IB Diploma · session May 2027
Digital Society
Guide first assessed in May 2024.
Topic 1
Nothing matches that.
The course in one page
The course in one page. Standard and higher level, for the guide first assessed in May 2024 — the guide May 2027 candidates sit.
What the course is
Digital society replaced ITGS. It is not a computing course: you are not assessed on programming or on how hardware works internally. You are assessed on how digital systems and societies shape each other — who gains, who loses, what changes, and who decides.
That distinction governs everything. A question about facial recognition does not want an explanation of neural networks; it wants an argument about power, consent, accuracy across different populations, and who is accountable when it is wrong.
Free material for this course is scarce, because it is new. Expect to work from the subject guide, the specimen papers and your own current-affairs reading more than from revision websites. That is a genuine disadvantage and the way to neutralise it is a case file of real examples, built continuously from the first week.
The inquiry model
The course is a triangle. Every question sits at the intersection of the three.
| 1 Concepts | the lenses | change, expression, identity, power, space, systems, values, ethics |
|---|---|---|
| 2 Content | the technologies | data, algorithms, computers, networks and the internet, media, AI, robots and autonomous technologies |
| 3 Contexts | the settings | cultural, economic, environmental, health, human knowledge, identity, political, social |
4 HL extension: challenges and interventions adds the higher level requirement to examine a real-world challenge and evaluate proposed interventions.
Learn to read a question by locating it on the triangle: which concept, applied to which technology, in which context. Answers that name all three read as deliberate; answers that generalise read as thin.
The papers
| Standard level | Higher level | |
|---|---|---|
| Paper 1 | 90 min, 40 marks | 135 min, 40 marks |
| Paper 2 | 75 min, 24 marks | 75 min, 24 marks |
| Paper 3: pre-release inquiry | — | 75 min, 26 marks |
Paper 2 is source-based: you are given extracts and must use them, quoting and referring to them explicitly. An answer that ignores the sources loses marks however well informed it is.
Paper 3 is higher level only and is set on a pre-release statement issued before the session — again, the most preparable assessment on the course.
How it is marked
Extended answers use mark bands. What moves you up them:
Real, named examples. "Some social media platforms" is generic. "Cambridge Analytica's use of Facebook profile data in 2016" is an example. This is the single largest differentiator.
More than one perspective. Almost every question in this subject has stakeholders who disagree. Naming them, and explaining why their interests diverge, is the core skill.
Concept vocabulary, used precisely. Say "this is a question of power and accountability" and then show it, rather than describing events without ever naming what they illustrate.
A conclusion that concludes. Not "there are advantages and disadvantages" but a judgement that depends on something specific — who bears the risk, whether consent was meaningful, whether the intervention is enforceable.
Assessment objectives
| Roughly | ||
|---|---|---|
| AO1 | Knowledge and understanding | describe, outline, define |
| AO2 | Application and analysis | apply concepts to a real situation; analyse impacts |
| AO3 | Synthesis and evaluation | evaluate interventions, weigh perspectives, conclude |
Command terms, and what each one obliges you to write
| Term | What must appear on the page |
|---|---|
| Identify / State | The answer alone. |
| Define | A precise meaning. |
| Outline | A brief account, main points only. |
| Describe | What it is or what happens. No why. |
| Explain | The reason or mechanism. |
| Distinguish | Differences set against each other. |
| Compare and contrast | Similarities and differences. |
| Analyse | Break the issue down and show how the parts relate. |
| Discuss | A balanced review of more than one perspective. |
| Evaluate | Strengths and limitations, then a supported judgement. |
| Recommend | A course of action, justified against the alternative. |
| To what extent | A judgement with a degree attached. |
Educerie · written from the published IB Diploma Programme structure for Digital Society, first assessment 2024. Original text. Paper durations and mark totals checked against the May 2027 examination schedule. Last reviewed 5 September 2026.