IB Digital Society is an Individuals and Societies subject that explores how digital systems impact people and communities. Rather than teaching coding or technical skills, the course focuses on critical inquiry. Students investigate how digital technologies affect identity, power, ethics, culture, politics, and human behavior.
The subject draws on perspectives from social sciences and humanities, including sociology, media studies, philosophy, and political science. Students examine real-world digital systems and analyze their impacts and implications across different contexts.
At its core, IB Digital Society asks one central question:
How do digital systems shape the world we live in — and how should we respond?
Why Did IB Introduce Digital Society?
The IB introduced Digital Society to address a growing gap in education. While students are deeply immersed in digital environments, many lack structured opportunities to critically evaluate them.
Digital Society aims to:
- Help students understand how digital technologies influence societies
- Develop ethical and responsible digital citizens
- Encourage informed decision-making in a technology-driven world
- Prepare students for further study in social sciences, technology-related fields, and humanities
The course also aligns strongly with the IB mission and learner profile, emphasizing international-mindedness, ethical thinking, and active citizenship.
How the Course Is Structured
IB Digital Society integrates concepts, content, and contexts through inquiry.
Concepts
Students explore broad, debatable ideas that guide analysis, such as change, power, identity, ethics, expression, systems, values, and space. These concepts help students move beyond description and into deeper evaluation.
Content
The content focuses on digital systems themselves, including data collection, algorithms, artificial intelligence, networks, media platforms, robotics, and automation. Students are not expected to master technical details, but they must understand how these systems function in society.
Contexts
Contexts situate digital systems in real-world settings, such as political, cultural, economic, social, environmental, health-related, and human knowledge contexts. Strong Digital Society work always connects digital systems to specific people and communities.
Inquiry at the Heart of Digital Society
Inquiry is the foundation of the course. Students investigate real-world examples of digital systems and explore who is affected, what impacts are occurring, what implications exist, and how perspectives differ.
Rather than memorizing content, students learn to ask better questions, evaluate evidence, and justify conclusions. This inquiry-based approach is used consistently in class activities, assessments, and the internal assessment.
SL vs HL: What’s the Difference?
Both Standard Level (SL) and Higher Level (HL) students study the same core syllabus, but with different depth.
SL focuses on breadth and foundational analysis. HL includes an additional extension that introduces challenge topics and requires students to evaluate interventions designed to address complex digital issues. HL students also complete an extra external assessment paper.
Assessment Overview
IB Digital Society includes both external and internal assessment. Exams assess students’ ability to analyze unseen examples, apply concepts accurately, evaluate impacts and implications, and use evidence effectively.
The internal assessment is an inquiry project in which students independently investigate a digital system and its effects on people and communities.
Who Is IB Digital Society For?
IB Digital Society suits students who enjoy discussing real-world issues, questioning how technology affects society, and developing ethical arguments. It rewards curiosity, critical thinking, and structured analysis rather than technical expertise.
Final Thoughts
IB Digital Society equips students with the tools to understand and navigate a rapidly changing digital world. By combining inquiry, ethics, and real-world analysis, it prepares students not just to live in a digital society, but to lead within it.
