What Is a TOK Presentation? Structure, Rubric & Tips

As an IB student, you have to conduct a theory of knowledge presentation as a required part of your program. TOK presentations allow you to demonstrate your analytical skills, which are very important. They allow you to work through real-life situations and then apply them. However, it is very common for students to find it challenging to work on TOK presentations.

IMPORTANT!

In the current years 2023 and 2024 IB Diploma program, you will need to submit a TOK exhibition that currently appears in the IB curriculum. It also has a specific list of topics that you’ll need to select from. It is also called a TOK exhibition IA prompts as well as TOK essay topics are announced on yearly basis. You can find more information about TOK exhibition IA prompts in this article.

meanwhile, this IB TOK presentation guide can help you understand how you can work on such presentations and how that can help you further work on your analytical skills. Enjoy reading 😉

TOK Presentation Structure ✅

The TOK presentation usually has two main areas. These are the development section and the use of evidence section.

In the development section, you have to talk about the knowledge question, and you also have to shed light on the areas of knowledge and the ways of knowing.

You need to make claims and counterclaims in this section, where you apply your knowledge correctly. In the evidence section, you provide evidence for all the claims you have made in the section above.

BTW

If you need assistance with your IB TOK presentation, our company is here to help. Also, you can always order a TOK essay written from scratch from our service. Let’s continue with the article if you have a brave heart and are ready to do the PPT presentation on your own.

So, in total, there should be around ten slides, and each of these is listed and explained well:

Slide 1- This is the title page where you must state your name and the presentation title. You can also talk about the real-life situation in this slide and how it has impacted you.

Slide 2- You have to talk about all of the key terms in the title, and you also have to give your explanation of these.

Slide 3- You have to state your knowledge question, and you also have to outline the areas of knowledge and the ways of knowing in this one.

Slides 4-6- In these three slides, you have to talk about your claim, counterclaim, and the mini conclusion related to the argument that you have made.

Slide 7- in this one, you give the final conclusion, and you can also provide an ending note that speaks about your own opinion in this case. You can also talk about any possible flaws that you feel existed here and how you feel those could have been dealt with in a better way.

Slide 8- Here, you have to talk about your real-life situation and how it links to the final conclusion that you have made in the essay.

Slide 9- Here, you have to give a bibliography. If there are any sources that you have made use of, you have to talk about all of those here. It is crucial to make sure that you reference them in line with the guidelines you have been given.

Tips for a Good TOK Presentation ✅

It is only normal for students to find it very challenging to work on TOK presentations. If you are in the same boat, you don’t need to worry. Here are a few tips that can help you make the best one.

Start on a good note

It is always advisable that you start off positively. How do you do that? You focus on a real-life situation that does interest you. When you do that, you will be able to explain it in a much better way as well. That way, you will also be able to keep your audience’s interest. Usually, others can see when you are too excited about something, and you wish to talk about it.

Choose the right knowledge question

You must choose the best knowledge question out there. The best knowledge question is the one that works best for you. You should be able to write on that without any issues. The question you choose should be based on the construction of knowledge and should be one that you can break into pieces.

To choose the right question, go through all of them and analyze which one you think works best for you. Then, pick one that you think you can defend. When you do that, things will start seeming a whole lot easier for you.

Make an outline

Many students make the mistake of starting off with their presentation right away. This is not the approach that you should be taking. You should first have an outline that helps you set the premise. You should know exactly what you are working on. When you do that, things will seem a lot easier for you, and you will be able to plan your presentation out first before you get to do it.

Offer something new

People are already bored of getting to find out about the same things over and over again. Your presentation should highlight something new. The idea should be to engage the audience as much as possible and keep their interest by offering them something new they did not have an idea about earlier. When you do that, they will look forward to what you are talking about.

Be confident when presenting

Many students find it hard to present in front of everyone. It can be challenging, but you need to do it with confidence. Once you have prepared the presentation, you need to make sure to present it with a lot of confidence. When you do that, things will seem much better. Others will also take you a lot more seriously when you present it that way. They will show much interest in what you are doing and will be there to actually listen to what you have to say.

Lao Tzu says, “Because one believes in oneself, one doesn’t try to convince others. Because one is content with oneself, one doesn’t need others’ approval. Because one accepts oneself, the whole world accepts him or her.” So always try to be confident. Your confidence should show up in front of other people. They should be able to tell that you know what you are saying and have done your background research very well.

Research well

Anything that you do, you need to back it up with evidence. Similarly, for your TOK presentation, you must first conduct sound research. When that is done, you can support every argument you make. That can help you get done with things perfectly. Remember that you have to speak about this, so you need to defend every single point you make. That is something you can only do when you do your research well. If you’re making a claim, try to verify it through several sources first to be completely sure about what you are saying.

Practice your presentation

When you practice, you will master the art of presenting. It is only normal to have your heart beating faster when you try to present. You might find it very confusing, and you might not know how to go about it at all. But when you practice, you naturally get much better at it. You need to get comfortable with what you are presenting, and you need to practice to get better at it continuously.

Own your presentation

This means that you should know what you are talking about inside out. Your presentation should not be one that you are just doing for the heck of it, but the audience should be able to tell what exactly you are working on.

That is very crucial for you to be able to do justice to it. It seems like a very shabby piece if you just read what you have written on the slides. So try to own it. When you have researched well, you will know exactly what you have to talk about, making everything seem a lot put into place.

With these tips, you will surely be able to ace your presentation!

TOK Presentation Rubric ✅

When you prepare so much, you are looking to make it big. You want to make sure to score well, but for that, you need to make sure you know what you are talking about. You need to be very well aware of the presentation rubric to work according to what is expected of you to do a sound job.

There are basically five levels to this:

Level 0- This means that you have not worked according to the standards given, or have not worked on one of the prescribed titles.

Level 1- This is elementary, which means that you might have touched upon the real-life situation, but you have not given any reference, which means that you have not done the right analysis or connected it to the other things.

Level 2- This is basic, which means that you have identified a real-life situation, but the explanation that you have given is not good enough and it does not connect or make sense at all.

Level 3- This is satisfactory, which means that you have done a decent job, and that there is some connection identified. You might have also given some adequate arguments, but these aren’t the best ones out there.

Level 4- This is a very good presentation which means that you have very well connected the real-life situation to the knowledge question and explore it with ample arguments as well. You have also taken into account different perspectives, and that is exactly what was required of you as well.

Level 5- This is an excellent presentation where you have clearly connected the real-life situation to the knowledge question and have done a stellar job with presenting your argument. It also means that you have outdone yourself in the analysis part.

TOK Presentation FAQs ❓

Students usually have many questions about the TOK presentation. Here are a few frequently asked ones that can help clarify your understanding and help you further understand how this works.

1. What is a ‘good’ knowledge question?

A good knowledge question is one that is open-ended. This means that you can explore many different perspectives on it. A good knowledge question does not restrict you and allows you to delve into deep details, which is exactly what is needed of you to make an impact.

2. What is a TOK presentation outline?

Many students directly start off with the presentation without drafting an outline. This is the right approach to have. An outline is a roadmap of your presentation that allows you to chalk out an entire plan for your presentation. When you do that, you will be able to clearly understand where you are headed with your presentation. With greater clarity on this, you will be much more sorted, naturally increasing your chances of doing a decent job. Like an outline for a CUEGIS essay, TOK presentation outline helps you organize your thoughts in the best way possible, allowing you to make a sound argument.

3. How can you understand a TOK presentation rubric?

The rubric is very self-explanatory, where there are mainly five levels identified. However, if you want further clarity on it, you can understand it in three main parts- the formulation of the knowledge question, exploration of the questions, and outcomes of the analysis. When you break it down into these three parts, it will help you a lot, and you will be able to plan your presentation out very well.

4. What should I know about TOK oral presentation?

This is a mandatory part of your IB program, which allows students to share their thoughts on a specific topic. Unlike the TOK essay, this is something that you have to present, which means that your analytical skills are not the only skills that are being tested, but your presentation skills are being checked too. When you start off, you need to have an introduction that explains your real-life situation—then, building on that, you give your claims and counterclaim and then conclude accordingly.

We hope that this guide has been handy and that you have been able to fully well understand what a TOK presentation is and how you can go about it in the best way.

Now it’s the exact right time to start working on it, my friend. Start earlier and do not miss the submission date 😉 Use the information provided in the article to complete your presentation accordingly.

Should you have some other tips, make sure to leave them in the comments section below.