As you already know, the new extended essay criteria include 6 marks for “Engagement.” That's 6 marks out of 35, meaning these reflections are worth 17.6% of your EE mark!
Those 6 marks are almost enough to bring you from a C to an A.
This is a lot of marks for just 500 words. That's 500 words in total, for all of the 3 reflections.
This post will show you what the rubric is asking for and how to show these things in your writing. (You will be writing your 3 reflections on the new "Reflections on Planning and Progress Form" Updated March 2020).
In short, the reflections are meant to prove "the authenticity of your work." You do this by talking us through the path you took as you wrote your EE. So you will show us some of your thinking, decision-making and planning along the way. And you will try to show that you’re taking “an intellectual approach” and have a lot of “personal engagement.”
Here's what the they (the IB big-shots) DON’T want, what they DO want and HOW to do it:
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