MYP students in their final year explore an area of personal interest over an extended period. It provides them the opportunity to consolidate their learning and develop important skills they’ll need in both further education and life beyond the classroom. It also helps them develop confidence to become principled, lifelong learners.
Elements of the personal project
The personal project formally assesses students’ approaches to learning (ATL) skills for self-management, research, communication, critical and creative thinking, and collaboration.
The project is made up of a process, a product and a reflective report.
- process —ideas, criteria, developments, challenges, plans, research, possible solutions and progress reports
- product or outcome—evidence of tangible or intangible results: what the student was aiming to achieve or create
- report—an account of the project and its impact, to a structure that follows the assessment criteria. The report describes both the process of creating the project and an evaluation of the impact of the process on the student or their learning.
The report is assessed by the supervisor and externally moderated by the IB to ensure a globally consistent standard of excellence. Each project is awarded a final achievement grade.
Further information
IB World Schools can learn more about the MYP personal project in the MYP personal project nano PD, or find a workshop for MYP teachers.
Starting with the personal project? IB World Schools can find hints and tips about the personal project in the blog post 'From hair vitamins to a go-kart: one school's perspective of the MYP personal project'.
Other must-reads for IB World Schools include the following documents on the programme resource centre:
- Teacher Support Material
- Making a project plan
- Recording research.
