Summary
Highlights
The video introduces the TOK Exhibition, which has replaced the TOK presentation, aiming to help students connect concrete objects with abstract knowledge questions. The goal is to understand how top marks can be achieved by providing examples and a clear understanding of the new assessment.
The TOK Exhibition requires students to link one of 35 abstract prompts provided by the IB with three specific, concrete objects that have real-world context. These objects should not be generic (e.g., a mobile phone) but highly specific (e.g., 'the 1973 first mobile phone by Motorola').
Students are graded on a 950-word written commentary (approximately 300 words per object). The commentary should be structured into three parts: identification of the object and its real-world context, its link to the chosen prompt, and a justification for its inclusion that explains how it adds nuance or a different perspective to the prompt. It's noted that linking to TOK themes or linking the objects to each other is not required.
The top-down approach involves choosing a prompt first and then finding a single object related to it. Two examples are provided: 'Who owns knowledge?' with objects like patents, songs, and a school library, and 'What challenges are raised by the dissemination and/or communication of knowledge?' with objects like Trump's tweets, news about lack of internet access in rural towns, and language barriers in online articles.
The bottom-up approach starts by selecting an object that is related to knowledge or knowledge production, then finding a suitable prompt to connect it with. Examples include a tweet by Anthony Fauci linked to 'What role do experts play in influencing our consumption or acquisition of knowledge?' and the first microscope linked to 'Can your knowledge change established values or beliefs?'
Advice on choosing a prompt involves skimming the list, selecting 3-5 interesting ones, and then carefully reading and ranking them based on feasibility. For objects, the key is specificity and real-world context, utilizing personal background knowledge. Examples are given for choosing an object first, such as the radical mastectomy or a 2B pencil, and then finding a prompt that aligns.
A detailed personal example of a TOK Exhibition is presented using the prompt 'Who owns knowledge?'. The first object is the patent for GPS, showing how ownership of knowledge shifts from government to inventor to public domain. The second object is a middle school library, illustrating shared, non-exclusive ownership of knowledge found in books. The third object is Justin Bieber's song 'Yummy,' highlighting how something publicly available isn't necessarily publicly owned, revealing a hierarchy of ownership often ending with labels rather than artists or consumers.