Section A – Plan of Investigation, Rough Draft Due October 1.

This is a relatively brief but important section. A sharply focused question and a clearly structured plan will be more likely to produce a successful investigation. It is also very important to note information regarding the 10 year rule as outlined in the section “Internal assessment details—SL and HL” of the guide.

100-150 Words; Students should:

state the topic of the investigation, which should be formulated as a question; it could be useful to provide a rationale for the choice of the selected topic for investigation

define the scope of the investigation; identify themes or areas of investigation to be undertaken in order to

reach an effective and successful conclusion to the investigation

explain the method of the investigation by stating the ways in which themes or areas will be analyzed.

identify the two sources to be evaluated and their value to the investigation

Examples

How Significant was Fidel Castro’s Role in the Missile Crisis of 1962?

The investigation assesses the significance of Fidel Castro in the Missile Crisis of 1962. In order to evaluate Castro’s significance, the investigation evaluates his role in each stage of the Crisis in reference to other participants of the event; Castro’s role is investigated in the initial days of the Crisis, during the shooting down of the American U-2 plane, and in the resolution of the Crisis. Memoirs and oral history are mostly used to evaluate Castro’s significance. Two of the sources used in the essay, Cuba on the Brink: Castro, the Missile Crisis and the Soviet Collapse compiled by James Blight, Allyn Bruce and David Welsh and Cuban documents, “The Mikoyan-Castro Talks, 4-5 November 1962: the Cuban Version,” are then evaluated for their origins, purposes, values and limitations.

The investigation does not assess the difference in ideologies (communist versus imperialism or capitalism) of the nations involved nor does the investigation assess opinions other than those of United States, Soviet Union, and Cuba.

Which were the real motives for the different views held by Churchill and Chamberlain, during the years previous to World War II?

In this investigation, my aim was to analyze the different views that Neville Chamberlain and Winston Churchill held regarding Hitler’s aggression during the inter- war years. Although now, many years later, it is clear that Churchill’s vision was accurate, the circumstances at that particular time help to understand Chamberlain’s outlook better, instead of regarding him as a simple “appeaser”.

My method of investigation consisted in comparing various opinions that historians have concerning both politicians. I took into account the authors’ backgrounds, as well as the time when their books were written, in order to support my investigation with primary and secondary sources. I also did cross-referencing of recent sources with others published soon after the events, so as to analyze the issue in depth.