Mistakes are often made on the IB Chemistry Exam. However, with that, IB chemistry tutors have worked hard to identify the most common mistakes students make when taking the HL or SL IB Chemistry exams. Read this post to be rewarded for your hard work and to learn how to avoid them.
IB Chemistry is hard for many students. You cannot get behind because there are so many things to learn. You must study during the school year if you want to do well on the IB Chemistry papers.
Students often make the following mistakes when they study:
Failing To Study For the IB Chemistry Exam until a Week or Two Before It.
There is excessively much to learn in just a week or two. So, get good at the things you learn in class. Use this study guide if you need more help understanding what you are learning in class.
Messing Up With the Oxidation States
The second most common mistake is getting the oxidation states wrong, especially with ligands, changing the cations to anions, and mixing up the electron transfer in the half equations.
Avoiding the Topics, You Did Not Fully Comprehend In Class
If you did not learn it in class, you need to get more help, such as with this IB Chemistry study guide, IB Chemistry books, or an IB Chemistry tutor. Try to answer more and more questions about the same thing to get a full grasp of the idea.
Underestimating the Power of Stoichiometry:
Often, the stoichiometric relationship is not considered in the IBDP Chemistry course. To understand energy, chemical kinetics, equilibrium, and redox, you must know everything there is to know about the atom, molecules, moles, volume, and concentration. This should be the most important thing you learn about chemistry because it is the basis for everything else.
Mixing Up Organic Functional Groups
Students’ most common mistake in organic chemistry is mixing up the functional groups. Aldehydes and alcohols, esters and ethers, amides, and cyanides. Do not forget the functional group, how it bonds, and, most importantly, how it reacts. To avoid this mistake, carefully read the question and make sure you know what is being asked.
Leaving Some Questions On Paper Unanswered.
As you probably know, all the multiple-choice questions on Paper 1 are worth the same points, and there is no negative grading. Take advantage of this, and don’t leave any questions unanswered. You never know when a good guess or a random choice will turn out right and earn you extra points.
Missing Out On Labeling Your Diagrams
Labeling the diagram is important, especially for the redox and bonding parts. You should be able to draw realistic bond angles, arrows for dipoles, and the right number of bonds. A big mistake to watch out for is putting the wrong arrows in a chemical equation to show a one-way reaction or equilibrium.
Losing Hope While Struggling In Paper 2
Even if you can’t figure out part (a), the question is still useful. Usually, the question will give you an estimated value you can use for each sub-part if you can’t solve the one before. Use that information to improve your grades. Building confidence with the best IB chemistry tutor will help you avoid these mistakes.ṣ
