The Extended Essay (EE) is a mandatory 4,000-word independent research paper and a core component of the International Baccalaureate (IB) Diploma Programme (DP). Throughout IB, and even in Pre-IB, the EE is typically praised as the “biggest” research paper IB students will ever write and is considered one of the best college preparation tasks that they will get in high school. While IB students receive this privilege, every student should have equal opportunities to do the same.
“Students have to learn how to find primary and secondary sources, you have to be able to read the sources that were written, sometimes for people at a college professor level, you have to be able to read it decide what’s the most important information out of there that is relevant for your topic,” according to teacher Dana Isaac.
By doing the Extended Essay, IB students are able to hone their research and writing skills to better prepare themselves for higher-education. In colleges, students are typically expected and/or required to write multiple research papers. “The Extended Essay definitely prepared me for college, it made me realize what I should expect to have to do in college,” says IB senior Ravyn Hicks-Badger.
In comparison to IB, the general education curriculum doesn’t require a paper as rigorous as the Extended Essay is, despite the essay being a big preparation for college. “You’re not required to write at the level that you are if you want to succeed in the IB program, they have to learn how to write in a variety of different styles because each course, the way you write is very different,” says Isaac.
This isn’t to say that IB students are given the upper edge when it comes to college or controlling their education. Katelyn Uhler, the IB Coordinator, says “Everybody has the opportunity to take advanced courses. It’s just not all of them who choose to do it.” There are many ways that any students in general education courses can get the same skills as IB students would get from the Extended Essay which includes, “[working] with some of the English courses on creating research papers with other students. I think everybody should be capable of doing it,” according to Uhler.
For example, AP English Language and Composition teacher, Michelle Williams, recently held a career expo for her sophomores. In this expo, she had her students pick a career path of their choice and do their own research about it so that they could present it on a poster board. Preparing for college doesn’t always have to include spending hours staring at a computer screen — students can research and present their ideas in fun ways like this.
In addition to this, both Uhler and Isaac have stated that they recall Lee County requiring high school students to write research papers. “I graduated from North [Fort Myers High] and we wrote a research paper every year,” Isaac recalls. It wasn’t until the 2000s, when the state implemented state testing, they no longer believed research and writing skills were important enough to be tested.
With Florida no longer defining research and writing skills as a priority skill to student academic growth, it was no longer a necessity to teach to students compared to English, mathematics, and science.
While the Extended Essay is generally the best college preparation task IB students might get, there should be equal opportunities for anyone outside of the IB program to take part in such preparation activities.
