48 exam-style questions on Inquiry Project — topic SK.Inquiry_project of Skills in the IB Digital Society syllabus — with answers and explanations. Samples below; the full set is free with an account.
A student proposes the inquiry question 'How much harm do recommendation algorithms do to teenagers?' and is asked to rewrite it before starting. Which weakness in the question does that request address?
Answer: It assumes the answer that it is meant to investigate
The phrase 'how much harm' settles the direction of the finding before any evidence is gathered, so the inquiry can only measure a conclusion it has already assumed. A researchable question fixes the system, the group, the place and the period and leaves the answer open.
Which inquiry question is scoped tightly enough to be answered with evidence within a school project?
Answer: How did a city transport app change journey planning for wheelchair users after 2022?
A workable question names the system, the group affected, the place and the period, so that a finite set of sources can settle it. Questions about what technology will look like in future ask for a prediction, which no source can evidence.
A student cites a figure that appears in a technology company's blog post announcing the company's own research. Which step most improves the reliability of that citation?
Answer: Locating the underlying study and citing its method
Origin and purpose do not disqualify a source, but a self-published summary hides the method, and the method is what decides whether the number supports the claim being made. Repetition by the same author adds no independent weight.
A student plans to interview classmates about their experience of online harassment and to record the interviews. Which precaution is required before recording starts?
Answer: Obtaining informed consent and agreeing how the recordings are stored
Informed consent means the participant knows the purpose, knows how the recording will be stored and knows they may withdraw. On a sensitive topic, agreeing storage and anonymisation is part of the consent rather than a later tidying-up step.
A student's inquiry into a national digital identity scheme rests entirely on documents published by the agency that operates the scheme. Which addition would strengthen the inquiry most?
Answer: Evidence from people who were unable to enrol in the scheme
Triangulation means adding a source with a different origin and purpose, not more material from the same author. The perspective most often missing is that of non-users, who by definition leave no trace in an operator's own records.
A student's inquiry asks how gig-economy couriers in their city experience algorithmic shift allocation, and the student can reach only six couriers. Which data-collection method fits this question best?
Answer: semi-structured interviews in which each courier describes the experience in depth
A question about lived experience with six reachable participants calls for depth, not counting: interviews let each courier explain what the algorithm does to their week. The typical error is defaulting to a survey because it looks more scientific, although six responses support no statistics at all.
That was 6 of 48 Inquiry Project questions.
Practise all 48 freeOutlineAO1 · 4–6 marks
A brief account or summary: the main points in two or three sentences, no evaluation.
DescribeAO1 · 4–6 marks
Give a detailed account of what it is or how it happens — steps, features, pattern — without saying why.
StateAO1 · 4–6 marks
One word or one short sentence. No explanation, no working: the mark is for the fact itself.
48 Inquiry Project questions — free with an account. Spaced repetition, streaks and full exam simulations included.
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