Notes

Below are the guidelines for the 2nd draft of the Theory of Knowledge (TOK) essay. It will be counted as an exam for the second quarter and you should not turn in anything that you have not put your best efforts into.

As a whole, the first drafts were poor in quality and effort. Only a handful of them are close to the level I expect. It is clear that very few bothered to do research, as has been required of them from the beginning of the semester.

Here are the basic guidelines: students please READ CAREFULLY.

• Size 12 font, Times New Roman, double-spaced

• All material not yours – whether a direct quote or a paraphrased idea – must be cited in APA format. Otherwise, it is considered plagiarism and will receive a zero.

• At least 5 outside sources with quotes in every paragraph that uses examples.

• At least one of your sources must be an actual book – there is a library, after all.

• Wikipedia is NOT a source – do not cite it in your paper.

• All of your sources must be included on a bibliography or works cited page that goes at the end of the assignment on its own page.

• 1,200-1,600 words – I will not read anything that doesn’t fit within this prescribed word count.

• A cover page with your name, school, ID number, and the TOK prompt you’re writing about.

• I expect the 2nd draft as a word document emailed to me. We will run every single paper through Turnitin.com to verify that it is your work.


• If I see more than three semi-colons in any paper, I will not continue grading it and it will receive an evaluation for only the material presented up until the point of the third semi-colons. It is poor grammar.

• It is YOUR RESPONSIBILITY to be familiar with how the IB external graders evaluate this paper. I went over it twice at the beginning of the semester and will not do it again.

If all of these criteria are met satisfactorily, your paper will be given the best and most useful feedback I can give you. You will receive two grades from me for the second draft: (1) a percentage from 100 percent which will count as an exam grade for quarter two, and (2) a predicted grade based on the IB evaluation so that you can understand where you stand.

If all works well, we should be able to wrap up this assignment with the third draft. I advise you to give it your best now and knock it out. Remember, your presentation will be due at the end of January, as well.