Nord Anglia Education
WRITTEN BY
Nord Anglia
22 February, 2019

Sport, Exercise and Health Science

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The course incorporates the traditional disciplines of anatomy and physiology, biomechanics, psychology and nutrition, which are studied in the context of sport, exercise and health. Students will cover a range of core and optional topics and carry out practical investigations in laboratory and field settings.

This will provide an opportunity to acquire the knowledge and understanding necessary to apply scientific principles and critically analyse human performance. Where relevant, the course will address issues of international dimension and ethics by considering sport, exercise and health relative to the individual and in a global context. 

Within the SL course there are 6 compulsory core topics: 

  • Topic 1: Anatomy, in particular the skeletal and muscular systems. 
  • Topic 2: Exercise physiology, in particular the respiratory and cardiovascular systems. 
  • Topic 3: Energy systems, focussing largely on elements of nutrition. 
  • Topic 4: Movement analysis, including biomechanics and neuromuscular function 
  • Topic 5: Skill in sport, focussing on the process of learning and developing skill and its classification. 
  • Topic 6: Measurement and evaluation of human performance, studying principles of programme design and components of fitness. 

In addition to these, students will study two further ‘optional’ topics from the list below:

  • Optimising physiological performance.
  • Psychology of sports.
  • Physical activity and health.
  • Nutrition for sports, exercise and health.

The HL course covers all of the SL content plus an additional seven topics:

  • Further anatomy.
  • The endocrine system.
  • Fatigue
  • Friction and drag.
  • Skill acquisition and analysis.
  • Genetics and athletics performance.
  • Exercise and immunity.

The course is assessed by way of both external and internal assessment. Students sit three exam papers totalling 80% of their final grade. The remaining 20% comes from an internal assessment in the form of an investigation. 

You may have studied sport at IGCSE and while this would be advantageous as the content at IB is an extension of the topics covered at IGCSE, it is not essential. However, an interest in sport and in particular the science of biomechanics and movement and how it relates to sporting performance is a pre requisite.

Assessment:

Level & paper

Question type

Exam duration

Weighting

SL paper 1

Multi choice

45 mins

20%

SL paper 2

Short and extended

1 hour 15 mins

35%

SL paper 3

Short

1 hour

25%

Coursework

IA

 

20%

 

 

3 hours

100%

HL paper 1

Multi choice

1 hour

20%

HL paper 2

Short and extended

2 hours 15 mins

35%

HL paper 3

Short

1 hour 15 mins

25%

Coursework

IA

 

20%

 

 

4 hours 30 mins

100%