Overview
The Pamoja Extended Essay course models the attributes of the IB Learner Profile and the methodology of Approaches To Learning (ATL) using journals and offering a range of possibilities for the creation of a genuinely useful Researcher’s Reflection Space (RRS). It is carefully structured and designed to optimize student-supervisor collaboration, flexibility and independence whilst ensuring that IB guidelines on the amount and nature of supervision are followed.
The Course
Unit 1: As well as providing a “toolkit” for students, covering academic honesty, bibliographies and referencing, this unit aims to ensure the student is fully aware of the nature of the task, the required resources and the optimal approach. By the end of this unit they should begin to have an idea of the shape and scope of their EE topic.
The suggested duration for Unit 1 is 4 weeks.
May 2022: Starting March
November 2022: Starting September
Unit 2: This unit encourages students to focus their topic in order to form the basis of a successful essay. It aids them in developing an appropriate Research Question (RQ). Exploring and testing the latter is the subject of the first of the three mandatory reflection sessions, which will take place and be recorded in the online course. This conversation is recorded on the Reflections on Planning and Progress Form (RPPF).
The suggested duration for Unit 2 is 6 weeks.
May 2022: Starting May
November 2022: Starting October
Unit 3: In this unit the student immerses themselves in the research that will inform the final essay and begins writing. Supervisory support is through focused check-in sessions. The second mandatory reflection session, again recorded in the course, is at the end of the unit and looks at the development of the essay and its argument, alignment with the RQ, the appropriateness of sources and ensures the timeline to completion is feasible.
The suggested duration for Unit 3 is 12 weeks.
May 2022: Starting September
November 2022: Starting February
Unit 4: Here, the student completes and submits the full first draft, which is the only one seen by the supervisor and feedback leads to any revisions the students feels need to be made before submission. The whole course ends with the last of the three reflection session conduceted in the online course, the Viva Voce.
The suggested duration for Unit 4 is 6 weeks.
May 2022: Starting late October
November 2022: Starting April
Submission and Completion
The Pamoja EE course has built within it all the mandatory elements required for submission by the IB. The student should, following the guidance of the course, submit:
- Final Essay: following the supervisor review of one full essay draft, the student submits the final copy to the supervisor that will be used for the Viva Voce. This is the final copy and should be “clean” with no comments on it from the supervisor or any other person. No changes can be made to this copy unless the supervisor advises a change due to an administrative error.
- Reflections on Planning and Progress Form (RPPF): the RPPF allows the supervisor, also using the Turnitin report and their reading of the final copy of the essay, to confirm the essay’s authenticity. The student completes the RPPF and submits it to the supervisor who signs, dates and submits it with the essay confirming the authenticity of both documents.
- Candidate Consent Form: the final unit of the EE course contains a consent form which must be signed and submitted by the student before any EE documentation can be uploaded to the IB.
The Extended Essay documentation will be submitted by the supervisor of record once completed documents are received from the student, unless specified otherwise.
See guidance on Non-Completion of the Extended Essay
Roles and Responsibilities
Support for Students
If there are any queries relating to the Extended Essay, the student should contact the supervisor directly. If for any reason the supervisor is inaccessible, students can contact the Pamoja School Services Team by emailing courses@pamojaeducation.com.