Befuddled Posted October 14, 2016 Report Share Posted October 14, 2016 I'm doing my Extended Essay in Geography, possibly on medical tourism in Bangkok. With a focus on Bumrungrad Hospital (major one for this topic) My question is possibly: "What changes has Bangkok's Bumrungrad hospital made since its establishment to accommodate (medical tourists/ foreign patients) ?" Firstly, is it fit for geography or would it end up being a Business Management EE as it is about developments and changes? Do you think the question shouldn't be a 'what' question? Is a hypothesis required for a geography EE? Is my question too focused - as I have found few resources online? (maybe I didn't research deeply yet ) Please respond ASAP!! Reply Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted October 15, 2016 Report Share Posted October 15, 2016 (Before I start, I just want to say that I don't take Geography, so please take my advice with a grain of salt. ) I have a feeling that your essay question is too focused on a single place (a single hospital, in this case). Here's what IB has to say about choosing topics: "Candidates and supervisors should be reminded that having a clear spatial element in their essay (going beyond mere location on a map) is absolutely essential." (source) I fear that if you don't take a spatial, regional approach to your essay, you might come up with a Business Management EE instead, as you said. Here is a link to some titles of Geography EEs that got an A, to help show what I mean when I say that you might be missing the 'spatial' approach: http://blogs.osc-ib.com/2010/03/ib-teacher-blogs/dp_geography/originality-in-geography-extended-essays/ Your EE can have a testable hypothesis, or it may not. Here's what IB says: "In geography, many successful essays develop the research question through the formulation of a hypothesis or hypotheses. If students do this, it is important to ensure that hypotheses are well constructed, testable, have a basis in geographical theory and involve appropriate investigative channels...It is equally acceptable for the research question to examine a geographical issue, conflict or problem, which may be formulated as a proposition or statement for discussion. The research question must be clearly stated in the abstract and in the introduction. It must be framed in a way that discourages a descriptive or narrative approach, and that encourages argument and discussion." (source) I've heard people recommend to do a Geography EE with a testable hypothesis, so that they can go out and collect primary research, which IB really likes. I do think that IB prefers EEs with lots of primary research, compared to EEs that only use secondary sources to form a discussion (this applies for other EE subjects like Biology as well). You can always look at past Geography EEs online to see what IB expects - they'll help you to get an idea of how suitable your current EE topic is. And of course, you can always ask for help from your EE mentor/supervisor person, as they've (hopefully!) got lots of experience with EEs. Best of luck! Reply Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Befuddled Posted October 15, 2016 Author Report Share Posted October 15, 2016 (edited) 3 hours ago, Thundercracker said: (Before I start, I just want to say that I don't take Geography, so please take my advice with a grain of salt. ) I have a feeling that your essay question is too focused on a single place (a single hospital, in this case). Here's what IB has to say about choosing topics: "Candidates and supervisors should be reminded that having a clear spatial element in their essay (going beyond mere location on a map) is absolutely essential." (source) I fear that if you don't take a spatial, regional approach to your essay, you might come up with a Business Management EE instead, as you said. Here is a link to some titles of Geography EEs that got an A, to help show what I mean when I say that you might be missing the 'spatial' approach: http://blogs.osc-ib.com/2010/03/ib-teacher-blogs/dp_geography/originality-in-geography-extended-essays/ Your EE can have a testable hypothesis, or it may not. Here's what IB says: "In geography, many successful essays develop the research question through the formulation of a hypothesis or hypotheses. If students do this, it is important to ensure that hypotheses are well constructed, testable, have a basis in geographical theory and involve appropriate investigative channels...It is equally acceptable for the research question to examine a geographical issue, conflict or problem, which may be formulated as a proposition or statement for discussion. The research question must be clearly stated in the abstract and in the introduction. It must be framed in a way that discourages a descriptive or narrative approach, and that encourages argument and discussion." (source) I've heard people recommend to do a Geography EE with a testable hypothesis, so that they can go out and collect primary research, which IB really likes. I do think that IB prefers EEs with lots of primary research, compared to EEs that only use secondary sources to form a discussion (this applies for other EE subjects like Biology as well). You can always look at past Geography EEs online to see what IB expects - they'll help you to get an idea of how suitable your current EE topic is. And of course, you can always ask for help from your EE mentor/supervisor person, as they've (hopefully!) got lots of experience with EEs. Best of luck! Thanks!! I realised the same thing too: I could barely get any information However, confusingly, my EE supervisor/coordinator both say I should focus on the hospital. And my geo teacher also said don't do any primary research...? I have no idea why they'd say that.... But I think I may be changing my EE to be about how the Thai rice production was affected by drought and its effects on farmers What do you think? Do I need to focus it (like central Thailand?) or is it fine? I have yet to discuss this with my supervisor P.S. good luck on your studies and EE (what is it about?) May 2018! Edited October 15, 2016 by Befuddled Reply Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted October 15, 2016 Report Share Posted October 15, 2016 Yeah, I think you might want to focus our new EE topic on a certain region, like central Thailand. Making your research question about a whole country will be too broad, I think. Reply Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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