IB Digital Society — Study Hub
Your complete study hub for IB Digital Society at SL and HL. Free notes, flashcards and exam-style practice across the seven concepts, the seven content topics and the seven contexts — every one anchored to named real-world examples, because that is what the markbands reward.
What is IB Digital Society?
IB Digital Society is a Group 3 (Individuals and Societies) subject, first assessed in 2024. It asks what digital systems are doing to people and communities, and it is built as a matrix rather than a list. Seven concepts — change, expression, identity, power, space, systems, and values and ethics — are the lenses. Seven content topics — data, algorithms, computers, networks and the internet, media, artificial intelligence, and robots and autonomous technologies — carry the substance. Seven contexts — cultural, economic, environmental, health, human knowledge, political and social — are where it all plays out. The three are taught together, not in sequence.
The defining feature of the course is that everything is examined through real-world examples. A question about algorithmic bias is not answered by defining algorithmic bias; it is answered by naming a real system, saying what happened, who it affected and what that implies. Generic answers cap low however fluently they are written, which is why a bank of specific, current, nameable cases matters more here than in almost any other subject. The second habit the markbands reward is distinguishing an impact — what happened — from an implication — what it means for people next.
Assessment is external and internal at both levels. At SL, Paper 1 (40%) offers four structured questions set in real-world scenarios and you answer two; the source-based Paper 2 (30%) gives you a booklet of sources and four compulsory questions; and the inquiry project (30%) is your own investigation. At HL, Paper 1 (35%) adds a Section B extended response on the HL extension, Paper 2 is the same paper at 20%, Paper 3 (25%) asks you to recommend an intervention for a challenge released before the exam, and the inquiry project is 20%. Aimnova covers both levels.
Subject Group
Group 3
Available Levels
SL & HL
Teaching Hours
150 (SL) · 240 (HL)
Exam Papers
Paper 1 · Paper 2 · Paper 3 (HL) · IA
IB Digital Society Assessment
Paper 1 — Structured questions on real-world examples
40% (SL) · 35% (HL)1h 30m (SL) · 2h 15m (HL)Each question is set in a real-world scenario and runs part a (knowledge, 6 marks), part b (application, 6 marks) and part c (evaluation, 8 marks, marked against markbands). SL is offered four questions and answers two. HL Section A offers three and adds a Section B extended response of 12 marks on the HL extension.
Paper 2 — Source-based questions
30% (SL) · 20% (HL)1 hour 15 minutesThe same paper at both levels. A separate booklet supplies four sources — text, data, diagrams or infographics — and four compulsory questions rise from reading one source (2 marks) through analysing one (4) and comparing two (6) to synthesising all of them with your own knowledge (12).
Paper 3 — The intervention paper (HL only)
25% (HL)1 hour 15 minutesA short statement naming a real-world challenge is released before the exam, so the research is done in advance. Four compulsory questions work through the scenario and its sources and end by asking you to recommend one of two proposed interventions and justify the choice.
Inquiry project — the internal assessment
30% (SL) · 20% (HL)Your own investigation into the impacts and implications of a digital system for people and communities, over about 30 hours. Submitted as an inquiry process document of no more than 1,500 words plus a recorded presentation of no more than 10 minutes, and marked on inquiry focus, sources, analysis and evaluation, trends and developments, and communication.
IB Digital Society Syllabus — Concepts, Content, Contexts and the HL Extension
Unit 1: Introduction
Unit 2: Concepts
Unit 3: Content
Free IB Digital Society Study Resources
Study Notes
Every prescribed area for inquiry, one page each, with named examples
Flashcards
Definitions, command-term distinctions and the case bank
Question Bank
Exam-style practice by topic, command term and paper
Exam Skills
Paper structures, command terms, markbands and example strategy
Revision Guide
Unit breakdown, topic summaries and a revision timeline
Command Terms
IB command term definitions
Frequently Asked Questions about IB Digital Society
How is IB Digital Society assessed?
SL sits two papers and an inquiry project: Paper 1 (1h 30m, 40%) is four structured questions of which you answer two, Paper 2 (1h 15m, 30%) is four compulsory source-based questions, and the inquiry project is 30%. HL sits three papers: Paper 1 (2h 15m, 35%) adds a Section B extended response on the HL extension, Paper 2 is the same paper at 20%, Paper 3 (1h 15m, 25%) is the intervention paper, and the inquiry project is 20%.
Is SL Paper 1 just HL Paper 1 without Section B?
No, and assuming so costs marks. The SL paper prints four 20-mark questions and you answer two. HL Section A prints only the first three of those and you answer two, then Section B adds two 12-mark questions on the HL extension of which you answer one. SL question 4 is SL-exclusive material that HL students never see. The weights differ too: Paper 1 is 40% at SL against 35% at HL, and Paper 2 is 30% at SL against 20%.
Why do real-world examples matter so much?
Because the markbands say so. The top band asks for well-chosen specific examples used as evidence, and an answer built from generalisations cannot reach it however well it is argued. "A social media company" is worth nothing that "Facebook and Cambridge Analytica, disclosed in March 2018" is not worth more. The practical implication is that you should carry about twenty cases you can name with a date and a place, and refresh them each term so they stay current.
What is the HL extension?
Three challenge topics studied only at HL: global well-being (local and global inequalities, changing populations, the future of work), governance and human rights (conflict, peace and security; participation and representation; diversity and discrimination), and sustainable development (climate change and action, responsible use of resources, managing pollution and waste). They carry 90 of the 240 HL hours and are examined by Paper 1 Section B and by the whole of Paper 3.
How do I get a 7 in IB Digital Society?
Name, date and place every example, and use it as evidence for a claim rather than mentioning it. Write the "which means that…" sentence — impacts are the easy half, implications are where the top band lives. In part c, give a genuine counter-argument and then commit to a judgement; an answer that never decides cannot enter the top band. On Paper 2 question 3, interleave the two sources rather than writing a paragraph on each. And answer the command term you were actually given.
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Notes, flashcards and AI-powered practice across the whole course — concepts, content and contexts at SL, plus the HL extension and the Paper 3 intervention.
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