25 Mathematics Internal Assessment Ideas
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What is the Internal Assessment
Your Internal Assessment (IA) is a project that you will have to complete in all your IB classes. The style and grade value depends on the subject. It is a project that you will work on with the guidance of your teacher (or your tutor). The great thing about the internal assessment is that it allows students to be flexible and to further research a topic that they find interesting within the given subject. As good as it sounds, generating IA topic ideas is not always easy and that’s why we decided to help you here with some unique math IA ideas. Just read on!
What makes a good Math IA
A good IA should demonstrate your own interest of the topic. Moreover, it should show that the student has learned and has been able to apply what they have learned. A good IA does not have to be a very complex and intricate piece of work. Rather a clearly stated and clearly answered research question, consistent structure, and clear personal engagement which demonstrates knowledge will earn the student a good grade.
So let’s jump into what you are here for. Here is a list of 25 possible topics that serve as great math IA ideas. And keep in mind that in a math IA, it is more important to pick a topic that genuinely motivates you to display personal engagement than to pick something that sounds harder but does not resonate with you.
25 Unique Math IA Ideas
Arc lengths from integration techniques
Architecture and mathematics: the golden ratio
Bertrand paradox and probabilities
Cat’s cradle and the mathematics of knots
Chaos theory and the logistic map
Chess and the eight Queens puzzle
Conditional probability and the Monty Hall problem
Describing the vibrations of drums with Bessel functions
Dirac delta function and its applications
Elliptical geometry: when the sum of the angles of a triangle does not equal 180º
Euler’s identity: complex numbers and mathematical beauty
Fourier transformations
Fractals in nature
Markov chains and random walks
Modular arithmetic: when 2+2 is not always equal to 4
Möbius strip: the strange world of non-orientable surfaces
Simpson’s paradox and the strange outcomes of misused statistics
Special functions: error function and normal distributions
Surprising ways of finding Pi: Gaussian integral and the Leibniz Formula
The Koch snowflake: fractals and the tessellation of plane
The Mandelbrot Set: when fractals meet complex numbers
The Logistic function and its applications (population growth, neural networks, or linguistics)
The Gambler’s ruin: how beneficial chances are never beneficial in the end
The wave equation: how differential equations can be used to find the shape of a music note.
Topology: when a coffee mug and a donut are one and the same
To think about before you choose
Mathematics can be applied to pretty much all areas of human activity. For instance, a wave equation can be used not only to study music, but the dynamics of fluids and quantum mechanics as well, while the logistic function is applied to fields as diverse as population studies, neural networks, and linguistics. So remember to first pick an area that interests you, because the odds that one of the mathematics IA ideas above can be applied there are definitely in your favor.
Still Struggling?
No worries, our tutors are here to help. Whether you would like to consult what topic to choose or need additional help with setting up the structure of your IA, Think Smart Tutoring can help you. Just sign-up here for our tutoring services and we’ll contact you shortly to set-up the first introductory session.
