Internal assessment: you engage with a political issue and write a report (SL 30 %, HL 20 %).
Engagement
Active involvement: interviews, volunteering, attending meetings, campaigning, simulations.
Political issue
A specific question about power, contested by different actors.
Complementary research
Academic and other sources supporting your engagement.
Choose a specific political issue you can engage with first-hand, phrased as a question (e.g. “To what extent do local residents shape housing policy in my city?”).
The full notes, worked example and check questions for this subtopic are in the app.
Exam tip: Engagement should be with people, not just reading: interviews with contrasting stakeholders give you perspectives for free.
6.2Writing the report
Key terms
Analysis
Explaining how and why, using concepts.
Perspectives
Views of different stakeholders on the issue.
Evaluation
Weighing evidence, strengths and limits to reach judgments.
Synthesis
Bringing engagement and research together into an argument.
Structure: introduction (issue, why it matters), engagement (what you did and learned), analysis using concepts (power, legitimacy…), perspectives, evaluation and conclusion.
The full notes, worked example and check questions for this subtopic are in the app.
Exam tip: Every paragraph should show engagement + concept + perspective: that's the core of a high-scoring report.