As an IB alumni, I fully appreciate the advantages that an education with the IB has given me to prepare me for university. I think that while this mistake regarding the history exam is indeed unprofessional, the damage it causes is not as huge as a lot of people make it out to be. Simply because not many students would come into the exam expecting an exact replica of a past exam paper. In addition, having been an IB history student myself, I know that Paper 2 questions repeat from time to time anyway. So while some students might have rote learnt and benefited from the repeat of paper (the chances are v. slim), it is not likely to raise students' performance by a lot. Yes, this mistake by IBO was dire and should be avoided in the future, but that does not lessen the IB's mission of shaping students to be rounded, international learners, nor does it suddenly make the IB system a bad one. I would still recommend people to do the IB.

Hien Nguyen, Hanoi, Vietnam

No matter how the IB decides to grade us, the students, we will be penalized. Some students will be given an advantage over others, and in any way the Paper 2 will not be a correct indicator of the students' levels.

Again regarding your point Perry, according to the syllabus Paper 2 counts for 25% of the Higher Level Students' course grade and 45% of the Standard Level Student's course grade. This just shows that it is not a trivial mistake! Please do not treat this as a mundane issue, you have not felt the grief that us students have felt! I'm not trying to sound rude, but it's different when your a parent of a child who has taken IB, a parent of a child who has taken this Paper 2, and a student, one out of the 28,000 who took this exam. The fact is that we are always warned by the IB that if we make any mistakes we will be harshly penalized for them; I could go on and quote the IB but that would take up too much time and space; the section in the IB guides for this are around 40 pgs

IB Student #2, Cairo, Egypt

The OU once set the same psychology paper two years running. To this day no one will admit it was a mistake, they smile smugly and say "why not?" and try to pass it off as some sophisticated educational experiment.

John Ledbury, Kings Lynn, England

The students should not be penalized at all, especially since the main part of the exam preparation is looking through past exams because the questions REPEAT EACH OTHER every year anyway - they are only formulated differently.
There is no way any student would have known this would happen and been able to cheat by memorizing an old exam question (which, by the way, is what the students are ecouraged to do!)

IB student, Oslo, Norway

Marianne in London said it was a one-off. It wasn't. Last year I understand they left the Periodic Tables out of the Chemistry Paper Data Booklets, making some questions a memory test of Period Table stuff, which you're not required to learn. I took ANOTHER IB exam yesterday which had a BAD mistake in it. I'm not sure if I'm allowed to go into detail so I won't. But two mistakes this year and one last year, and that's just the stories I've heard.

Pat, London,

A 'human error' yes the same 'human error' that means the IB should give me a 7 instead of a 6 for physics. It seems ironic that the IB, an exam board, should be able to come up so quickly with the excuse of 'human error' and everythign should be alright. It is also somewhat frustrating given the time, effort and money that students and teachers put into promoting the IB at their own school and at others that two years running the board should find itself making excuses (along the exact same lines in both cases) for mistakes in its examinations. Last year they failed to include periodic tables in the chemistry examinations resulting in confusion over whether examinations officers should provide them or not. Given the scrutiny and strictness of the code of conduct it uses against students it would, in my opinion, be expected that they use the same code against themselves, apparently not.

Andrew Cole, New Ash Green, UK

i took that exam! i thought some of the questions were vaguely familiar

Paul Crome, Dartford, UK

I take the IB, and I think that it is ridiculous taht those who tested this year in History got an old test. Although I am HL, and will be taking the exam next year, I still think that it is entirely unfair for those who tested this year to have that kind of advantage. In our class, we discuss the practice exams in great detail after taking them, and our teacher tells us exactly what we did wrong, and how we could have gotten full credit if we did not.
I wouldn't have a serious problem however, if they make a similair mistake next year with the IB Biology exam...

Tim, Mckinleyville, CA

I took the IB, and also this specific History exam. Whilst taking it I was merely wondering about the familiarity of all questions. Most will have had an advantage - I tend to search for the questions most alien to me as I am able to put the most analysis into those (the concerned paper consists of a selection of questions that one has to choose only two from), and thus did not do as well - exactly due to the simplicity, which leaves me a bit worried.
In general, however, I consider the IB as a wonderful programme. While it is at times very challenging, it has developed my abilities in areas far wider than covered by the subject. Other IB students are generally very well balanced in their knowledge, ability to discuss in a proper manner, and general maturity than students from other schools and nations I know. Personally, I would consider myself more than well prepared for any challenge that university may offer.
The article really does injustice to the IB; these errors are not common.

Lars Schöning, Copenhagen, Denmark

You could ask any examination board what happens if a child transfers in the middle of a course - and you should ask those questions too, if you are an expat. To say the IBO has no answer is incorrect; you gave an answer, which was that leave it up to individual schools. That is the strength of the IB programme as well. If your son/daughter were enrolled in a course, whether it be A level in a particular subject which your new school did not offer, then what? In my experience, the new school has asked students to change courses even; that would be unlikely in the Diploma offerings. The breadth of the course offered for IB are impressive, apart from the excellent standard that they require, which is making it internationally recognised as the gold standard of international education examination boards around the world.
I have taught in a number of educational systems across the world and can state that the IB Diploma is the most demanding, rigorous and best preparation for any student

Martin Cannon, Beijing, China

I have been involved with teaching the IB and my three children took the examinations. It offers a tough but fair challenge to students of widely differing aptitudes, and elements such as the Theory of Knowledge reach the parts other examinations cannot reach. The problems of the family that moved from Russia seem to have more to do with the schools they approached than with the examination board. This year's unfortunate accident will no doubt be a spur to reinforce failsafe measures in the future.

Dr Graham Howells, Brasília, Brazil

I took the IB, and have to say, it is a fantastic system. Yes, there has been one mistake here, which is a shame, but no system will ever be completely free of error. As a whole, the IB is a thorough and useful system, and has far less issues than any of the alternatives, while offering a better education. If the UK adopted the IB in all its schools, the country would be a far better place.

Marianne, London,

No great problem moving schools for us.
Our son completed his first year of the IB Diploma in the Philippines and his second year in China. Of course there were some issues but this is what the IB Diploma is set up for. There was flexibility in the system to allow for the way different schools teach different subjects and the exams in each subject gave a variety of choices. Everyone's transition across countries is different and I am sorry to hear Alice and family had some problems but I do not believe it is the norm for students doing the IB Diploma course. And, just to keep things in perspective, our son sat the history paper in question in this article. The paper contributes 20% of the grade for the History course and, just looking at the 6 subjects he sat, this is under 3.5% of the assessment required for the whole Diploma. People make mistakes. It happens. I doubt very much if the error has altered my son's final grade in any way.

Perry, Beijing, China

Things beginning to unravel in the IB scenario?
Ask the IBO about what happens if a child has to transfer midway through the final 2 year diploma course, as can happen with many expat families. The IBO has no answer. They leave it to the individual school. We has to transfer from Russia midway and it was a huge struggle finding a school willing to accept our son.
I would recommend against it until they promise to make better provision for expats like ourselves.If you are likely to be in the same position, ie child entering first year of IB abroad, make sure you know what the alternatives are. Anything can happen at any time. It did to us.

Alice, Brighton, jUK