Sport, Exercise and Health Science

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: