Textbook and Study Guide

[lvch95]

Just wondering, but has anyone have any experience with the brand spanking new 'Chemistry for the IB Diploma', written by Steve Owen and published by Cambridge?

It's a great one. I'm taking HL Chemistry and studying with that book. The information is very clear, the book has lots of exercises and past questions as well. highly recommended

[susanne]

I would recommend the Pearson Baccalaureate Chemistry Book, it's very very good;

additionally, always refer back to the syllabus statement

[freshfaced333]

I am actually so confused and overwhelmed reading all these comments.. some say to buy the pearson, others say to buy the companion.. which one should I buy? Some of my friends who bought the companion say that is is really helpful, but I have read a lot of comments on here that say that the companion is not as comprehensive as the pearson one? I am currently in my first year of CHEM SL and I would like to get a textbook ASAP. My teacher has provided us with the John Green/ Sadru Damji book, but I find it too wordy, and would prefer something more colorful, with pictures so that I can visualize things. So would you guys suggest I buy the

Chem SL Course Companion by Geoffrey Neuss

or

Chem SL textbook by pearson?

I am also thinking of buying the study guide, but I am just overwhelmed by the different selections and everything

thanks!!

[Masoomali fatehkia]

I used the Pearson book for physics and it was awesome. Everything from the graphics to the explanations makes the topics easy to comprehend and visualize. So I guess the chemistry one would be good as well.

I don't recommend the course companion as it isn't that comprehensive as it is an IB endorsed book and IB wants you to be an inquirer rather than attempting to get everything by just reading one book. The study guide would be good for a quick revision. It is more like short notes rather than comprehensive. In my opinion it wouldn't help you with a solid understanding of the chemistry concepts. Although the study guide might be good for quick revision and last minute readers it isn't going to be helpful enough as anyways the IB exams required you to understand the topics rather than recall some short notes.

If you like understanding the topics and internalizing them, the best book I could suggest is Pearson.

[Guest kagami20]

Guys/Girls, can anyone help me here?

So basically I took Chemistry HL, and guess what, the teacher doesn't even know the topic. He just stands there, writes things down on the board and doesn't explain to us why or how it is like that, so we're clueless.

So the question is, what book and study guide would you recommend for self study? Like only purely self-study (as I can't trust my teacher to teach properly), which helps me understand the topic and how things work more. Thanks!

[sophmliib]

Guys/Girls, can anyone help me here?

So basically I took Chemistry HL, and guess what, the teacher doesn't even know the topic. He just stands there, writes things down on the board and doesn't explain to us why or how it is like that, so we're clueless.

So the question is, what book and study guide would you recommend for self study? Like only purely self-study (as I can't trust my teacher to teach properly), which helps me understand the topic and how things work more. Thanks!

Ouch, you really must be frustrated I had a similar problem with one of my other subjects, but I managed to self-study it using my textbook and online resources. I'm taking chemistry SL, but still, the Pearson Baccalaureate textbook seems to be really nice for both levels. The explanation is really detailed and the exercise questions are IB-style so it's good for exam prep too, so it should be good for self-study.

Also I had a friend who got an IB diploma a few years ago and she did chemistry HL. When I told her I was starting IB, she recommended the Oxford Chemistry study guide by Geoffrey Neuss (googled it ). It's a thin book but there's everything you need to know for the exams in it. My friends doing chemistry HL recommend it too, and from my own experiences, it seems pretty helpful.

And, although, being an SL student I can't dare imagine the workload of HL, internet resources should help you as well. The friend who did HL, she recommended me chemguide, which has detailed explanations of chemistry topics you need to know. It's written in a way so that it's easy to understand. Oh, and you can also make use of some youtube channels that go over the entire syllabus, or refer to it anytime you have topics you don't understand. I studied economics HL in the same way, and it really helps you understand the concepts.

Hoped I helped, and wasn't talking about stuff you already know!

Edited February 3, 2014 by sophmliib

[Guest kagami20]

Oh thanks a lot! My school already provided the Oxford Chemistry study guide, but it isn't sufficient enough. I'm contacting Pearson's now, and thanks a lot for the info

[T20G7]

I've been looking at buying a textbook for my Chemistry class and reading a lot of forums and I've settled on Pearson. Can anyone tell me the difference between the Pearson Baccalaureate by Catrin Brown and Mike Ford and the one by Prentice Hall? They both say Pearson and they both were published in December 2008...

[Msj Chem]

I've been looking at buying a textbook for my Chemistry class and reading a lot of forums and I've settled on Pearson. Can anyone tell me the difference between the Pearson Baccalaureate by Catrin Brown and Mike Ford and the one by Prentice Hall? They both say Pearson and they both were published in December 2008...

 

They are the same textbook. Just make sure that you are buying the second edition (for the new syllabus).

I've included a link to the HL edition below:

http://www.amazon.com/CHEMISTRY-EDITION-Pearson-International-Baccalaureate/dp/1447959752

[tiff6788]

For exams, do you guys revise for your own notes or just the study guide?

Do you write your own notes if you are using a study guide?

[Guest]

For our school exams, as we haven't gotten the study guide yet, I just use our book (Oxford IB Chemistry) and any sheets our teacher gives us in class. Whilst the book's fairly decent for the theory, I feel like sheets and questions from online are the best way to study, particularly for topics like Stoichiometry, Acids and Bases, and Redox.

[Guest IB 12th grader]

1. Oxford Chem (Best for pretty much everything)
2. Pearson Chem (Best for detailed explanation and HL)
3. IBID (good for practice, somewhat ok for explanation)
4. AP chem books - good for understanding concepts and can be better in some ways, but be cautious using them.
5. Hodder Chem (buy the other 4 instead)

Edited July 9, 2016 by marwahsahil17

[Sandy]

I found that oxford has too much details and they give stuff that's not even in the syllabus! Its good for learning, but not for exam purposes. For that, I strongly recommend pearson version as not only it has a god explanation, it also has lots of questions (you can find the answers online). Its better than oxford. On a side note, don't use the cambridge version, its not so good. You can always use online resources, but I just did the questions from pearson and the past papers and that helped a lot.

[mrwengchemistry]

I made a video/blog arguing Pearson is the best text:

http://www.mrwengibchemistry.com/blog/ib-chemistry-textbook-review-oxford-vs-pearson

[90percentbitter]

Hi I'm an HL chemistry student but I'm becoming kind of self-taught. This is my teacher's first year teaching IB and really has no idea what he's doing. I've been in his class a month now and we haven't even touched the textbook. I'm going to buy the 2014 study guide but I was wondering if there is somewhere I can find the complete and detailed syllabus for the course (exactly what I need to know etc) and if there are any other resources I should be using.

[obiwxn]

I've been seeing so many different books and authors listed here, would anyone mind just clarifying and providing a condensed list of books that wold help with SL Chem? This is really important as I've just bombed my second quiz (out of two quizzes!) from this semester, and nothing I'm doing seems to be working. 

[IB`NOT`ez]

4 hours ago, obiwxn said:

I've been seeing so many different books and authors listed here, would anyone mind just clarifying and providing a condensed list of books that wold help with SL Chem? This is really important as I've just bombed my second quiz (out of two quizzes!) from this semester, and nothing I'm doing seems to be working. 

Just use the Pearson Longman Chemistry Book: https://www.amazon.com/CHEMISTRY-Pearson-International-Baccalaureate-Diploma/dp/1447959752

That's literally the best resource you can have for IB Chemistry – do all the exercises in that book and you're really set. 

[Guest IB 12th grader]

To a great extent, the choice of textbook depends on the kind of learner you are and your needs. 

For chemistry I found that:

Pearson tends to be more descriptive and can be good to understand the theory but it isn't great for revision or practice.

Oxford tends to have a mix of both but can be lengthy.

IBID is concise and helpful only if you understand the basics of the theory. It is helpful when you have only a couple of weeks to go before your tests.

 

Since the SL syllabus, in general, doesn't deal with very difficult concepts, oxford can easily suffice all your needs. However, a good idea is to visit the library in your school or region and use these books in your 1st year of IB. Eventually, you would be able to find which one which works the best for you. You may realize that the presentation of the textbook will impact how much you understand it. At the end, it makes sense to evaluate each book (if you really feel confused about the selection of the textbook).

PS. Any textbook would not result in an increase in understanding if you don't have someone to guide you to use it. Teachers usually are able to tell you where you lack in your understanding and which concepts need to be enforced. In any case, the textbook is just one facet of scoring good marks.

[IBsciencewhiz]

On 9/10/2010 at 8:18 PM, youngbloodz said:

My teacher told me that an IB study guide would be very helpful going through Chemistry and I started looking online for a book. But, when I look on Half.com, there are two books for IB Chemistry, a course companion made in 2010, and a study guide made in 2007. I was wondering which is the better one to get in order to study for the IB exam and assist with explaining concepts. I am not sure what the differences are between the course companion and the study guide, so I need to know which one is better to buy. If it helps, I'm taking SL Chemistry and the teacher is very good but there are a few topics where I need to refresh on from Chemistry I (Sophomore Year).

Personally I find textbooks a little outdated nowadays. I use https://tibertutor.com which is an online site with literally everything you would ever need in one place! Check it out

 

[kirann]

On 9/11/2010 at 12:48 AM, youngbloodz said:

My teacher told me that an IB study guide would be very helpful going through Chemistry and I started looking online for a book. But, when I look on Half.com, there are two books for IB Chemistry, a course companion made in 2010, and a study guide made in 2007. I was wondering which is the better one to get in order to study for the IB exam and assist with explaining concepts. I am not sure what the differences are between the course companion and the study guide, so I need to know which one is better to buy. If it helps, I'm taking SL Chemistry and the teacher is very good but there are a few topics where I need to refresh on from Chemistry I (Sophomore Year).

So as a chemistry tutor from last 10 years what i see, Sl students mainly have problem in Organic reaction and IUPAC, For that study guide is good plus you need to solve many problem as possible..