info@ibglobalacademy.org
08/12/2024
To evaluate in IB Economics, one must consider arguments and counterarguments, drawing evidence to support the former and/or the latter. This is the essence of evaluation according to an IB economics tutor in India from IBGA.
Paper One Part B and Paper Two Part G essays will require evaluation from both standard level (SL) and higher level (HL) students. In "paper one part b," students must use their actual example or examples; in "paper two part g," however, they must use evidence from the writings and available material. That is the only significant distinction.
In the essay for "Paper Three Part B," HL learners will also be expected to assess the "policy recommendation" while referencing actual examples of these suggested policies.
So how does one go about considering evaluation? The following are some tactics:
Pros and Cons
Consider the benefits (pros) of the thing you're assessing, using data from your supplied texts or real-world examples. When assessing a government plan decision, what potential benefits might this policy offer?
Try to then strike a balance between the benefits and any potential drawbacks (cons). It's important to place this evaluation technique within the framework of the case study that the texts offer or the actual instances from real life that you're using.
For instance, the government can raise tax income by enacting an additional tax on cigarettes, which can then be allocated to other public programs.
In the short or long term?
Consider the short-term effects of the decision you're analyzing (e.g., a government policy choice to place a hidden tax on cigarettes), again using data from your texts or real-world instances with the help of an IB economics tutor.
Next, make an effort to counter this claim with a consideration of potential long-term effects. Because smoking is addictive, for instance, an indirect charge on cigarettes might not have a significant short-term impact on the amount of cigarettes consumed (the demand is inelastic).
But over time, as fewer people develop the unhealthy habit, demand becomes more elastic, leading to a more significant long-term decline in cigarette consumption.
Winners against Defeated?
Stakeholder analysis is an additional method of assessment. Consider the stakeholders who stand to benefit from a certain policy or reform, based on the proof obtained from the texts you have chosen or from your selected real-world examples with the help of an IB tutor in India.
Why and how do these parties benefit? Then make an effort to counterbalance this claim by talking about the parties who lose out when a particular change or policy is implemented. These stakeholders lose; how and why? For instance, addicted or regular smokers will be more negatively impacted by an indirect charge on cigarettes than social or casual smokers since the former are less inclined to give up and, as a result, have an inelastic demand for cigarettes.
Furthermore, as indirect taxes are regressive, they will disproportionately affect people with lower incomes.
