IB Economics Internal Assessment Portfolio

Your Internal Assessment portfolio is not just another assignment; it’s a powerful opportunity to demonstrate your ability to apply abstract economic theory to the real world, directly contributing 20% to your final IB Economics grade. Mastering this component requires strategic planning, analytical precision, and a clear understanding of what examiners are looking for. This guide will walk you through the entire process, from selecting your first article to polishing your final evaluation, ensuring you maximize your marks across all three commentaries.

Understanding the IA’s Purpose and Structure

The Internal Assessment (IA) in IB Economics requires you to produce a portfolio of three separate commentaries, each based on a different news article. Each commentary must apply economic theory to analyze a real-world event or issue. Crucially, your three commentaries must cover three distinct syllabus sections from the following list: Microeconomics, Macroeconomics, International Trade, Development Economics, or Environmental Economics (for the Environmental Economics unit, only one commentary can be from this section). This structure is designed to assess your breadth of understanding and your skill in becoming an “economic detective,” using theory as a lens for investigation.

Each commentary has a strict maximum word count of 800 words. This constraint is a critical part of the challenge, demanding concise, focused writing. Your work is assessed against four equally weighted criteria, each worth 3 marks: Diagrams (Criterion A), Terminology (Criterion B), Application and Analysis (Criterion C), and Evaluation (Criterion D). Your total IA mark is the sum of the marks from all three commentaries (out of 45), which is then scaled to 20% of your overall score. Success hinges on a balanced approach that addresses each criterion thoroughly.

Selecting and Annotating the Perfect Article

Your choice of article is the foundation of a strong commentary. You must select a news article—not an academic journal, textbook, or encyclopedia entry—that is published within the last year and provides sufficient material for economic analysis. The article should describe a specific event, decision, or policy (e.g., “Government Raises Minimum Wage,” “Central Bank Cuts Interest Rates,” “Country Imposes Tariff on Steel”). Avoid overly broad articles that discuss general trends without concrete detail.

Once you’ve found a suitable article, you must provide an explicit article annotation. This is not part of the 800-word count. The annotation must include the article’s title, source (publication name), date of publication, URL or page number, and the date you accessed it. Most importantly, you must clearly state which section of the IB Economics syllabus (e.g., “Microeconomics – Government Intervention”) the commentary will address. Examiners use this to verify you have covered three distinct areas. A poorly chosen or incorrectly annotated article can undermine your entire commentary before the analysis even begins.

Applying Theory and Constructing Accurate Diagrams

This is the core of your analytical thinking. Your commentary must go beyond simply describing the article. You need to identify and apply the most relevant economic theory to explain the events in the article. If the article is about a subsidy for electric vehicles, your theory is the analysis of subsidies using supply and demand. You must explain the theory clearly before applying it. For instance, define what a subsidy is, who provides it, and its intended effect on market outcomes.

A central and non-negotiable requirement is the inclusion of at least one correct, fully labeled economic diagram. This is the primary focus of Criterion A. Your diagram must be hand-drawn or digitally produced, not copied from the internet. It must have clear, titled axes (e.g., “Price of Solar Panels ($),” “Quantity of Solar Panels”), accurately labeled curves (e.g., S1, S2, D), and show any shifts with arrows. Every element in the diagram must be explicitly explained in your text. For example: “As shown in Figure 1, the supply curve shifts from S1 to S2 due to the government subsidy, leading to a lower market price for consumers (P1 to P2) and a higher quantity traded (Q1 to Q2).” A diagram without thorough explanation will not earn full marks.

Providing Critical Evaluation

Evaluation (Criterion D) is what separates good commentaries from excellent ones. It involves weighing the significance of your analysis, considering different perspectives, and discussing the long-term implications. Evaluation is not a separate paragraph tacked on at the end; it should be woven into your analysis where relevant. Effective evaluation techniques include discussing the short-term versus long-term effects of a policy, considering the relative effectiveness of the policy, or analyzing its impact on different stakeholders (consumers, producers, government, society).

Furthermore, you should demonstrate an awareness of the assumptions behind the models you use and their limitations. For example, after analyzing a tariff using a standard supply/demand model, you might evaluate by noting: “This analysis assumes the importing country is a large buyer, which influences world price. If the country is a small buyer, the impact would be different. Furthermore, the model does not account for potential retaliation from trading partners, which could lead to a trade war and diminish the intended benefits.” This shows higher-order thinking and a critical engagement with the material, which is essential for top marks.

Common Pitfalls

1. Choosing an Inappropriate Article: Selecting an article that is too old, too vague, or purely descriptive without a clear economic hook is a fundamental error. Correction: Use recent articles from reputable news sources that report on a specific policy, price change, or economic event. Ensure it directly links to a clear area of the syllabus.

1. Description Over Analysis: Simply summarizing what the article says without adding your own economic explanation will score poorly in Criteria C and D. Correction: Use the article as a springboard. Your voice should dominate the commentary. Explain why things happened using theory, don’t just restate what happened.

1. Poor Diagram Integration: Drawing a correct diagram but failing to label it fully, reference it in the text, or explain what each shift and new equilibrium means. Correction: Treat your diagram as a central piece of evidence. Introduce it (“Figure 1 shows…”), guide the reader through each change, and explicitly state the outcomes it illustrates.

1. Weak or Absent Evaluation: Providing only analysis without judgment, discussion of trade-offs, or consideration of limitations. Correction: Constantly ask “so what?” and “what then?”. Use evaluative clauses (“However, in the long run…”, “This is most significant for… because…”, “A key limitation is…”). Plan your evaluation points as carefully as your analytical points.

Summary

• The IA portfolio consists of three 800-word commentaries, each on a unique news article covering three different syllabus sections.
• Success depends on mastering four criteria: constructing accurate Diagrams, using precise Terminology, performing deep Application and Analysis, and providing nuanced Evaluation.
• Article selection is critical; choose recent, specific news items and provide a complete annotation stating the source and relevant syllabus section.
• Your analysis must apply relevant economic theory to the article’s content, using at least one fully explained, correctly drawn diagram as a central tool.
• High-scoring commentaries integrate critical evaluation throughout, discussing effectiveness, trade-offs, stakeholder impacts, and model limitations to demonstrate sophisticated analytical thinking.