Asking an MYP Physics teacher for help works best when you identify a specific difficulty, show what you have attempted, and request one manageable next step. You might ask for a short explanation, feedback on one calculation, or advice about which skill to practise.
There is no universal IB procedure for requesting extra help. Schools set their own communication channels, teacher availability, safeguarding arrangements, and reassessment policies. Use the steps below while following your school’s expectations.
Identify the help you need
Replace “I do not understand physics” with a precise description. Your difficulty might involve:
- Conceptual understanding: You cannot explain why resultant force causes acceleration.
- Mathematical application: You know , but cannot rearrange it or convert units.
- Investigation skills: You are unsure how to identify variables or design a repeatable method.
- Data processing: You do not know which graph to draw or how to interpret its gradient.
- Assessment expectations: You understand the physics but not what the task or criterion requires.
Bring evidence, such as a marked task, attempted calculation, graph, or lab-report section. Highlight the exact line where your reasoning breaks down. This helps your teacher distinguish a knowledge problem from a mathematical, practical, or communication issue.
Connect your question to MYP Sciences criteria
MYP sciences is an inquiry-based framework involving research, observation, and experimentation. Physics may be taught separately or within an integrated sciences course, so topic order can differ between schools.
| Criterion | Focus | Useful question |
|---|---|---|
| A: Knowing and understanding | Explaining and applying scientific knowledge | “Where does my application of Newton’s second law become incorrect?” |
| B: Inquiring and designing | Formulating and designing investigations | “Are my variables measurable and sufficiently controlled?” |
| C: Processing and evaluating | Processing data and evaluating investigations | “What is missing from my explanation of this graph’s trend?” |
| D: Reflecting on the impacts of science | Evaluating applications and implications | “Am I evaluating the implications, or only describing them?” |
These criteria are official features of MYP sciences, but instructions, deadlines, feedback opportunities, and revision rules are local decisions. Ask which criterion and year-level descriptor apply to your task instead of relying on a generic online rubric.
Use a simple request structure
A strong request includes context, attempt, obstacle, and request. For example:
“Could I ask for help with the forces homework? I drew a free-body diagram and calculated the resultant force, but I do not understand why my acceleration has the wrong direction. Could you look at this step and tell me which idea I should review?”
For an investigation, you could say:
“I drafted my research question and identified the variables. I am unsure whether my method will produce enough data for Criterion C. Could you check my plan and suggest one issue to fix?”
This gives your teacher enough information to guide you without asking them to complete the work.
Choose the right time and method
Do not begin a complicated discussion while your teacher is supervising equipment, starting a lesson, or helping several students. Ask when a suitable conversation could happen: “Could I speak to you after class, or is there another time you prefer?”
Depending on school policy, support may be available through classwork, a scheduled support session, office hour, school email, or the learning platform. If you email, include the unit or task, what you attempted, one precise question, and a polite request for the next step. Use approved channels and do not expect an immediate response outside working hours.
Make the explanation useful
Bring your work, record the key correction, and ask to try a similar question. Restate the method to check your understanding: “I choose a positive direction, assign signs consistently, calculate the resultant force, and then use . Is that correct?”
Within a day or two, complete a fresh example without copying the teacher’s solution. Keep an error log showing the mistake and correction. If the problem remains, return with the new attempt and explain what still fails.
The RevisionDojo MYP Physics resources can support this follow-up. Use the MYP Physics Questionbank to practise the skill, then review your reasoning rather than checking only the final answer. Resources on forces and motion and waves can help you prepare a follow-up question.
Common mistakes
Avoid saying only “I do not get it” and expecting your teacher to locate the difficulty. Other common mistakes include:
- Asking for an answer instead of an explanation or strategy
- Waiting until immediately before a deadline
- Requesting feedback on an entire report when one section is the real concern
- Treating a criterion score as a percentage instead of reading its descriptor
- Assuming extra help automatically means an extension, retake, or reassessment
- Ignoring previous feedback and repeating the same question
Extra support does not remove academic-integrity requirements. Your teacher can clarify concepts and provide permitted feedback, but your submitted response must remain your own work.
Guidance for parents
Parents should usually encourage the student to contact the teacher directly. This develops communication and self-management while keeping responsibility for learning with the student.
Adult involvement is more appropriate when the student repeatedly asks for help without resolution, cannot access school support, or is experiencing persistent anxiety or a learning barrier. A parent message should identify the pattern, mention steps already taken, and ask what support process the school recommends. The aim is collaboration, not pressure for a particular grade.
Conclusion
Effective asking of an MYP Physics teacher for help begins with a specific problem, an honest attempt, and one realistic request. Link the conversation to the relevant criterion where useful, choose an appropriate time, and practise the corrected skill soon afterward.
RevisionDojo should complement, not replace, teacher guidance. After the conversation, use MYP study resources, the Physics Questionbank, Study Notes, Flashcards, or Jojo AI to practise the weakness you identified.
