It’s extremely frustrating to spend hours brainstorming for IB History IA topics only to come out empty.
So to make the ideation process less strenuous for you, we’ve put together a list of ideas from which you can pick a topic to explore.
To be clear, topic selection is the most important step to the success of any internal assessment project.
By singling out a topic that allows you to develop a detailed, focused, and debatable research question, you put yourself in a position in which you can conduct historical investigation and write your final report with ease.
Key Takeaways
- Choose a topic you find interesting to explore, but ensure it’s debatable and can show perspective.
- The History IA topic that you choose should be not more than 10 years old, and it must relate to one of the six key concepts in History.
- Ensure the topic is worth investigation. Rather than focusing on over-researched topics that already have a clear answer, think of something unique that evokes curiosity and can lead to a better personal engagement.
- If the topic can promote a good analysis rather than being merely descriptive, go with it.
What Makes a Good History IA Topic?
If you want to do well in IB History, you should choose a topic that stands out enough to fascinate your teacher.
Keep in mind that a History IA focuses on events that have already occurred. So the topic you choose should be historical enough to investigate the past.
It’s up to you to choose what topic to focus your writing. Still, we recommend that you consider an area that sparks controversy, as long as it’s specific enough to fit in a 2,200 words report.
So here’s how to choose the topic:
- Your focus should be on an idea that’s 100% historical.
- Ensure you choose a topic that falls within an area that interests you or a theme you’ve always wanted to explore.
- The topic you pick should be on events that took place 10 or more years ago.
- If a topic is interesting but lacks sufficient sources for reference, don’t work on it.
- Lastly, consider an idea that you can explore in no more than 2,200 words, which is the ideal length for IB History IA.
Hire Professional Writing for Your Paper
You can hire our writing service if you already have a topic to work on but not enough time to focus on writing. Our team will research your area, develop a solid outline, write a comprehensive report, and deliver the paper to you on time.
However, below are some topic suggestions if you’re just looking for some ideas to get started with individual research and writing.
25+ Best History IA Topics
The following are 30+ ideas that may be a good fit for your History internal assessment report:
- Talk about what motivated the 1945 bombing of Dresden (substitute any city hit by the war) and the effects it had on its inhabitants.
- How much did the positive outcomes for the western powers result from the berlin blockade and airlift?
- How much did economic difficulties between the wars undermine public safety measures?
- What degree of peace and stability in Europe did the congress of Vienna bring about from 1815-1848?
- To what extent do you believe internal republican disputes contributed to the eventual republican defeat in the Spanish civil war?
- How much of the Spanish civil war can we attribute to internal strife in Spain and throughout the Spanish-speaking world?
- Was the only reason for the 1962 soviet missile assembly in Cuba to deter an attack from the United States?
- How well do you think David Low’s cartoons reflected pre-war British popular opinion?
- How and to what degree did policies in Germany and Austria lead to the First World War?
- Does personal experience lend credence to the idea that things became worse in East Germany when the Nazis fell from power?
- Explain why you think Hitler was able to seize power in January of 1933. You can incorporate a contentious stance or argument.
- Exactly how much blame does the CIA and the United States government deserve for Salvador Allende’s overthrow?
- In what way did Fidel Castro play a crucial part in the Cuban missile crisis of 1962?
- Examine the impact of Lenin and Trotsky on the Soviet Union from 1918 to 1924 and draw comparisons.
- Describe the precision and challenges in archaeological fieldwork on the reconstruction of the Teutoburg forest.
- Talk about the evolution of Lenin and Trotsky’s influence in the formation of the Soviet Union between 1918 and 1924
- What’s the enduring impact of Thomas Aquinas’ summa theological on Christian church development in the middle ages?
- Do an in-depth exploration of the evolution and influence of European trade unions in the 19th century.
- The advocacy and motives behind Margaret Sanger’s promotion of birth control in the United States.
- Discuss the causes and context of the unraveling of communist regimes in 1980s Eastern Europe.
- Do a comparative analysis of media portrayal of Soviet and American governments during the Cuban missile crisis in United States and British Press.
- Write about the utilization of Chinese theater by communists in China during the Cultural Revolution.
- Neocolonialism: Transatlantic trade expansion and global impact
- Compare the British soldiers in Europe versus the pacific during World War II.
- Discuss the fusion of Italian baroque style and Greek mythology in the design and operation of the palace of Versailles.
- Examine the British political responses to the jack the ripper murders in the 1880s.
- Do a dissemination of programs and social impact of photojournalism and the new deal’s farm security administration.
- You can talk about Norwich’s development and the role of international trade.
- Hitler’s vision of the ideal family: Success and implications during the third Reich
- Focus on divergent narratives that contrasts British and argentine media coverage of the Falkland’s/Malvinas war.
- Discuss the communist propaganda through opera in the context of Cultural Revolution and the spread of ideology in China.
- Talk about the accuracy of ‘Amadeus’ in depicting Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s final illness and death.
- You can focus your paper on the manifestation of Italian baroque architecture and ancient mythological influence.
Final Thoughts
History internal assessments that focus on narrow and specific topics are not only comprehensive but also interesting to read. As such, you want to avoid broad topics completely, especially since they’re often hard to cover within the scope of the assignment.
Finally, ensure the topic you choose has sufficient source from which you can draw your research. IB requires you to have at least sources, so doing preliminary research can go a long way to help you determine how many sources a topic has.