IB Mathematics students are often told something like:

“Just follow the criteria — if you meet the standards, you’ll score well.” 

If only it were that simple.

Anyone who has written an IA — or marked one — knows the truth:

• The criteria are vague, subjective, and open to interpretation.
• Teachers can only give limited feedback.
• Students often have no idea what “good” actually looks like.
• 
  

So you may think you’ve written a strong 14/20…

until it gets moderated down to an 8.

Let’s talk honestly about what really matters.

What they say:
“The exploration is coherent, well-organized, and concise.”

What they mean:
“Can I skim this quickly and still understand your logic without rereading anything?”

• Clear section headings
  Introduction – Aim – Data – Mathematics – Analysis – Reflection – Conclusion
   
• A logical progression 
• Short paragraphs 
• Clean sentences 
• A document that looks like a math investigation, not a story or a science report
   

• Long walls of text 
• Rambling explanations 
• Missing headings 
• Repeating yourself - calculations especially.
   

Bottom line:
Make it easy to follow. Examiners are human.
If they can’t see your structure, they can’t award structure.

What they say:
“Use relevant mathematics at the level of the course.”

What they mean:
“Show that you actually understand the math you chose — and that it came from this course.”

• Use syllabus-relevant tools:
  linear regression, Pearson’s r, normal distributions, etc. 
• Show your work 
• Explain your results in context 
• Interpret, don’t just report
   

• Using fancy math you don’t understand 
• Copy-pasting calculator output 
• Throwing in a chi-squared test because you heard it “scores well” 
• Writing conclusions like: “This means there is a weak correlation.”
   

Bottom line:
You don’t need advanced math.

You need correct, clear, course-appropriate math that answers your question.

What they say:
“There is substantial evidence of critical reflection.”

What they mean:
“Don’t just describe what happened — analyse it.”

• Mention limitations like sample size, assumptions, confounding variables 
• Explain what surprised you 
• Ask “What if?” and follow it with real reasoning 
• Connect results back to your aim
   

• Repeating your introduction in your conclusion 
• One-sentence “reflection” sections 
• Saying “My results were good” without justification
   

Bottom line:
Reflection = meaning, not repetition.

What they say:
“There is evidence of outstanding personal engagement.”

What they mean:
“Does it sound like you care? Because if you don’t, we won’t.”

• Start with a real question you actually had 
• Use first-person voice appropriately 
• Make predictions, test them, evaluate them 
• Show curiosity and honest thinking
   

• “Math is everywhere, so I chose to study…” 
• Generic introductions 
• Picking a topic just because someone said it was easy (it shows!)
   

Bottom line:
Show real interest — or at least show thoughtful reasoning.

What they say:
“Use appropriate and consistent mathematical communication.”

What they mean:
“If it looks like math and reads like math, we relax and award marks.”

• Proper notation (using EQUATION) 
• Labelled axes 
• Defined variables 
• Units everywhere 
• Clear graphs with readable scales 
• Correct terminology (correlation ≠ causation)
   

• Excel or calculator syntax 
• Decimal commas in an English-language IA 
• Undefined variables
• Sloppy labelling 
• Using “x” to mean multiplication
   

Bottom line:
Neatness is not decoration — it’s communication.

Most students (and many teachers) overestimate IA scores.

Good work doesn’t automatically score well — unless it is:

✔ clearly structured
✔ mathematically sound
✔ well communicated
✔ reflective
✔ personal
✔ easy to follow

Before you submit, ask yourself:

• Can someone unfamiliar with my topic follow this easily? 
• Is my math correct and explained? 
• Did I define variables, label graphs, and justify claims? 
• Do I analyse, not just describe? 
• Does it feel like an exploration — not a data dump?
   

If not, it’s not ready yet.

You can absolutely score well — but not by accident.