Topic 9 · Case Study & Internal Assessment

Booklet released ~8 months BEFORE the exam. Start day it's released — your single biggest Paper 3 lever.

READ booklet twice → GLOSSARY every term → RESEARCH 3-5 sources per term → DRILL timed prompts.

Define EVERY technical term precisely. ~30 terms per case study. Examiners reward precise vocabulary.

3-5 reputable sources per term (vendor whitepapers, peer-reviewed, industry analysis) — Wikipedia alone fails.

Timed mock answers on predicted prompts. Review with teacher. Identifies weak topics.

State (fact) · Identify (pick) · Define (precise meaning) · Describe (account) · Outline (key features) · Explain (reasons) · Distinguish (differences) · Discuss (balanced argument) · Evaluate (judgement w/ evidence).

ALWAYS anchor each paragraph to the case-study scenario by NAME (the booklet's actors, systems, sites). Abstract-only answers score ~50% lower.

Cramming weeks before. Paper 3 rewards months of structured prep — there is no shortcut.

~15 hours total over 8 months. ~1 read + 3 glossary + 6 research + 5 drill.

Full fictional booklet (SmartHarvest IoT) with ~30 invented terms. Read like the real IBO booklet.

Every question in the mock quiz reveals an explicit per-mark breakdown — train the IB marking pattern.

Build a one-line definition per term BEFORE attempting the quiz. ~90 minutes well spent.

Reference MeshLeaf, BroadGap, PulsePush etc. by NAME in every answer. Abstract answers cap at ~50% of marks.

Sit the mock quiz once with the booklet OPEN, then again 4 weeks later with booklet CLOSED. Improvement gap predicts grade-7 readiness.

Telemedicine + cloud + GDPR. Tests that the Paper 3 ANSWER skill transfers across contexts.

Same verb ladder, same per-mark structure, different scenario. Doing two mocks locks in the portable Paper 3 pattern.

Expect ~40% faster glossary build than Mock #1 — the discipline becomes automatic with practice.

Reference PulsePod-2, EchoLens, CareDeck, ICO etc. by name in every answer.

Re-sit BOTH mocks 4 weeks before the real exam with booklets CLOSED. Improvement gap across BOTH = grade-7 readiness signal.

~20% of HL CS grade. ~30 hours of work. Highest-ROI investment of the IB year.

Recorded interviews + observable workflow + measurable success criteria. Self-clients drift; fictional clients have no opinion.

Client interview + problem statement + proposed solution + success criteria + tech justification.

Architecture diagrams + data model + UI wireframes + algorithm flowcharts + test plan.

Build the system. EVIDENCE: captioned code excerpts showing key implementation techniques (not raw code dumps).

Demonstrate the working program; verify against Stage 1 success criteria. Video demo + test results.

Real client uses the system; feedback recorded. Student reflects on what worked/didn't and proposed improvements.

Captioned screenshots · captioned code excerpts · justified design choices · client interviews + feedback. Code dumps don't score.

Planning 4h · Design 6h · Dev 12h · Test 4h · Eval 4h. ALWAYS reserve testing + evaluation — easy marks.

ONE focused workflow for ONE real client. Polished small project >> over-ambitious half-finished project.

Late start → all evidence rushed → only Stage 3 (Dev) has weight; Stages 1, 2, 4, 5 marks lost.

Don't 'document later'. Build evidence in PARALLEL with coding. Stages 1+2 done BEFORE coding starts.