Assalamu Alaykum Parents/Guradians,

We are excited to announce that AIA-CSSC has officially started offering the IB Diploma programme to our students after successfully obtaining the authorisation at the end of last year.

What is the IB Diploma Programme?

The IB programme is about developing the whole student, helping students learn how to learn, how to analyse, how to reach conclusions about humankind, its language and literature, its ways in society, and the scientific forces of its environment. The IBDP Programme helps foster a kind of independence, an interdisciplinary style of thinking and questioning that creates worldly scholars and global citizens. For this reason, the IB Diploma is widely recognised by universities around the world as a symbol of academic excellence and one of the strongest educational experiences available in secondary education today.

The IBDP Programme is geared towards the student who is willing to work hard and seeks increased learning opportunities and challenges. Students who enter the Diploma Programme are asked to commit to a two-year plan of study during their junior and senior years.

Things that IBDP Students and Parents should know

Starting the IB Diploma Programme (DP) can be daunting, especially since the DP’s core educational concepts can be vague to both students and parents. With that being said, with school having started this month, here are four things a DP student should know as they enter their first month into the IB program.

• Yes, there will be lots of reading

Let’s get this out of the way: there is a lot of reading in IB courses, from novels to plays to memoirs and more. In most classes, students will be assigned a chapter or two with accompanying coursework that will help guide their understanding of the text and help in creating lively class discussions. Plus, the reading is meant to be thought-provoking and influential – not reading just for reading’s sake.

• You don’t have to wait to be called on by a teacher to speak

DP students can expect to be engaged in a lot of peer dialogue in class. Discussions are often student-guided talks responding to open-ended questions that have no right or wrong answer. These discussions challenges students to work together and find collaborative solutions to the questions offered in class.

• You will write to reflect, not to be right

In the first month of classes, expect to actively reflect on reading assignments. Reflections might take the form of written responses, classroom discussion, or small projects. Reflections are designed to help students begin to think about course material on a deeper level. Plus, it develops your critical analysis skills, which are essential for post-secondary studies and future careers.

• Projects are based on coursework AND your interests

No IB course is complete without a culminating project, which you will learn about and possibly even begin within the first month of class. Communication and research-based, these group or solo projects tie together course content and a question of interest to you, and results in a tangible piece of work.

Regards

Mr Mahmoud Sammak

IB Diploma Coordinator

Adapted from https://blogs.ibo.org/blog/201...