IB Biology HL Internal Assessment Example

The student framed a focused, biologically relevant question with a clear field site and a workable ecological variable.

The student's method uses appropriate field techniques such as transects, quadrats, and repeated sampling across multiple stations.

The student included enough procedural detail that another student could follow the general approach.

The investigation would be stronger if the relationship between salinity and the measured outcome were operationally defined more precisely.

Some important methodological choices are not fully justified, especially the sampling interval and transect selection.

The description of how salinity and cover were matched across transects is unclear, which limits reproducibility and validity.

The student's tables and graph communicate the main data clearly, with titles, units, means, and a trendline.

The student shows an understanding of variability by including ranges and error bars.

The student carries out relevant processing steps and correctly recognises that the relationship appears weak.

The raw data presentation is not always easy to check because the distance information is not shown as clearly as it could be.

The meaning of the error bars is not defined precisely enough for the reader to interpret them confidently.

The processing would be stronger if the paired values represented matched sampling units and if the student supported the relationship with stronger statistical analysis.