The IB History IA criteria reward historical thinking rather than research effort alone. For examinations through 2027, the internal assessment is marked out of 25 across three criteria: Identification and evaluation of sources, Investigation, and Reflection. Your teacher marks the work before the IB externally moderates a sample to check that the criteria have been applied consistently.
A revised History course begins assessment in 2028. It uses a 24-mark IA structure, removes the separate reflection section, and changes how sources are selected and assessed. This guide explains both systems so that you can identify the rubric applying to your examination session.
Which IB History IA criteria apply to you?
Your examination session determines the required structure. Check the subject guide used by your school before following an online template or exemplar.
| Examination session | IA structure | Total | Weighting |
|---|---|---|---|
| Through 2027 | A: Sources, B: Investigation, C: Reflection | 25 marks | 25% at SL, 20% at HL |
| First assessment 2028 onward | Inquiry question, Sources and perspectives, Synthesis and evaluation | 24 marks | 30% at SL, 20% at HL |
The official IB History curriculum update confirms that the revised course removes the reflection section and permits a maximum of seven sources. The official History subject brief provides the new assessment structure and weighting.
How the 25-mark History IA is marked
The pre-2028 assessment is criterion-referenced. The marker compares your work with published descriptors instead of ranking it against classmates. Each criterion is assessed using best fit, meaning the chosen band should describe the overall quality of the evidence more accurately than the bands above or below it.
There is no separate mark for presentation, originality, effort, referencing, or bibliography length. However, unclear organization can reduce Criterion B performance, while inadequate citations can make evidence difficult to verify.
Criterion A: Identification and evaluation of sources, 6 marks
Criterion A assesses whether you state an appropriate research question, select two relevant sources, explain their relevance, and evaluate their values and limitations. Evaluation must refer explicitly to the sources' origin, purpose, and content.
| Mark band | What the marker sees |
|---|---|
| 1-2 | The question and sources are identified, but relevance and evaluation are limited. |
| 3-4 | Relevant sources and some evaluation are present, although values and limitations remain incomplete or general. |
| 5-6 | The question is clearly focused, relevance is explained, and both sources receive detailed, question-specific evaluation. |
Primary sources are not automatically more useful than secondary sources. Their value depends on the question. A government memorandum may reveal internal policy reasoning, for example, but it cannot necessarily demonstrate how the public understood that policy.
Description identifies a feature, such as an author's position or publication date. Evaluation explains how that feature affects usefulness. Avoid unsupported statements such as “the source is biased” or “the historian is an expert.” Instead, identify what the author could know, what the source was designed to achieve, what its content reveals, and what it leaves unresolved.
A practical structure for each source is:
- Identify the source and explain its relevance.
- Evaluate how its origin creates value or limitations.
- Explain how its purpose affects what it reveals or omits.
- Judge how its content helps answer the research question.
Do not treat OPVL as a checklist of isolated labels. The RevisionDojo History IA guide provides additional criterion-linked guidance.
Criterion B: Investigation, 15 marks
Criterion B accounts for 60% of the available marks. It assesses organization, focus, critical analysis, use of evidence, evaluation of perspectives, and the quality of the conclusion.
| Mark band | What the marker sees |
|---|---|
| 1-3 | The investigation is poorly focused, weakly organized, and largely unsupported. |
| 4-6 | Some analysis appears, but narrative and source description dominate. |
| 7-9 | The response is generally organized and includes analysis, although it is not sustained. |
| 10-12 | Critical analysis is supported by a range of sources, perspectives receive some evaluation, and the conclusion is reasoned. |
| 13-15 | Focused, coherent analysis uses evidence effectively, evaluates perspectives, and supports a logical conclusion. |
Narrative reports what happened. Analysis explains how and why evidence changes the answer to the question. Rather than listing several reforms, for example, compare their effects, explain the mechanism through which each produced change, and judge which was most significant.
A strong body paragraph normally includes an arguable claim, precise evidence, explanation of its significance, consideration of a counterargument or limitation, and a mini-judgement. Evidence should be integrated into your reasoning rather than inserted as an unexplained quotation.
Different perspectives require more than naming historians. Explain why interpretations differ, perhaps because historians use different evidence, define significance differently, or prioritize contrasting causes. Your conclusion must answer the exact question, weigh the competing explanations, and avoid introducing new evidence.
The RevisionDojo History IA exemplars demonstrate different approaches, while the step-by-step History IA guide explains how to develop claim-evidence-analysis paragraphs.
Criterion C: Reflection, 4 marks
Criterion C is not a diary entry about enjoying or finding the project difficult. It assesses what your investigation revealed about historical methods, the challenges historians encounter, and the limits of historical knowledge.
| Mark band | What the marker sees |
|---|---|
| 1-2 | Historical methods are discussed, but methodological awareness or links to the investigation are limited. |
| 3-4 | The reflection examines methodological challenges and makes explicit, specific connections to the investigation. |
Begin with a genuine research problem and draw out its broader significance. Conflicting casualty estimates, for example, could lead to reflection on inconsistent definitions, missing records, political purposes, and later statistical reconstruction.
Other productive issues include reconstructing motives from public statements, distinguishing causation from correlation, interpreting translated testimony, and dealing with censored or inaccessible evidence. Avoid generic claims that historians are biased. Explain the precise challenge you encountered, its effect on your argument, and what it demonstrates about historical inquiry.
Word count and section balance
The pre-2028 IA has a maximum of 2,200 words. Traditional guidance suggests about 500 words for Criterion A, 1,300 for Criterion B, and 400 for Criterion C, but these are recommended allocations rather than separate limits.
Criterion B deserves the most space because it carries 15 marks. Excessive background narrative often uses words needed for analysis, comparison, and judgement.
Revised 2028 History IA criteria
For first assessment in 2028, the investigation remains limited to 2,200 words, but the assessment structure changes.
| Revised section | Marks | Main focus |
|---|---|---|
| Historical inquiry question | 6 | Developing and explaining a suitable question using a relevant historical concept |
| Sources and perspectives | 6 | Selecting sources and explaining how diverse perspectives inform the inquiry |
| Synthesis and evaluation | 12 | Synthesizing evidence, evaluating sources and perspectives, and reaching a supported judgement |
The separate reflection criterion disappears, students may use no more than seven sources, and question development receives explicit assessment. Synthesis and evaluation account for half of the marks. The RevisionDojo guide to the first-assessment-2028 History IA explains the revised format, but your teacher's current subject guide should remain the final reference.
Common marking mistakes
- Using more sources without using them effectively: Markers reward relevant evidence and contrasting perspectives, not bibliography length.
- Quoting instead of analysing: A quotation earns little unless its significance is explained.
- Restricting source awareness to Criterion A: Detailed OPVL belongs there, but source limitations can also matter when evaluating evidence in Criterion B.
- Assuming the teacher's mark is final: The IB moderates sampled work, so school marks may remain unchanged, rise, or fall. The IB explains this process in its assessment principles and moderation document.
Final self-marking checklist
Before submission, confirm that:
- The same focused research question appears throughout.
- Criterion A evaluates exactly two sources in relation to that question.
- Every value or limitation explains a consequence for usefulness.
- Body paragraphs make claims and analyse supporting evidence.
- Historical perspectives are evaluated rather than listed.
- The conclusion reaches a qualified, evidence-based judgement.
- The reflection connects research experiences to historical methods.
- You are using the criteria for your examination session.
The RevisionDojo History IA Grader can provide provisional criterion-level feedback, but it is not official IB marking. Check its suggestions against your teacher's guidance and the correct rubric.
Conclusion
Through 2027, the IB History IA criteria award 6 marks for source evaluation, 15 for the investigation, and 4 for reflection. Strong work evaluates usefulness in relation to the question, sustains analysis, compares perspectives, and reaches a supported judgement.
From 2028, the IA becomes a 24-mark investigation emphasizing question development, source selection, perspectives, synthesis, and evaluation. Confirm your session before using any template. RevisionDojo's History IA guides, exemplars, and rubric-aware grader can then help you identify weaknesses without replacing your historical judgement or teacher feedback.
Sources and referenced URLs
- IB History subject brief for first assessment 2028
- Official IB History curriculum update
- IB assessment principles and moderation
- RevisionDojo IB History IA guide
- RevisionDojo History IA Grader
- RevisionDojo History IA exemplars
- RevisionDojo step-by-step History IA guide
- RevisionDojo guide to the first-assessment-2028 History IA