 30 years. But this point is new, uncertain and possibly controversial. How effectively you can use artificial intelligence will probably make a big difference. Learn to treat AI as a personal tutor not a personal servant; the sorts of questions you ask it can make all the difference. Let it know you are an IB history student and make it understand you want to learn. Let it teach you. It knows more history content and is much more patient than your school history teacher. It never gets tired and it won’t judge you. Upload and re-upload your work and ask for feedback, don’t be afraid to ask silly questions that reveal your ignorance and ask it to test you on what you think you know. Most importantly resist letting the AI do all the thinking for you. Make it understand you want it to help you to think. |
5. Write a good Internal Assessment. This is the last of the long-haul advice. Since it's worth 25% of your final grade, a good IA is almost essential to getting a 7. For the IA specifically, a 7 is typically around 19-25 marks out of 25. A great IA is ideally something you are really interested in, a narrow, analytical, and well documented subject. Try to access genuine primary sources; something with a local dimension perhaps or recently declassified or published data. Spend most time on Section B. Choose a question that historians disagree about and that you can evaluate. Make your 5-10 references per page mainly from academic books and articles. (Use AI to help you select and read them). Choose two very different types of sources that work well for Section A and carefully research the Origin and Purpose. Refer directly to the content of the sources (quote extracts and show that you have read it). Remember your TOK history lessons for Section C and try to imagine the problems historians would face. Make three distinct points about those challenges. |
Short-term advice |
6. Learn what you need and nothing more. Very little of what you have learnt in lessons and written in your notes will actually be used in the final exams. Work out what you need for each of the two exam papers and learn it. No one is going to test you on simply how much you can remember from two years of lessons. You would be amazed at how few historical facts make their way into student exam papers. And most teachers overestimate how much historical knowledge is needed for a student to attain a grade 7. Learn the content that can be applied in as wide a range of situations as possible. What can you learn for Paper 1 that might also be used in Paper 2? Which facts can be used for the widest range of questions in a Paper 2 Topic? For example, studying Cold War via the Berlin Blockade and Cuban Missiles Crisis allows you answer at least one question on Paper 2 as long as you consider the leaders and impact on Germany and Cuba. Study Cuba and the post-war East Germany as authoritarian states and you also have another essay on Paper 2. |
7. Really understand what the exam papers expect you to do. The IB history exam has very few surprises. The same question types and content themes come up year after year. On Paper 1 keep your answers concise and focused and allow time for Q4, the mini essay. Q2 - use the words origin, purpose and content at least once and separate two values from two limitations. Q3 - separate the similarities (compare) from the differences (contrast) and refer precisely to the content of the sources. Try to have 25 minutes to answer the last question and make a series of points that actually address the question set, that are supported by both the sources (write Source A, Source B etc.) and your own knowledge. (see Point 6). We now have many years of past paper questions to consider, spend time getting to know them. |
8. Choose to prepare the right essay exam questions. Although all the essay questions on Paper 2 ought to be of equal difficulty, they are not. Topic 10 Authoritarian States is one of the most difficult because of the number of variables the syllabus explicitly expects you to study. For example, compare the amount of information you need to learn to cover the syllabus for Topic 10 Authoritarian States with other topics. When I wrote revision sheets, I ended up with 15k words for Authoritarian States, 7k for Topic 12 Cold War and 4k for Topic 8 Independence Movements. In addition, some topics and questions are considerably more predictable. The same sort of questions appear session after session for Independence Movements because there are only so many ways of asking different questions about the same topics. So, rather than studying two topics and expecting to answer any two questions that come up, you are probably better off studying a range of topics and preparing 5 or 6 questions that regularly come up. |
9. Learn how to write a 45-minute essay. Writing two 45-minute essays back-to-back it what makes History the hardest of the Group 3 subjects. It is also the task that distinguishes the grade 7 student from those below. If you want a 7 this is what you have to do well because these essays are worth 45% of your final grade. You don’t need to produce two essays in the top band 13-15 to get a 7, two essays getting 11 or 12 should be enough. We’re looking for at least three sides of A4 per essay, well structured paragraphs, focused on the question, evaluative and well supported with precise relevant factual evidence. The introduction is critically important, but you don’t have time for anything fancy. Clearly state your argument in the introduction, engage directly with the question (ATBQ) and outline your response (signpost). If you are going to make three points in your essay, you make three points in your introduction. Each of these points will be repeated as the first sentences of each of your body paragraphs. Each of these paragraphs will be supported by precise factual evidence (names, dates, places etc.). Most importantly the essay question with be evaluative: ‘to what extent’ ‘how far’ ‘discuss’ etc. This means that you must show that appreciate that the question involves a degree of historical debate. At least one of your paragraphs must challenge the assumption in the question and provide a different perspective. (counterargument). If you have done all of this then the conclusion should be self-evident and less important. If you are hoping to get into the 13-15 bracket, then you need to make informed judgments about which side of the argument you find most persuasive and why. But sometimes the simple layering on of excellent examples of good factual knowledge can also be enough. |
10. Practice writing 45-minute essays, repeatedly. This is almost as much a physical challenge as it is mental. Upload the syllabus and past paper questions to AI and ask it to generate some new questions. Use AI to help you plan them and to give you feedback on those you complete. But unless you are a student allowed to use a computer in exams, make sure you also practice writing by hand. Try to speed up slightly every time you write. Try to fit in an extra paragraph or a second example to support the paragraph point you made. At the end of a revision session write down and number six potential questions. Next morning, get out of bed and role a dice. Write the numbered essay that comes up in 45 minutes before you do anything else that day. This is the most painful form of revision, but it is also the most useful. As I said earlier, build effective routines. |