You may have heard of some schools offering it. You may even heard of some schools encouraging your child to go for it instead of your state certificate, as though it somehow offers prestige or class (Hint: it doesn't). But what is the Baccalaureate? Well, this blog post will try and explain a little bit about it.
First off, what the Baccalaureate actually is:
The International Baccalaureate, or IB for short, consists of four programs for kids aged from 3-19. They are:
IB Primary Years Program (Preschool - Year 6/7)
IB Middle Years Program (Year 6-10)
IB Diploma (Year 11 and 12)
IB Career-Related Program (Years 10-12)
The four programs each consist of a very broad curriculum that is taught in authorised schools around the world. That said though, it is not so much about content as it is about the method used to actually teach the content (This essay explains it a little better), while the countries are free to set the content (The Diploma is the exception to this however). Any school can apply to become an IB School (sometimes known as an "IB World School"), although that does not necessarily mean they offer all four programs. The most common three you will encounter are the Primary Years Program (PYP), Middle Years Program (MYP) and Diploma, with only one school at the moment (as of 2015), offering the Career-Related Program (known hencefoth as CP).
What makes up the subject areas:
The areas are fairly simple and broad.
IB PYP: There are six main areas of learning: Language (this is both the main language and a second language), Social Studies (this is the equivalent of the HASS/HSIE/SOSE curriculum in the Australian Curriculum), Maths, The Arts (This includes Music, Dance, Drama, Visual Art and may or may not include Media), Science and Physical, Social and Personal Education (this is the rough equivalent of Health, PE and some parts of the HASS curriculum in the Australian Curriculum). In addition, there are also six transdiciplinary themes, but I'll cover a bit about thse in a minute.
IB MYP: Language and Literature (This is typically the first language), Language Acquisition (this is typically a second language), Individuals and Societies (this is the equivalent of the HASS Curriculum), Sciences (these are still fairly broad, but by Year 10 will be split into Physics, Chemistry, Biology etc.), Mathematics, The Arts, Health/PE and Design.
IB Diploma: This actually now only consists of six subjects: Language and Literature, Language Acquisition (the latter is typically a second language, but this is no longer a requirement), Individuals and Societies, Experimental Sciences (this includes PE and Design), Maths and The Arts. Alternately students can drop The Arts in favour of taking a subject from the other four groups or taking a school-based syllabus that is approved by the IB.
IB CP: This consists of two courses taken through the IB Diploma programme, plus a further four units specifically for CP students (Personal/Professional Skills, Service Learning [community service], Reflective Project (Relating to their career studies) and a second language), along with some career-related study that is determined by the school but approved by the IB.
What's the difference between the Diploma and the CP?
If you're wondering if one program is to make "less academically capable students" feel better about themselves, don't. If students do not complete all six units to make up the Diploma, they are still awarded credit for the units they did complete and depending on the state, they may be used to gain university entrance, subject to the usual prerequisites. Students who complete the CP may also be awarded a selection rank for university and the IB website in fact states that the CP can be used for this purpose.
Aside from that and the components mentioned above, the main differences between the Diploma and the CP are as follows:
-The Diploma has very strict requirements to maintain a balanced framework, while the CP is more specific towards a student's chosen career.
-The CP has a little more flexibility in that schools are free to choose how the career studies are undertaken, while the Diploma units are a little stricter.
-The Diploma also has three further units which form part of the course-Creative Action Service (or CAS for short), Theory of Knowledge (TOK) and Extended Essay (EE). The CP also has similar units, but they are not as overly specific and usually refer back to the student's career. The CP also does not have a Theory of Knowledge unit. The two equivalent units for the CP are the Service Learning Unit (equivalent of the CAS, but without the CA part) and the Reflective Project (equivalent of the EE).
What are the transdisciplinary themes?
The main component of the IB that sets it apart from other national curriculum programs are the transdisciplinary themes. These can be used to shape the content of the curriculum taught. The themes themselves are meant to be pretty much what every graduate of the program will graduate with and are the rough equivalent of values.
The themes are:
IB PYP: Sharing the Planet, Who We Are, Where we Are In Place and Time, How We Express Ourselves, How the World Works, How We Organise Ourselves.
IB MYP: Identities and Relationships, Personal and Cultural Identity, Orientations in Space and Time, Scientific and Technical Innovation, Fairness and Development, Globalisation and Sustainability.
IB Diploma/CP: There are no specific transdisciplinary themes per se but rather the Creative Action Service, Theory of Knowledge and Extended Essay along with the CP courses will take elements from all of the main areas of learning and are the closest equivalent to transdisciplinary themes.
What are the CAS, Theory of Knowledge and Extended Essay?
These are units that are exclusive to the IB Diploma and as such there is a little more content for these. They consist of the following:
CAS: This is not a graded unit, however students are required to log their participation in this unit. How this works is up to each school, but one example (shown here) requires students to undertake 5 different extra-curricular activities over an 18 month period and a term-long project that encompasses all three areas. The tasks are meant to basically put the skills of the IB into a workable context in the three areas: Creativity (basically performing arts), Activity (physical activity) and Service (Community service).
Theory Of Knowledge: The best way I can describe this is more a "critical thinking" course. That is, students are taught more "how to think" rather than "what to think" (which may or may not be covered in other units). The content of this appears to be similar to "Critical thinking" seminars or similar content covered at university. This unit is graded and students are assessed based on a presentation and an essay.
Extended Essay: This is the one area that other courses (such as the SACE) are trying to implement and people are upset over it! In short, it is a 4000 word essay that is typically based on one of the six diploma areas and can otherwise be chosen by the student, subject to approval (this is more to prevent a student from choosing a topic that is inappropriate such as the study of porn, rather than any political leanings)
Will the IB Diploma allow me to get into university?
Yes, it will. As will the Career Program. States will vary on how this works, but the Tertiary Admissions Centre in each state will convert the IB Diploma mark into an equivalent ATAR mark.
Will the IB PYP or MYP allow me to get into university?
No they will not. At the end of each program, students are required to present a project based on what they have learned throughout their respective program. (That is, a Year 6/7 student will present a project in the PYP while the MYP students will do one at Year 10) The completion of the program simply states that the student completed the program-it is not required to progress to the next stage of the program. (That is, you are not required to complete the PYP to study the MYP and you are not required to complete the MYP to study the Diploma)
Is there anything else special about the IB that separates it from the State Certificates?
To a point, although it's minor. The only other practical consideration that separates the IB from the state certificates is that the IB is recognised across all states and around the world, while the state certificates may or may not be recognised across the states.
The IB framework and methodology are also consistent across schools. That is, your child can go from one IB school to another IB school without having to adjust to a new methodology or curriculum.
Furthermore, as schools are required to register to be able to offer the program, they are also subject to accountability by the IB Organisation. Teachers are also required to undertake regular training towards the IB (this is no different to teachers in other schools, as training requirements are set by the government, not by the school) and schools are evaluated every five years to ensure that they meet the requirements set by the IB Organisation (This is no different to state/national evaluations and is also separate to them-that is, IB evaluations are separate from state/national school evaluations).
Finally, IB programs are required to be inclusive of all students, which also means that the program needs to engage students regardless of their background or special needs. Teachers are meant to differentiate between student needs and abilities and this does not necessarily mean bringing the brightest students down to the level of the not-so-bright ones (This is also something that state bodies are encouraging public schools to follow). Unfortunately, due to the prestige associated with the IB programs, this tends to create that incentive for private schools to discourage entry to students based on special needs (which is technically illegal).
Will my child do better on the NAPLAN tests if they are at an IB School?
While the sole study from the IB Organisation have shown a positive correlation of sorts between the IB Curriculum and higher NAPLAN scores, it is important to remember that the NAPLAN is never meant to be used as a ranking system at all, nor is it meant to determine the ranking of schools. It is only meant to be used to determine your child's ability against other children in the state/country. As there are way too many factors that can influence the outcome of the NAPLAN tests for your child, I would not be using "my child will do better at NAPLAN" as a reason for seeking an IB School.
Where can I find out more about the IB Programme?
Right here of course: http://ibo.org/
Some of the information was found through careful extensive searching and thorough reading, but I do not have any special access to the website beyond what a typical member of the public would see. (Some of the content here was obtained through the "IB Answers" section)
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