What are Assessment Objectives (AOs)?

If you have looked in either your textbook, the syllabus, or here on EcoNinja, chances are you have seen these 4 terms show up:

• AO1

• AO2

• AO3

• AO4

But what are these? What do they mean?

They stand for Assessment Objectives (1 to 4), and each have a different meaning:

• AO1: You must define or state something. Few things are just AO1, as for most concepts you also need to be able to explain it (AO2). This is mainly tested in paper 2.

• AO2: You must explain or analyze something. This is tested across all 3* papers. 

• AO3: You must properly evaluate (pros/cons) or examine something. This is mainly tested in the 15-mark question in papers 1 and 2, and also recommended to include in the 10-mark responses on paper 3*.

• AO4: You must calculate or draw something. This is tested in the low-mark questions on papers 2 and 3*, but drawing diagrams is also very helpful when writing the high-mark questions across all 3* papers.

*Paper 3 is taken by HL students only. Paper 3 is a calculation-heavy exam, so SL students have more calculations on Paper 2 to compensate.