An IB education prepares young people to succeed in the most competitive post-secondary education programs around the world.
In the Diploma Programme (DP), students engage in a deep exploration of what interests them and what they are good at.
Students following a DP course are:
- learning to draw connections across subject areas through the IB design for learning
- learning more than material: they understand why they are learning and why it is important in everyday life
- empowered to develop their own learning strategies.
Challenging the myth of elitism
IB programmes are integrated and implemented in education systems and contexts all over the world and align with educational standards set by governing bodies. Historically, the IB has been valued for its unique emphasis on intercultural understanding, rigor, and high assessment standards.
With a reputation for excellence, perceptions of exclusivity and elitism have become a deterrent for students who compare themselves to their high-achieving peers. Sometimes adults have constructed a narrow understanding of who benefits from an IB education.
Since the IB has designed an educational system that optimizes learning, educators everywhere co-create a high-quality education that benefits all learners. The IB offers standards and practices that nurture the curiosity and potential of learners, and so an elitist or exclusionary view of IB is inaccurate.
Since the first US public school was authorized to offer the IB Diploma Programme (DP) in 1982, schools all over the country have removed barriers that limited participation to selected student groups.
Featured IB World School: Discovery Canyon Campus, Colorado Springs, CO, United States
“What is the difference between and IB World School and a school with an IB programme?” Mark Wahlstrom, Principal, Discovery Canyon Camus High School
Experience International Baccalaureate at Discovery Canyon Campus High School
Advancing the IB mission
The IB learning model promotes innovative, critical and creative thinking, and encourages a deep understanding of subjects. In IB programmes, academic rigor involves meeting high standards and doing so by supporting students to challenge themselves and better understand how they learn in a variety of contexts.
The IB is not designed with a particular student in mind. Rather it is designed for any young person to engage in their own learning in rich learning environments created by schools.
Together the IB partners with schools to co-create high-quality education and advance the mission to make a better and more peaceful world. This includes removing barriers to lifelong learning and enhancing systems of support that invest in students’ potential.
