Focus On How Societies Balance Order With Freedom
- In this theme, you are expected to show how laws and rules organise communities, but also how they affect individual rights.
- Strong responses will touch on why rules exist, who they serve, and how people engage with or resist them.
Exam Relevance
Laws and rules will often be framed around fairness, responsibility, or civic participation.
Paper 1 (Writing)
- Tasks often ask you to comment on a school rule, propose changes, or discuss wider civic responsibilities.
- Common text types: formal letters, reports, opinion articles.
SL model answer (~230 words, Letter)
Task: Write a letter to your principal suggesting changes to the school’s phone policy.
Solution
Dear Principal,
I am writing on behalf of the student council to share our views on the current phone policy. At present, phones are banned entirely during the school day. While we understand the intention is to reduce distractions, many students feel the policy is too strict and does not reflect how phones can be used responsibly.
First, phones are essential tools for learning. Teachers increasingly recommend apps for languages, research, and revision. Banning phones prevents students from using them for educational purposes. A more balanced policy would allow phone use in lessons with teacher permission.
Second, phones are a safety tool. Parents often need to contact students after school activities or during emergencies. The ban forces students to wait until the end of the day, which can create unnecessary stress. Allowing phone use at break times would meet both safety and learning needs.
Third, the complete ban reduces trust between teachers and students. Rules work best when they are realistic and encourage responsibility. A policy that recognises phones as part of modern life would teach students how to manage them properly rather than avoiding the issue.
We therefore propose that the school revises the policy to allow limited, supervised use of phones in class when approved, and during breaks and lunch. We believe this would reduce misuse, while also preparing students for responsible digital citizenship.
Thank you for considering our proposal.
Yours sincerely,
Hailey
- Task fit: Formal letter; tone respectful and persuasive.
- Organisation: Clear structure: introduction, three arguments, recommendation.
- Language: Persuasive vocabulary (“balanced policy,” “responsible use”) and modals (“would,” “should”).
- Appropriacy: Suitable for addressing a principal, avoids slang or over-informality.
HL model answer (~500 words, Opinion article)
Task: Write an opinion article for a national youth magazine discussing whether young people should be required to do compulsory community service.
Solution
Should Community Service Be Compulsory for Young People?
Rules shape how we live together, and the best rules earn respect by showing their purpose. The current debate about compulsory community service asks a hard question: do we build stronger citizens by requiring service hours, or do we weaken the very spirit that makes service meaningful?
Start with what service can do. Time spent tutoring younger students, cleaning a riverbank, or visiting a care home teaches practical empathy. You plan, you show up, you learn to listen. These are habits that exams cannot measure but life will demand. If every student completed a set number of hours, access to these lessons would be fair. No one would miss out simply because their friends never invited them to volunteer.
There is also a civic argument. Communities fund our schools, hospitals, and public spaces. Asking young people to spend a season giving back is not a punishment. It is a way to see how shared goods are maintained. In countries that run national service, alumni often report that the work flattened social barriers. People from different backgrounds met, worked, and understood each other a little better.
Still, compulsion has costs. Real service grows from motivation. If the state turns volunteering into a requirement, some students will chase signatures rather than experiences. Others will juggle jobs or caring duties and feel punished for circumstances they cannot change. A blanket rule can also ignore local needs. One town might require food bank support. Another might need translation help at clinics. A central quota rarely fits all.
There is a better route. Make service the obvious choice by aligning it with benefits that matter. Schools can recognise hours on transcripts, link projects to coursework, and reserve awards for sustained contributions. Governments can partner with local groups to create flexible roles at evenings and weekends. Employers and universities can value verified community work when they select candidates.
Education should prepare us to use freedom well. That means learning to choose responsibility, not just to obey rules. Instead of forcing every teenager to serve, invite them into work that feels real, visible, and respected. When students see the point, they stay. When they stay, communities gain more than compliance. They gain citizens.
The goal is not to produce perfect volunteers, but to build a culture where service is normal. Clear guidance, fair recognition, and local choice can deliver that outcome without turning generosity into a box to tick. Compulsory schemes may raise numbers for a year. A culture of engagement will raise citizens for a lifetime.
Safeguards matter. Any framework should prevent exploitation, cap weekly hours during exam terms, and include basic training on safety and inclusion. Build reflection into the process. A short journal or debrief helps convert action into learning and stops hours from becoming empty numbers. Finally, scale what already works in schools, from service weeks to archive projects, but keep choice central. Standards guide participation; choice sustains motivation. That balance earns lasting trust.
Note- Task fit: Clear opinion article format, suitable for a national youth magazine. Issue is stated, arguments developed, counterarguments considered, and conclusion reached.
- Organisation: Logical flow from benefits → civic argument → drawbacks → alternative solution → conclusion. Each section builds on the last without repetition.
- Language: Sophisticated but accessible. Uses persuasive vocabulary (“motivation,” “resentment,” “constructive alternative,” “flattened social barriers”) and varied syntax.
- Appropriacy: Speaks to young people while considering wider civic issues; avoids slang but keeps energy in phrasing.
Paper 2 (Listening & Reading)
- Texts often highlight tension: rules as protection vs. rules as limits.
- Cause and effect: “Stricter curfews reduce crime but limit youth freedom.”
- Winners and losers: “Traffic laws protect pedestrians, but drivers feel restricted.”
- Framing: Rules may be portrayed as necessary order, or as outdated control.
Individual Oral (IA)
- Images linked to Law, Rules & Engagement usually capture the tension between authority and public response.
- Common image types:
- Police officers directing traffic, enforcing curfews, or managing crowds.
- Protests where citizens hold banners or gather against government decisions.
- School-related rules (uniforms, phone bans, exam conduct posters).
- What to notice:
- Symbols of authority: uniforms, badges, fences, or warning signs. These represent control, order, or restriction.
- Signs of engagement: crowds, placards, debates, or community meetings. These show how people respond, whether by obeying, questioning, or resisting rules.
- Balance of power: does the image suggest cooperation, or is it conflict?
- Cultural context: some societies highlight obedience and respect for rules, others highlight questioning and activism. Linking this to your own context strengthens the analysis.
