IB Economics SL Extended Essay Example

The student clearly identifies Beijing as the setting and communicates a recognizably economic topic from the outset.

The student's research question is explicit and connected to the main discussion themes.

The student makes a visible attempt to use a range of secondary sources and to explain their source choices.

The research question is too broad because it combines several large outcome areas that are hard to answer together.

The discussion sometimes shifts from Beijing to China more generally, which weakens the geographical focus.

The source-selection rationale is not always convincing or sufficiently specific to the investigation.

The student uses relevant economic ideas such as externalities, resource allocation, subsidies, and welfare to discuss the issue.

The student connects some source material to the argument rather than listing evidence in isolation.

The student shows a good command of broad economics vocabulary and attempts to apply it to a real-world context.

Several statistics are treated as if they directly measure Beijing-specific outcomes when they do not.

Some concepts are used imprecisely, especially where transaction value is treated like output or real GDP.

A few terms and claims are not consistently applied with enough accuracy, which weakens the precision of the student's explanation.