6. If we conclude that there is some knowledge we should not pursue on ethical grounds, how can we determine the boundaries of acceptable investigation within an area of knowledge? Discuss with reference to two areas of knowledge. “Knowledge” – make sure you are clear and specific in your essay about what kinds Read more…
5. How can we distinguish between good and bad interpretations? Discuss with reference to the arts and one other area of knowledge. “distinguish” – There are numerous ways (sometimes the ways depend on the AOK) to distinguish between good and bad interpretations. Some of the ways include peer review of academic publications, re-doing experiments, Read more…
4. How do historians and human scientists give knowledge meaning through the telling of stories? Discuss with reference to history and the human sciences. “Historians and human scientists” – You need to talk about more than history and the human sciences with this prescribed title – you need to specifically discuss individual historians and human scientists. You Read more…
3. Is there solid justification for regarding knowledge in the natural sciences more highly than knowledge in another area of knowledge? Discuss with reference to the natural sciences and one other area of knowledge. “Is there…” Historically, not many prescribed titles are yes / no questions. This prescribed does have a yes / no Read more…
2. To what extent do you agree with the claim that “there’s a world of difference between truth and facts” (Maya Angelou)? Answer with reference to two areas of knowledge. “To what extent do you agree” – There are very rarely cases in TOK where an argument is 100% for or against something. If Read more…
The first step in breaking down a prescribed title is carefully picking apart / analyzing the key words in it. 1. Can there be knowledge that is independent of culture? Discuss with reference to mathematics and one other area of knowledge. Try to avoid superficial / stereotypical approaches to the prescribed title Read more…
The May 2022 set of TOK essay prescribed titles is quite a bit different from the last few years’. This set includes references to AOKs in prescribed titles which the IB has not done for years. The fact that almost all of the May 2022 prescribed titles mention an AOK does limit Read more…