Description
IB ESS Practical 1J: Positive Feedback Diagrams 
Help students master one of the most challenging ideas in Topic 1 by asking them to identify positive feedback and tipping points in four different kinds of scientific diagrams.
In this analytical IB Environmental Systems and Societies activity, students interpret a hysteresis curve, a cycle diagram, a pictorial sequence, and a time-series graph. For each one, they explain the mechanism that drives change, identify where a system moves away from equilibrium, and describe how a tipping point can lead to a new equilibrium that persists even after the original disturbance is removed. Students then evaluate the strengths and limitations of these diagrams as models of real systems.
Because each diagram presents the same core concept in a different format, students build transferable data-interpretation skills that prepare them for unfamiliar diagrams in examinations and for later topics such as eutrophication, climate change, and biodiversity loss.
Built for the 2026 IB ESS Course
Practical 1J directly addresses syllabus content including:
- Positive feedback loops that amplify change
- Movement away from equilibrium
- Tipping points and new equilibrium states
- The strengths and limitations of models
Students also respond to questions that develop IB Internal Assessment Criterion E skills, including explaining the patterns shown in data and drawing supported conclusions. The model evaluation prompt also prepares students for Criterion F.
Ideal for
- Teaching positive feedback, equilibrium, and tipping points
- Following up negative feedback activities such as Daisyworld
- Practicing interpretation of unfamiliar diagrams and graphs
- Preparing students for IB ESS Paper 1 data-response questions
- Laying the groundwork for climate change and eutrophication topics
Digital download. No physical product will be shipped.
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