Supporting the Classes of 2022 and 2023
Congratulations on completing the May 2021 examination session. Now that the session is over - what?s next? First, we need to rest, rejuvenate and recover from what has been an enormously challenging school year both professionally and personally. It is hard to believe, but it is also time to plan for the Class of 2022 and 2023?s successful transition to the Diploma Programme and courses. We have an enormous challenge and opportunity ahead of us. These students ...
IB Matters Podcast -Measuring your IB Programme
We to talk to Asheesh Misra and Tim Kane from IB School improvement.com about this year's exams and the important role of the predicted grades in this and future exam cycles. We also talk about how Internal assessments should be a big focus for DP/CP teachers as they judge their capacity to help students and their IB programs to succeed. Tim walks us through how each DP cohort has a different challenge moving forward and starts the conversation regarding how we can serve their different...
The Answer to Strengthening Your Predicted Grades
Regardless of the exam scenario for your school, the IB has clearly communicated the significance and value of predicted grades. In February 2021 IB released a dual route to the May 2021 assessments, along with an allocation of predicted grades. If you have questions about how predicted grade allocations for your school or subject were determined, check out our explanation of how your predicted grade allocations were determined. Additionally, IB School Improvement held a series of free webinars to help the IB community und...
How Were Predicted Grade Allocations Determined?
On February 4, 2021 the IB announced a dual route to the May 2021 assessments. This announcement has caused a multitude of reactions and confusion throughout the IB community. Regardless of how you feel about this decision, it is the current state of IB for 2021. In order to make the best of things, we need to unpack what this communication explicitly says and learn how we can use this information to help our teachers provide better outcomes for students. To unpack this information we held four free webinars during Februar...
Promoting Equity in Education
As schools struggle with addressing equity, one of the issues they confront is ensuring that all students have access to advanced education programs. In fact, in the US the rigor of a student's high school curriculum is the number one predictor of college access and success. Yet, traditional school structures deny some students, more likely low-income and students of color, access to the programs that empower them for postsecondary success. This webinar will discuss how to improve access and equity for all students to advanced academic programs.
Webinar Series: IB in the Time of Covid 19
This summer we partnered with the Faria Education Group and ManageBac to offer IB educators around the world three free professional development sessions addressing IB in the time of Covid19. Learn more about ManageBac and access all the resources! Prior to the sessions we crafted a guest blog post for their blog titled IB Exam Analytics for Curriculum & Student Engagement.Part 1: IB in the Time of Covid 19 - What has happened and the Road Forward. Part 1 launched on August 27, 2020. In this session participants gained an ...
Analyzing the 2020 DP Exams: Where do we go from here?
This episode brings back Tim Kane and Asheesh Misra with their take on the 2020 IB exam issues and how they have helped schools work with the fallout and results from this unique situation. We did simultaneously video record this episode because Tim shared his screen to illustrate the ways in which the scores werre determined in a year without exams. He also showed some of the tools they use to help schools increase access by better understanding how scores are determined in ...
Uncovering the mystery behind your IB May 2020 DP Results
In March, the International Baccalaureate (IB) canceled May 2020 Diploma Programme (DP) in-person exams due to the dangers posed by the Covid-19 pandemic. This required a significant shift in the way students' IB results were calculated. On the 13th of May 2020, the IB reported the following guidelines for determining May 2020 results: "Following the submission of the [Internal Assessment coursework and predicted grades] the IB will be using historical assessment data to ensure that
Excellence, Equity, and Access to the IB Diploma Program
Green Run Collegiate, a public interdivision charter school housed within the Virginia Beach City Public School division, was created in the fall of 2013 to provide all students access to an International Baccalaureate curriculum. We provide all of our students with the opportunity to engage with the Middle Years, Diploma, and Career-related Certificate IB Programmes. 74% of Green Run Collegiate students come from underrepresented backgrounds, while 46% participate in the free and/or reduced lunch program. Green Run understands ...
IB Matters Podcast - Improving Equity and Exam Scores in the DP
In this episode of IB Matters we talk to Asheesh Misra and Tim Kane about their work helping Diploma Program teachers build their DP courses in such a way as to give all their students the best chance to succeed. In other words, they show teachers and coordinators how to significantly improve Diploma scores. They are both experienced IB teachers with a long track record of doing just that and Asheesh worked for the IB Organization as the former directer of their Access, Equity and ...
Committed to Excellence and Equity in IB Education
Join us in celebrating IB educator and IBSchoolImprovement.com consultant, Colin Pierce's equity and excellence legacy. After eight years as DP Coordinator at Rainier Beach High School, Colin is entering a new role as Middle and High School Advisor for Seattle's Department of Education and Early Learning. Colin and the Rainier Beach team improved the school's on-time graduation rate from 54% in 2010 to 89% in 2018 - utilizing an IB DP for all model as a primary tool for engaging all for ...
Improve DP Success by Developing Understanding
From 2014-2017, I managed the Bridging the Equity Gap Project at the IB. This project aimed to address the disparity in participation and performance in the IB's Diploma Programme (DP) between low-income students and their higher-income peers. At the start of this project, scholars at SRI Education examined obstacles for participation in the DP for underrepresented students. The project's consultants and I expected that the main obstacles to student participation in the DP would be traditional honors tracking policies ...
Starting the School Year: Best Practices
At the start of each school year, all of us hope to increase our teachers and students' understanding and mastery of IB curriculum. What reflective practices do we engage in to achieve this goal? At IB World Schools, administrators and teachers intuitively know the importance of reflective practice, but face many barriers in in achieving these goals. At IBSchoolImprovement.com, we engage with schools to help teams work together to develop targeted and informed strategies that will...
IB and AVID: A Match Made In Heaven
Jessica and Holly co-wrote the course guide for a dual enrollment, two year AVID and IB Theory of Knowledge course which was given honors recognition by the University of California and official approval from the AVID Center. Del Mar High School is working on fully integrating their IB and AVID programs with the goal of increasing access and success for students typically underrepresented in IB courses. Del Mar High School is a comprehensive public high school located in San Jose, California. D...