IBO Mission Statement

The International Baccalaureate aims to develop inquiring, knowledgeable and caring young people who help to create a better and more peaceful world through intercultural understanding and respect.

To this end the organization works with schools, governments and international organizations to develop challenging programs of international education and rigorous assessment.

These programs encourage students across the world to become active, compassionate and lifelong learners who understand that other people, with their differences, can also be right.

What is the IB Program?

AIS-R students may participate in the IB program in one of the following ways:

• -As a student working to earn IB certificates in particular subjects
• -As a student undertaking the full IB diploma

The IB Diploma Program is a rigorous 2 year program that is designed to challenge the students academically. At the same time the program creates well-balanced individuals who are able to enter the world after leaving high school with the skills needed to be successful in the 21^st century. The emphasis of the program is on the students developing critical thinking skills and a sense of international-mindedness, which is aligned with preparing the students to be successful at university and beyond.  The program has grown over the past 40 years and has gained international recognition from the world’s leading universities, and it continues to grow.¹ As we have just celebrated our 10th year of graduates, we continue to grow and expand within the IB Diploma Program.  Our school has added new courses and expanded our IB teaching staff in order to meet the needs of the students as they continue to change. It is a very exciting time here at AIS-R!

How does a student receive the IB Diploma?

The IB Diploma is awarded to students who have successfully completed 6 courses concurrently over the 2 year period. Each course is chosen from the 6 available groups within the IB Diploma, (see diagram).

The student chooses 1 course from each group and this allows students to study a range of courses in Languages, (both first and second language), Individuals and Societies, Science, Mathematics, and the Arts.

Each student must choose 3 courses to study at the Higher Level and 3 courses to study at the Standard Level. The main difference between the two levels is the total number of instructional hours needed to complete each course; however specific differences depend on what group the course is chosen from.

In addition, students must also complete what is known as the Core of the Hexagon, (see diagram), which involves the successful completion of Theory of Knowledge, the Extended Essay, and the Creativity, Action, and Service hours.

Theory of Knowledge is a course that is designed to help the students understand the different ways of knowing, and aims to answer the fundamental question, “how do we know?”² In addition to this the course is also designed to provide coherence to students as it links all their subject areas and helps them understand the different ways in which they can apply their knowledge.³

The Extended Essay is a 4,000 word independent essay that the students complete on a topic that they feel passionate about. Our school provides the students with an Extended Essay study hall which allows the students enough time and resources to complete the essay over their first year of the program. The IB Organization recommends that the essay is completed in about 40 hours of a student’s own time, and AIS-R has been able to double this time in the student’s daily schedule in order to provide the necessary support needed.

The Creativity, Action, and Service hours are volunteer hours that the students complete over the two year period. A total of 150 hours are needed in order to successfully meet the criteria, with roughly 50 hours in each category. These hours are designed to have the students participate in artistic pursuits, sports, and community service projects that will help students develop a greater awareness of life outside of school.⁴

The final stage in the Diploma Program is the IB examinations which are held over a 3 week period in May of the student’s senior year. The exams are very ‘thorough’ and cover a student’s ability to retain knowledge, understand the key concepts of each course, and apply the methods learned over the 2 years in new settings.⁵

Ben Keeley
HS Assistant Principal
IB Coordinator

References:
1 - http://www.ibo.org/diploma/
2,3-http://www.ibo.org/diploma/curriculum/core/knowledge/
4 -http://www.ibo.org/diploma/curriculum/core/
5- http://www.ibo.org/diploma/assessment/