IB predict grade

robyrm2
Tue, 30 Aug 2011 04:05:45 +0000

The IB program was developed to be ‘transferrable’- so that students could move between schools and countries (students with mobile lifestyles) without a hitch. But, in fact (and I am very familiar with many IB schools) some schools have pre-requisites in grade 10, others don’t, some have 3 year science higher classes, some have 2 year higher science classes, some schools have Economics, some have Business studies some have none of these…etc. In other words, it is still a bit of a crap shoot if indeed a student can be mobile. There are international schools (which is what I am most familiar with) that have the option of other programs (AP, general HS diploma, IB certificate) and some that have only the IB diploma.

In the last case, where the schools have only the IB diploma, there are schools which exit students who have been in their school for 10+ years before grade 11- student who might not be able to do well enough to get a diploma because, these schools with such a meaningful ‘global orientation’ do not feel any sense of obligation to the students they have educated.

The world begins with the person next to you in class- not with some child in Somalia. Until we get back to a better understanding of this-- because this is the foundation of decency-- then I believe that all the CAS etc that these kids do only prepares them to be ‘elites’ and not ‘global.’ I have a lot of objections to IB, in fact, but this is my biggest one…

I think it is very interesting that so many of the fine prep schools in the US have not adopted IB programs. My feeling is this represents the fact that they have confidence in their faculty to be better able to determine what is important for their students then a committee in Belgium can. Any curriculum is only as good as the teacher who is teaching it and only as meaningful as the students who are learning it can understand. IB is being exalted to a degree that defies the reality of the ‘specialness’ of the program…particularly in the absence of a great teacher.

What is so special about the time management demands of IB? Any HS student who is overloaded with school work has to do the same amount of time management. If you are concerned that your 16 or 17 year old is getting too much sleep, just have them take an extra class. Then they can have the same life changing experience that IB diploma students get.

The HS my sons went to had IB and AP and a regular HS diploma. In some cases these were the same classes in fact. Their counselor tried to convince them and us that they had to do ‘full IB’ to be competitive for colleges. Well, neither did full IB and one went to a top LAC and the other an Ivy. So, that was clearly not true. Both managed time well, both were very successful both in HS and college without having to get caught up in the mechanisms of the whole program. They could pick and choose. Furthermore, some of the most talented teachers at their school chose not to teach IB, which is why they chose AP (for English, for example)--

IB is now huge. Paying for IB is not cheap. Since any given student can only either do IB or not do IB… how exactly does anyone know it is so darn wonderful??