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The International Baccalaureate Diploma at HIS
The mission of the International Baccalaureate Organization is
“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 programmes of international education and rigorous assessment.
These programmes encourage students across the world to become active, compassionate and lifelong learners who understand that other people, with their differences, can also be right.” (www.ibo.org)
History of the Diploma Program
The IB Program was created in 1968. It is a demanding pre-university course of study designed for highly motivated secondary school students aged 16 to 19. The program has earned a reputation for rigorous assessment, giving IB diploma holders access to leading universities around the world. With the IB, students will fulfill the requirements of their national or state education systems while it simultaneously equips them with the skills and attitudes necessary for success in higher education, employment, and their future life as members of an increasingly global society. Internationally mobile students are able to transfer from one IB school to another, while students who remain closer to home benefit from an internationally respected curriculum.
IB’s Introduction at HIS
The International Baccalaureate (IB) Program was introduced for the first time at HIS in 2004/5. The IB is a complete academic program for the last two years of High School. H.I.S is an IB-accredited “World School”, one of more than 2,500 schools around the world authorized to offer this program. During the 2008-9 academic year, the high school conducted its five-year IB self-study which is a requirement of IBO for the school to continue to offer the IB diploma. Our self-study was very favorably received and the report IB sent in response to our self-study praised several aspects of our program, such as CAS…. {add here}
Students who pursue the full IB diploma at HIS also earn their HIS High School Diploma. The HIS High School diploma is backed by our two accrediting agencies: The New England Association of Schools and Colleges (NEASC) and The Council for International Schools (CIS). Students who do not do the full IB diploma still earn an HIS Diploma as long as they complete all school requirements. (see below for more information on Full IB Diploma versus IB certificates)
The Curriculum
IB subjects are studied for two years. The assessment of IB subjects includes course work as well as final exams. The IB syllabi are designed to satisfy the requirements of many national education systems and are international in outlook. Students taking the full IB Diploma must choose a balanced program of academic subjects as well as co-curricular activities, described in more detail below. IB Diploma students must take one subject from each of the groups shown on the hexagon below. Of these six subjects at least three must be taken at a Higher Level (equivalent to A-level or AP standard) and three at a Standard Level. All IB Certificate subjects, whether taken at Higher or Standard Level are equivalent to study of that subject at first year college level in the United States.
All IB Diploma students study a two-year course called “Theory of Knowledge”, work to produce an “Extended Essay”, and engage in “Creativity, Action, and Service”. Note that Community Service is a Harare International School graduation requirement as well as being a part of the IB’s “Creativity, Action, and Service”.
Theory of Knowledge is a class in epistemology that helps students to become more critical consumers of knowledge. Students examine the different ways of knowing: perception, reason, emotion, and language, and then they apply these ways of knowing to six main areas of knowledge: natural sciences, human sciences, mathematics, history, ethics, and the arts. Socratic seminar style discussions, reflection papers, and guest speakers are mainstays of the class.
The extended essay is a 4000 word essay that should represent approximately 40 hours of the student’s individual efforts. Students select a topic within a specific IB subject area as well as a teacher supervisor who helps to guide the student through the process (though the supervisor can spend no more than five hours total in both advising and responding to one complete draft). Students become more proficieint researchers and writers through the extended essay process and many have commented on the excellent preparation it makes for college. [ Link to the Extended Essay internal deadlines calendar]
CAS stands for creativity, action, and service. All HIS students complete 150 hours of CAS total in grades 11 & 12 combined (fifty hours per category). Creativity may take many forms- such as designing a website or creating a video for our fund-raising music video evening. Action generally takes the form of sports done outside of the normal physical education program and may include dance, horse-back riding lessons, and team sports, to name a few examples. Service generally consists of community service projects, of which we have scores at HIS. Many of our students have created their own service projects in which their peers take part. Examples of service include visiting the Just Children AIDS orphanage, volunteering to assist with wildlife conservation projects, or raising funds to buy new school supplies for Crow Hill government school.
Assessment of the Diploma
All subjects carry coursework requirements; however, the majority of the course is assessed via examination at the end of the senior year. Both Higher and Standard subject papers are awarded a grade from 1(the lowest) to 7(the highest). There are therefore 42 points available from the six subjects. In addition to this, a further three bonus points can be earned if a student performs very well in the Theory of Knowledge paper and the Extended Essay in combination, making a maximum of 45 possible points.
In order to obtain a diploma a candidate must score a minimum of 24 points, and also pass most subjects at grade 3 or above. Candidates must also submit an Extended Essay and Theory of Knowledge work which is at least elementary in standard. CAS requirements must be met. The full IB demands a balanced approach to study – neglect of any area of the curriculum will give a poor IB result and may possibly give rise to failure.
Experience shows that the majority of students, with diligence, will be successful in studying the IB Diploma or some IB Certificates. Students need to manage their time well to be successful with the course work requirements. They are helped in this respect by an internal calendar of IB deadlines.
IB Full Diploma versus IB Certificates:
Which One is Right for the Student?
Students doing the full diploma should have excellent time management and organizational skills. The full IB diploma program is extremely demanding and is not appropriate for all students. The full diploma is NOT a requirement for even the most elite United States universities, though a certain number of diploma points scored is often a requirement for students who plan to study in the UK. Despite a common misconception, there are a number of UK universities that accept students without the full diploma. Please see our college counselor, Mr. Brett Meenach, for more information on specific university requirements.
Some students opt to do IB certificates rather than the full diploma. The students who elect this are still challenging themselves. The difference is that students who choose to do certificates rather than the full diploma are not bound by the stipulated three higher level / three standard level courses, nor does the student need to take TOK (Theory of Knowledge) nor write the Extended Essay. This greater freedom allows the student to focus more intently on his or her areas of strength without overextending him or herself. Certificate students take as many (sometimes up to six) IB exams or as few exams as he or she wishes. Some of our graduates who have opted to pursue certificates rather than the full diploma have still been accepted to elite US universities and have received generous scholarships. Students who are in EAL (English as an Additional Language) may opt to do certificates as strong English skills are necessary to pursue the full diploma. It is more important for a student to maintain a strong grade point average and academic record (and engage in meaningful extracurricular pursuits), rather than pursue an academic track that may be excessively difficult given the student’s performance.
Access to the IB Diploma Program
Unlike many schools in the world, HIS does not require a certain grade point average for a student to enter the full diploma program. Instead, we have an open access policy for those students who are committed to the rigors of the full diploma program. In January each year, the IB coordinator meets with all tenth grade parents and their 10th grade children to give them a thorough overview of the program and options within it (such as full diploma versus IB certificates).
Following this meeting, the IB coordinator and college counselor meet with individual families to select the student’s course of study for the remaining two years of high school. For a student with a weak academic record the general recommendation will be to pursue certificates; however, the ultimate decision remains the family’s.
HIS IB Results
At HIS our students consistently perform well above world averages. Our diploma pass rate based on the records of the past five years is 97%. We are particularly proud of these statistics given our open access policy to the program.
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