ITGS Paper 3 – Case Study – Exam Tips

The ITGS paper 3 exam is only for Higher Level (HL) students, and involves a different case study each year. Here are some tips for revising for and writing paper 3.

Revise

• The Case Study booklet – you should read this again, even if you think you already know it.
• The key IT language from the back of the Case Study booklet.
• The secondary research – the examples of related and organisations that we found on the Internet during our independent research. They are on the class wiki. You can also find resources for the latest case study on the ITGS textbook site. Resources for the 2017 case study are here.
• Primary research – the examples (some of you) researched in class and performed interviews for. These are on the class wiki.
• Questions – the list of “big issues” we discussed in class – the main concerns that the main stakeholders have, and the issues related to them. Make sure you know how these affect the stakeholders and the likely solutions.

Paper 3 Questions

• The first parts of the exam are similar to Paper 1 – short answers using the basic command terms (Describe, Define, Explain, etc)
• The first essay question uses the same rubric as the essays on Paper 1 – use the structure I taught you
• The final essay question is where you must incorporate the research we have done in class (primary and secondary). This is not optional.
• Use the key sentences I gave you to show the examiner you are doing this. “In an example our class researched….”
• If you researched an organisation called “Teatro Presidential”, don’t just say “In the Teatro Presidential…..”. The examiner might not know what you are talking about. Say “In an example our class researched, a local theatre called Teatro presidential……”
• A good way to incorporate our research is to use it to back up suggestions you make – e.g. suggest a solution to one of the stakeholders’s problems, then use a similar example we researched to explain how/why the solution was effective.
• Do not think you can get away with not including primary research! Your grade will be badly affected.