ToK Essay: Balancing Real World Examples and Theory of Knowledge Analysis
I recently reconnected with a friend after a significant amount of time. When he asked about my current endeavors, I shared about the launch of my website and YouTube channel, focusing on Theory of Knowledge (ToK) support. His cheeky response - "Too much RLS not enough ToK?" - inspired this blog post, a critical issue we often encounter when reviewing ToK essays.
The Dilemma of Too Much RLS and Not Enough ToK
RLS stands for Real Life Situation. It refers to real-world contexts or examples, providing the practical side to your ToK essay. ToK, on the other hand, represents the Theory of Knowledge content, which includes the discussion of knowledge acquisition, knowledge construction, methodology, scope, perspectives, and other related concepts.
In this article, the third of a four-part series on writing ToK essays, we tackle the recurring issue that plagues most ToK essays—too much emphasis on RLS and inadequate focus on ToK content. This imbalance is prevalent in around 80% of ToK drafts that I've reviewed, and approximately half of all the ToK essays I evaluated as an examiner were also guilty of this imbalance.
In this article, the third of a four-part series on writing ToK essays, we tackle the recurring issue that plagues most ToK essays—too much emphasis on RLS and inadequate focus on ToK content. This imbalance is prevalent in around 80% of ToK drafts that I've reviewed, and approximately half of all the ToK essays I evaluated as an examiner were also guilty of this imbalance.
The first criterion in the ToK Essay assessment rubric requires a sustained focus on the essay title. Essays leaning more towards the RLS than ToK content often lack this necessary focus.
Striking the Right Balance Between RLS and ToK Content
You may be wondering how much ToK content should be included relative to RLS content. Although there is no definitive answer—it varies depending on the essay title, knowledge argument, RLS used, writing style, and other factors—there are certain tests we can apply to gauge what RLS content to include and what to exclude.
For each sentence of RLS content, ask yourself these questions:
Does this sentence contribute to the knowledge argument I'm making?
Does the sentence confirm or evidence the knowledge argument I am making?
Is this sentence directly linked to the essay title?
Applying these tests usually results in a rough balance of 80% ToK content and 20% RLS content. There might be exceptions, but generally, the RLS content shouldn't significantly exceed this guideline.
Applying the Balance: A ToK Essay Example
To better understand this concept, let's analyse two responses to the knowledge claim: "Not everything can be explained by AoK The Natural Sciences because scientific explanations are a product of that which is known, and not everything is yet known."
Let’s look at an excerpt Student A’s essay:
The Duck Billed Platypus was first encountered by Europeans in Australia in 1798. The second Governor of New South Wales sent a sketch and pelt to the Natural History Museum in London ( collection founded in the 1750s by Sir Hans Sloane in Bloomsbury London). The biological and natural scientists at the museum were perplexed by the Platypus as it has a beak like a bird, lays eggs like a bird or reptile, feeds milk to its young like a mammal, has fur like a mammal, has venom like a reptile, In his 1802 book, An Account of the English Colony in New South Wales, Colonel David Collins wrote 'the most extraordinary circumstance observed in its structure was, it having instead of the mouth of an animal, the upper and lower mandibles of a duck.'
Scientists thought the Duck billed Platypus was a hoax as they couldn’t classify it. This shows that not everything can be explained by AoK The Natural Sciences.
Student A
Now let's look at Student B's Essay:
The claim that scientific knowledge can’t explain everything because scientific explanations are a response to pre-existing knowledge can be illustrated looking at the case of the Duck Billed Platypus. When the platypus was first encountered by Europeans in 1798 its phenotypical characteristics (e.g. it has a bill, lays eggs, produces milk, has venom) prevented it from fitting neatly into any single taxonomic class. The classification system at that time had been developed based on all animals that had been encountered up until that point (pre-existing knowledge). Upon encountering an animal that did not fit the classification system scientists had to create a new order (called Monotremata) that could account for the combination of characteristics of the Platypus. This demonstrates that pre-existing scientific knowledge may not be able to explain everything. However the scientific method enables the scientific framework to adapt to new knowledge, and for that new knowledge to be incorporated into the body of scientific knowledge.
Student B
Student A's essay focuses heavily on the story of the platypus discovery, while Student B's response emphasizes the limitations of pre-existing scientific knowledge, using the platypus as a reference point.
Student A's approach falls into the "too much RLS, not enough ToK" pitfall. While it provides a captivating narrative, it fails to highlight the knowledge argument or directly answer the essay title. On the contrary, Student B's essay maintains a stronger balance between RLS and ToK content, demonstrating a comprehensive understanding of the ToK framework while providing relevant real-world context.
The Takeaway
Ensuring the right balance between RLS and ToK content is pivotal to writing a compelling ToK essay. It allows for a more precise exploration of knowledge issues, steering clear of the all-too-common mistake of overusing real-world examples at the expense of substantial ToK analysis.
For more insights into avoiding common mistakes in ToK essays, check out the blogpost, "The 3 Most Frequent Mistakes on the ToK Essay". And for extensive guidance, consider my popular e-book, "How to Write The ToK Essay in 6 Easy Steps".
Stay tuned for the final post in this series, "How to Get an A in The ToK Essay", and remember to maintain a fine balance in your essays for a more impactful ToK exploration.
Stay Toktastic, my friends!