IB Group 4 – Chemistry

AIMS

Chemistry is the study of substances, what they are made of, how they interact and what role they play in living things. In fact, it is the study of all materials and is vital to all aspects of our lives. Chemistry is also a pre-requisite for many other courses in higher education, such as medicine, biological and environmental sciences.

The IB Chemistry course is designed to increase pupils’ knowledge and understanding of the subject, their ability to solve problems and their practical and investigative abilities; to deal with abstract and theoretical material; increase their knowledge and understanding of the social and economic importance of Chemistry; foster independent study, practical work and research as well as prepare pupils for further study and employment.

THE IB CHEMISTRY COURSE

The IB Chemistry course is offered at both the Standard Level and Higher Level. The course itself is split into four basic sections: the subject specific core (Topics 1-11), the additional Higher Level material (Topics 12-20), the optional units (Options A-D) and the Internal Assessment. The core material provides a solid foundation on which the remainder of the course is built. The additional Higher Level work explores some of the work already covered in the core topics but in a much greater depth. There are four optional units available and those offered at a school are specific to  the expertise of the staff.

SYLLABUS OUTLINE SL and HL OPTIONS

Topic 1  Stoichiometric Relationships Option A Materials

Topic 2/12  Atomic Structure Option B Biochemistry

Topic 3/13  Periodicity Option C Energy

Topic 4/14  Chemical Bonding and Structure Option D Medicinal Chemistry

Topic 5/15  Energetics/Thermochemistry

Topic 6/16  Chemical Kinetics

Topic 7/17  Equilibrium

Topic 8/18  Acids and Bases

Topic 9/19  Redox Processes

Topic 10/20  Organic Chemistry

Topic 11  Measurement and Analysis

ASSESSMENT

External Assessments take place at the end of two years: students are examined using multiple choice questions as well as data-based, short answer and long answer questions.

Standard Level students have to complete 40 hours and Higher Level students have to complete 60 hours of Internal Assessment, including 10 hours on a collaborative interdisciplinary project with other Group 4 Sciences. Students are expected to design experiments, carry out experiments, analyse results and come to conclusions supported by the data.