1-on-1 Mastery-Based IB Economics · Taipei

IB Economics, from theory to application.

IB Economics rewards applying theory to real-world cases, not theory recall alone. Lessons build from the economic terminology and diagrams students bring toward the theory application, policy evaluation, and Internal Assessment portfolio the IB Paper questions, and university coursework, will demand.

Audience
IB Economics HL and SL content, international school students
Format
1-on-1, 1 to 1.5 hours per lesson
Duration
Typically across the 2-year IB Diploma cadence
Begin
Complimentary consultation & assessment class

What Students Learn

Mastery-based IB Economics at the level your child's school actually requires.

IB Economics is for students working through the IB Diploma Programme who want to move past theory recall toward the theory application, policy evaluation, and Internal Assessment portfolio the IB assessment tests. The program covers the full IB Economics Subject Guide for HL and SL. Reasoning from microeconomic principles to claims about how individual markets function, including the demand-supply analysis the IB Paper 1 expects. Working through macroeconomic frameworks, including aggregate demand and aggregate supply modeling, national income measurement, and the fiscal, monetary, and supply-side policies governments use to influence outcomes. Tracing international economics from trade theory through exchange rates and balance of payments to the economic integration the IB Paper 2 data-response questions test. Analyzing development economics, including measurement of economic development, sustainable development, and the role of government and external actors in development. Building diagrammatic reasoning across all content areas, including AD/AS modeling, demand-supply analysis, and the calculation work HL Paper 3 distinctively requires. Engaging with policy evaluation, including weighing the trade-offs between competing interventions and the stakeholder effects each policy produces. Designing and writing the Internal Assessment portfolio the IB assessment requires. These are the skills the IB Paper 1, Paper 2, and Paper 3 questions test, and the foundation any university economics, business, finance, public policy, or development studies course will assume.

IB Economics is not advanced theory recall. The shift is from theory to application. Students move from defining economic concepts and drawing diagrams to applying theory to unfamiliar real-world scenarios, evaluating which framework fits the situation and what the framework's predictions imply. A student who can draw a demand-supply diagram is doing the procedural work. A student who can read a news article about a market intervention, identify which economic framework applies, predict how the intervention will shift the equilibrium, and evaluate the trade-offs the intervention produces is doing the application the IB assessment rewards across content areas. The program closes the gap between the two.

Lessons follow Harland's IB Economics curriculum, built to bring students to mastery of IB Economics content as defined by the IB Diploma Programme Subject Guide. The program runs ten units across the 2-year IB Diploma cadence, with each unit closing in an assessment that mirrors IB Paper formats and includes the analytical work the Internal Assessment portfolio requires. SL students complete the SL core covering microeconomics, macroeconomics, international, and development economics. HL students complete the SL core plus the HL Paper 3 policy paper with its quantitative components. Lessons calibrate to your child's individual gaps and the topics their school program covers. If a student is working through inflation at school, the teacher works through it with the student, applying the unit's analytical structure to the questions their Paper 1 will eventually ask.

Progress shows up in places parents can see. Where your child once memorized definitions of economic terms, they now read a news article, identify which economic framework the situation invites, and apply the framework to predict outcomes. Where your child once drew diagrams as a procedural exercise, they now use diagrams to argue for a position, integrating quantitative reasoning with theoretical frameworks. Where the Internal Assessment portfolio once felt like an open-ended task, it now feels like a structured application of theory your child can plan, draft, and write against the IB rubric.

How We Teach It

IB Economics taught for understanding, with the score arriving as a consequence.

Harland's pedagogy is content-based learning. Theory application, diagrammatic reasoning, and the analytical depth the IB Paper 1, Paper 2, and Paper 3 questions reward develop through the topics, news articles, and past papers your child is already working with. Assessments check whether the thinking holds up when the student moves to new material alone.

A student working through market structures works on it with their teacher, building the reasoning that connects monopoly, oligopoly, and competitive markets to the welfare and efficiency analysis Paper 1 requires. A student moving into macroeconomic policy works on it with their teacher, applying the unit's analytical structure to AD/AS modeling, fiscal-monetary trade-offs, and the policy evaluation the IB Paper 2 data-response questions test. A student working through international or development economics works on it with their teacher, building the scaffolding that lets them apply trade theory, exchange rate analysis, and development indicators to the cross-border scenarios the IB assessment presents.

IB Economics students arrive with two layers under the surface. The score pressure is real. The May or November exam matters for university plans, particularly for students aiming at economics, business, finance, public policy, international relations, or development studies paths, and most students know it. But beneath the score pressure is a specific cognitive challenge that defines the IB Economics assessment. Theory recall is not the hard part. The hard part is reading an unfamiliar real-world scenario, identifying which economic framework applies, predicting how the system will respond to changes, and evaluating the trade-offs with the application the IB rubric expects. The 1-on-1 format gives teachers room to slow down where the application ground is unfamiliar, and to keep the work rigorous without losing the student's engagement with economics itself. Skill and application develop together. Neither moves far in isolation.

The format also lets teachers calibrate within the program's structure. A student fluent with economic terminology but uncomfortable with IB theory-application questions gets pushed toward the Paper 1-style scenarios the assessment will ask. What economic framework fits this situation. What does the framework predict. What stakeholders are affected and how. A student strong on theory application but weak on the diagrammatic and quantitative work HL Paper 3 requires gets work calibrated to the rubric's expectations. That means refining diagrammatic accuracy, integrating quantitative analysis with theoretical reasoning, organizing policy evaluation around stakeholder effects, and writing against the criteria the IB assessment uses.

Economics also has an investigative dimension. The IB Economics Diploma Programme requires every student to complete the Internal Assessment as a portfolio of three commentaries, worth around 30 percent of the SL final grade and around 20 percent of the HL final grade. The portfolio includes three commentaries of up to 800 words each, where students analyze published news articles by applying economic theory to the situations the articles describe, with each commentary covering a different content area: microeconomics, macroeconomics, and either international or development economics. Harland's 1-on-1 IB Economics program supports the portfolio through every stage. Teachers help students choose articles that fit both the rubric criteria and the student's analytical interests, identify the economic theory each commentary should apply, work through the diagrammatic and quantitative analysis the rubric expects, and structure the commentary against the IB assessment criteria. The portfolio matters as much as exam preparation, and the program treats it accordingly.

Curriculum and Alignment

A structured curriculum keyed to the IB Economics Subject Guide.

IB Economics at Harland follows a structured curriculum keyed to the IB Economics Diploma Programme Subject Guide for HL and SL. A student who completes the program has demonstrated mastery of IB Economics content as the IB Subject Guide defines it.

Harland's IB Economics runs ten units across the 2-year IB Diploma cadence, with Internal Assessment portfolio preparation integrated rather than appended. Most school IB Economics courses spread the same content across more class time, with portfolio work happening alongside or after class. 1-on-1 lessons don't lose time to group pacing or mixed-ability instruction, so the same core content fits in more substantive units. The time saved goes into the application the IB Diploma assessment rewards.

Standards
IB Economics Diploma Programme Subject Guide (HL and SL), with the Internal Assessment portfolio rubric as the cross-cutting skill framework
Materials
Harland curriculum materials, the textbook your child's school program uses, current news articles relevant to the IA portfolio, and past IB papers integrated as ongoing input
Assessment
End-of-unit assessments aligned with IB Paper 1 (extended response), Paper 2 (data response), Paper 3 (HL policy paper), and the Internal Assessment portfolio rubric
Reporting
Skill-level tracking against Harland's internal rubrics, mapped to IB assessment criteria

Prerequisites and What Comes Next

Where IB Economics fits in your child's learning.

Before starting

IB Economics assumes prior coursework in humanities or business, typically built through pre-IB or MYP individuals-and-societies, and the foundational close-reading, essay-writing, and basic mathematical skills those courses develop. IB Economics involves diagrammatic analysis throughout and quantitative work at HL Paper 3, but does not require advanced mathematics. Students arriving from a different curriculum or with uneven foundations work through gaps in foundational analytical reading before or alongside IB Economics proper.

One thing to know about scope. The IB Economics Internal Assessment, the portfolio of three commentaries, is worth around 30 percent of the SL final grade and around 20 percent of the HL final grade. IB schools provide formal supervision for the portfolio, including checkpoint deadlines and final submission. Harland's 1-on-1 tutoring focuses on the article selection, theory application, diagrammatic and quantitative analysis, and the writing the IB rubric directly tests. The portfolio itself is submitted at school under supervisor oversight per IB requirements, and Harland's role is the planning, analytical, and writing work that turns three news articles into a strong portfolio.

The consultation and assessment class establishes whether IB Economics is the right starting point and whether parallel work in foundational analytical reading or Academic English would help. Some students arrive needing both English-foundation reinforcement and IB-specific support, and the lesson plan covers what's most urgent first.

What comes after

Most students complete IB Economics across the 2-year IB Diploma cadence, sitting either the May or November exam. Cadence varies by entry point and exam timing, with most students attending one to three sessions per week.

IB Economics does not have a direct successor course in the IB sequence. After the exam, the application and quantitative reasoning the course develops carries directly into university economics, business, finance, public policy, international relations, development studies, and any field that requires applied analysis of economic systems. Students choosing Economics as their Extended Essay subject work with their primary teacher across the research-question, methodology, and writing stages on the Extended Essay program.

The longer-term aim of IB Economics is to make itself unnecessary. The program brings students to mastery of IB Economics content. Students sit the May or November exam, submit their IA, and the program's role ends. A parent who's no longer worried about their child's IB Economics work is the point of all of it.

Common Questions

Common questions about IB Economics at Harland.

Who is IB Economics at Harland for? +
IB Economics at Harland is for high school students working through the IB Diploma Programme. Most of our students fall into one of two patterns. Some are taking IB Economics at school and come to us for support alongside the school program, building the theory application and the diagrammatic-and-quantitative reasoning the IB assessment tests differently from typical economics coursework. Some are preparing for the May or November exam in an intensive run-up, working through past papers, IA refinement, and targeted weakness review in the weeks or months before the assessment. Students whose situation falls outside these two patterns, including students transitioning curricula mid-DP, students at schools without strong IB programs, or students who need a more flexible curriculum than the standard IB Economics program provides, work with us through Harland's Academic Coaching framework, where the curriculum is calibrated to the individual situation rather than the IB Subject Guide alone.
My child can recall economic theory and draw diagrams but struggles with applying theory to unfamiliar real-world scenarios Paper 1 and Paper 2 require. Can the program help with that kind of thinking? +
This is a familiar situation. The IB Economics assessment tests a kind of thinking that the textbook doesn't always practice directly. Reading an unfamiliar real-world scenario and recognizing which economic framework applies. Predicting how the system will respond to changes, by reasoning from theory rather than recalling definitions. Constructing arguments grounded in theoretical frameworks and supported by diagrams or quantitative analysis, with the application the IB rubric rewards. We work directly on these skills, slowing down on the theory-application work the Paper 1 questions require, on the data-response analysis Paper 2 tests, and on the rubric criteria that distinguish a strong response from a vague one. Most students who come to us strong on theory recall but struggling on the application prompts close that gap by working through the rubric explicitly, with sample questions and practice under time constraint.
What does the IB Economics program cover? +
The program follows the IB Economics Diploma Programme Subject Guide for HL and SL. Content covers microeconomics, macroeconomics, international economics, and development economics, with the HL Paper 3 policy paper covered for HL students. The program prepares students for IB Paper 1 (extended response), Paper 2 (data response), Paper 3 (policy paper at HL), and the Internal Assessment portfolio. The portfolio of three commentaries, worth around 30 percent of the SL final grade and around 20 percent of the HL final grade, is supported through every stage from article selection to final submission. Harland's program runs ten units across the 2-year IB Diploma cadence, calibrated to the framework your child's specific course route requires.
How long is each lesson and how often does my child attend? +
Lessons are 1-on-1 sessions of 1 to 1.5 hours, in person at our head office in Da'an or online. Most students attend one to three lessons per week. Harland's IB Economics program runs ten units across the 2-year IB Diploma cadence. At one or two lessons per week alongside a school IB course, the program runs through the DP cycle and concludes with the May or November exam. At three lessons per week, the program covers the same content at faster pace. For students preparing in an intensive run-up to the exam, the cadence increases as the test approaches, typically two to four months at higher frequency. The Student Coordinator helps you choose the cadence that fits.
How are lessons scheduled, and what if we need to reschedule? +
Lessons happen on a fixed weekly slot reserved with your child's primary teacher. This protects the teacher's time and keeps a consistent rhythm for your child. If you need to reschedule, give us at least 24 hours of notice and we'll find another time when your teacher is available. Many families add classes during summer or winter vacation, either to accelerate progress or to make up for a slower term. Once a unit has started, it should be completed within a defined window. The Student Coordinator walks through the details when you enroll.
Can my child begin IB Economics over the summer? +
Yes. Summer enrollment is available across Harland's IB Diploma programs, with two patterns. Students preparing for the upcoming May or November exam in an intensive run-up sometimes begin or accelerate in summer at higher cadence (typically two to three sessions per week), particularly when their school IB course pacing has fallen behind, when their Internal Assessment is at draft stage, or when the run-up to the exam needs concentrated time. Students preparing for an exam sitting further out (i.e., entering or partway through the 2-year DP) often use summer for a head-start block, working through current-year content or building the prerequisite foundation before the next school year begins. The Student Coordinator helps you choose the right summer pattern based on which exam sitting your child is preparing for and where their IA work currently stands.
How do you measure progress? +
Progress is measured through unit assessments aligned with the IB Economics Subject Guide. Harland's IB Economics program is organized into ten units across the 2-year IB Diploma cadence. Each unit closes with an assessment that mirrors IB Paper formats, including the extended response items of Paper 1, the data response items of Paper 2, and the Internal Assessment rubric, and measures conceptual understanding, theory-application attention, diagrammatic accuracy, and the application that connects economic frameworks to real-world scenarios across the unit's content. Parents receive updates after every lesson and formal progress reports when each unit ends. Skill-level tracking uses Harland's internal rubrics, which map to IB assessment criteria. Where helpful, the Student Coordinator translates this into the expectations of your child's school.
How do we begin? +
Every Harland relationship begins with a consultation, followed by a 1-on-1 assessment class. The consultation is about your goals and your child's situation. The assessment class is about how your child works in the subject. Together they tell us where to start and what kind of teacher will fit best.

Related at Harland

Foundational Program
Analytical Reading
Build the foundation →
Program Hub
IB Program
Explore the full hub →
Faculty
Our Teachers
View all faculty →

Take the next step

Start a conversation about your child's IB Economics.

Every Harland relationship begins with a consultation, followed by an assessment class for your child. Tell us about your goals and where your child is now.

Start the conversation