IB Extended Essay General Guide. Archive copy.: EE Blog

Research Proposal and IT Workshop 1

Following Seminar 2 today (available to review here), you now have several immediate tasks to complete, which will set you on the right path as you look ahead to the investigation days coming up just after half term.

1. Complete your Research Proposal form and upload it to MangageBac by January 12th. Make sure that you refer clearly to the relevant subject guide as well as to the general ethical guidelines, both of which can be found on the Subject Guides tab of the general LibGuide. Consider your topic in the light of the subject specific guidelines for writing an EE in your chosen subject (e.g. if your subject requires you to use primary sources or generate your own data through experiments, will that be possible/practical/ethical for the topic you have chosen with the time and equipment you have available?). It is also important to check whether there are any specific ethical guidelines for your subject. In general these are likely to be more important in subjects where you are gathering your own data.
   Note that you don't have to have the answers to all these questions before you fill in the form, but this is an opportunity for you to make sure you have read the subject specific guidelines carefully, and if there is anything you don't understand, make a note of it on the form so that you can discuss it with your supervisor. You are expected to have done some background reading, even if at this stage it is relatively superficial, so make a note of anything you have read that has helped you to gather ideas about your topic. Remember that this is YOUR essay, about something that interests YOU. It is not your supervisor's job to decide on your topic for you, although they can give you guidance about what is and is not likely to be a productive place to start.
2. Contact your supervisor as soon as possible to make an appointment to meet them next week. You should have uploaded the Research Proposal before you actually meet your supervisor, but you can make the appointment now!
3. Complete your First Reflection on ManageBac. Do this after you have met with your supervisor and before January 18th. If you have thought carefully about your Research Proposal form and had a productive meeting with your supervisor, the First Reflection should be easy. Remember that all three reflections can be no more than 500 words in total, so you should aim for about 150 words in this first one. Once you have submitted it on ManageBac it cannot be changed.
4. Set up your Researcher's Reflection Space. Decide how you are going to organise your notes and set up your system now. Do you work best on paper or on a computer? Do you want to use a mix? For your computer-based notes, where are you going to save them? A cloud-based solution (like OneNote or OneDrive) might be safest because you can access it from anywhere and it is backed up, but if you choose to save on a laptop then make sure you take regular back ups. If you save on the school network, are you able to access that during the holidays?
5. Attend the IT Workshop next Wednesday (15th January), period 3 to learn how to use the Investigative Journal effectively and how to cite and reference your sources using the embedded tools in Word. You will receive an email later this week to let you know which room you need to come to for this.

You are at such an exciting point in the process. You have an idea of what you want to investigate, but no idea yet of where that investigation will take you. Your notebook is open at its first blank page, waiting to be filled. Take a moment to enjoy the anticipation - you are well on your way to becoming an inquirer and conducting your first piece of 'grown up' research!