🧭 1. Master IB Command Terms
IB uses specific verbs like describe, explain, evaluate, and discuss to guide how you construct your response. Knowing what each term requires is fundamental. RevisionDojo has an excellent guide on using these command terms effectively across IB subjects. (revisiondojo.com)
👉 Tip: Highlight the command term before writing your introduction to stay focused.
⚙️ 2. Align Content with the Command Term
Describe
Provide detailed facts or characteristics without analysis.
Example: Describe the cardiovascular response to prolonged exercise in terms of heart rate and stroke volume changes.
Explain / Analyze
Show how or why something happens, including physiological mechanisms or psychological theory.
Example: Explain how dehydration affects performance by impairing cardiovascular and thermoregulatory processes.
Evaluate / Discuss
Assess benefits and limitations or weigh different perspectives.
Example: Evaluate the effectiveness of continuous training for improving aerobic capacity versus potential risks like overtraining.
📝 3. Structure for Clarity and Flow
A clear essay structure enhances readability and examiner confidence:
- Introduction – Restate the question using the command term and outline your approach.
- Body Paragraphs – Each paragraph addresses a focused point, linking content explicitly to the terms.
- Conclusion – Summarize the key insights and directly address the command term (especially useful for evaluate or discuss prompts).
🔍 4. Use Relevant SEHS Content
Draw from physiology, biomechanics, nutrition, and psychology to support your argument:
- Use physiology examples (e.g. VO₂ max, energy systems, cardiac output) to explain performance capacity.
- Refer to psychological strategies (e.g. goal-setting, feedback, arousal control) to show mental factors affecting outcomes.
- Include real-world performance contexts or athlete examples to ground your essay.
📌 5. Clarity Tips for Strong Responses
- Use clear, concise language and avoid unnecessary jargon.
- Include key terms like “oxygen delivery,” “intrinsic motivation,” or “motor learning.”
- Refer to data or case studies when possible (even hypothetical ones), especially in evaluate or discuss answers.
- Stay on topic—if the term is describe, avoid analysis; if it’s evaluate, balance strengths and weaknesses.
🧠 Example Breakdown
Sample Prompt:
Evaluate how hydration status and mental focus influence endurance performance.
- Introduction: “Evaluate how hydration and mental focus impact endurance by considering physiological mechanisms and cognitive strategies.”
- Body:
- Hydration physiology: Explain effects of dehydration on stroke volume and thermoregulation.
- Mental focus: Discuss how motivation and concentration delay fatigue and help pacing.
- Performance outcome: Balance benefits vs drawbacks (e.g. risk of hyponatremia vs over-hydration anxiety).
- Conclusion: Summarize by weighing dehydration risk and psychological resilience in optimizing endurance.
✅ 6. Practice Strategy Using RevisionDojo
- Explore RevisionDojo’s command‑term guide to cement understanding across all terms. (revisiondojo.com)
- Use their SEHS scenario question bank to practice describe, analyze, evaluate responses in timed conditions.
- Review markschemes to see how answers align with the expected level of detail and clarity.
📣 Call to Action
Want to master SEHS essay writing further?
✔️ Use RevisionDojo’s command‑term resources to refine your approach.
✔️ Practice with SEHS essays on physiology, psychology, and training using the platform’s model questions.
✔️ Focus on writing targeted responses that align with the command term—clear, concise, and content-rich.
By mastering command terms, aligning content, and ensuring clarity, you’ll score strong responses across all SEHS essay tasks.
