IB Diploma · Years 12-13
IB Government and Politics tutors
Global Politics is concept-led and requires case studies across several units, with an engagement activity as part of the Internal Assessment. The concepts have to be used explicitly rather than implied, which is where otherwise good answers lose marks.
- USD 30-36 per hour
- One-to-one, online
- Free 1-hour trial class
What IB Diploma actually demands
Six subjects plus Theory of Knowledge, the Extended Essay and CAS. The workload is the defining feature, and the Internal Assessments, coursework worth a substantial share of each subject grade, are what most often slip.
Political institutions, ideologies and processes, usually comparing systems. It rewards current, specific examples, which means the subject has to be revised continuously rather than only at the end.
Where IB Government and Politics students lose marks
- Examples that are out of date, which weakens otherwise strong essays
- Ideologies described without reference to the named thinkers the specification requires
- Comparative questions answered as two separate descriptions with no actual comparison
- Opinion presented as analysis, without the balance and evidence the mark scheme expects
Is this the right subject at this level?
Students heading for politics, law, international relations or PPE, and anyone who follows the news closely and needs to turn that interest into examinable argument. It rewards students willing to argue positions they disagree with, because balance and evidence carry more marks than conviction does.
What it costs
USD 30-36 per 60-minute one-to-one lesson at IB Diploma, the same rate in every city we teach in. Billed monthly against lessons actually taught, with no prepaid blocks and no minimum commitment.
Paired lessons (2 students) are USD 21-25 per student. Small group lessons (up to 6 students) are USD 15-18 per student. What each format is good for is here.
How we teach it
One-to-one, online, with a shared whiteboard. The first thing we establish is the exact syllabus the student is entered for: schools do not always publish the version they actually enter, and preparing for the wrong paper structure wastes a term.
After that the work is diagnostic: a past paper under timed conditions, marked together against the published scheme, to find out where the marks are genuinely going. That is almost always more useful than covering the syllabus again more slowly. The full process is here.
Government and Politics: questions parents ask
How current do examples need to be?
Current enough that they have not been overtaken. Politics rewards recent, specific examples, which means the subject has to be revised continuously: keeping a running file of examples from the start of the course is the habit that pays off.
Why do comparative questions score badly?
Because students describe two systems in turn and never compare them. The marks are for explicit comparison (similarities, differences, and why they exist) not for two accurate parallel descriptions.
Do the political thinkers have to be named?
At A Level, yes. The specification names particular thinkers for each ideology and expects them to be used. Describing an ideology accurately without them caps the mark.