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The International Baccalaureate (IB), formerly the International Baccalaureate Organization (IBO), is an international educational foundation founded in 1968 in Geneva, Switzerland and offers three educational programmes for children ages 3-19. The organization's name and logo were changed in 2007 to reflect a new image and for legal reorganization. Consequently, "IB" can refer to the organization itself, any of the three programmes or the diploma or certificates awarded at the end of the diploma programme. There are approximately 739,000 IB students at 2,708 schools in 138 countries.

History

Marie-Therese Maurette created the framework for what would eventually become the IB Diploma Programme in 1948 when she wrote Is There a Way of Teaching for Peace?, a handbook for UNESCO. In the mid-1960s, a group of teachers from the International School of Geneva (Ecolint) created the International Schools Examinations Syndicate (ISES), which would later become the International Baccalaureate Organisation (IBO). In 1968, the IB headquarters were officially established in Geneva, Switzerland for the development and maintenance of the Diploma Programme which would "provide an internationally acceptable university admissions qualification suitable for the growing mobile population of young people whose parents were part of the world of diplomacy, international and multi-national organizations" and offer internationally standardized courses and assessments for students ages 16 to 19. Alec Peterson was appointed as IBO's first Director General (1968-1977). Peterson was followed by Gérard Renaud (1977-83), Roger Peel (1983-98), Derek Blackman (1998-99), George Walker (1999-2005) and Jeffrey Beard, who has been the current Director General since 2006.

Since 1994, the IB has offered the IB Middle Years Programme, which is composed of eight subject areas and five areas of interaction and designed for students ages 11 to 16. In 1997, the IB added the IB Primary Years Programme for children ages 3 through 10, which is an inquiry-based program relying on six global transdisciplinary themes supported by six subject areas.

Organization

According to its mission statement, "The International Baccalaureate aims 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." The IB developed a set of ten attributes which represent its mission statement as learning outcomes. "The aim of all IB programmes is to develop internationally minded people who ... strive to be: inquirers, knowledgeable, thinkers, communicators, principled, open-minded, caring, risk-takers, balanced and reflective."

The IB is a non-governmental organization (NGO) of UNESCO and has collaborative relationships with the Council of Europe and the Organisation Internationale de la Francophonie (OIF). The IB's alliance with UNESCO encourages the integration of its educational goals into the IB curriculum.

In 2003, the IB established the IB Fund which was incorporated in the United States for the purpose of enhancing fundraising and keeping funds raised separate from operational funds. In 2004, the IB approved a strategic plan to "ensure that programmes and services are of the highest quality" and "to provide access to people who are socio-economically disadvantaged."

IB Offices and Associations

The IB Headquarters is situated in Geneva, Switzerland. The Curriculum and Assessment Centre is located in Cardiff, Wales

There are three IB Regional Offices:

• IB Africa, Europe and Middle East (IBAEM) in Geneva, Switzerland.
• IB Americas (IBA) in New York, United States and Buenos Aires, Argentina. The United States has the largest number of IB programmes (1,029 out of 2,704) offered in both private and public schools.
• IB Asia-Pacific (IBAP) in Singapore, Republic of Singapore.

Sub-regional associations "are groups formed by and for IB school practitioners to assist IB schools, teachers and students in their communities—from implementing IB programmes to providing a forum for dialogue."

• There are two in the IB Africa, Europe and Middle East region.
• There are thirty sub-regional associations in the IB Americas region.
• There are five in the Asia Pacific region.

IB announced that it will be opening new offices in Maryland (US), Amsterdam and Singapore by mid-2010.

Governance

The IB governance is composed of an IB Board of Governors. The Board appoints the Director General, sets the strategic direction of the organization, adopts a mission statement, makes policy, oversees the IB’s financial management, and ensures autonomy and integrity of the IB Diploma Programme examinations and other student assessment.

Reception

The IB Diploma Programme was described as "a rigorous, off-the-shelf curriculum recognized by universities around the world” when it was featured in the December 10, 2006 edition of Time magazine titled How to bring our schools out of the 20th Century. The IB Diploma Programme was also featured in the summer 2002 edition of American Educator, where Robert Rothman describes it as "a good example of an effective, instructionally sound, exam-based system." Howard Gardner, an educational psychology professor at Harvard University, said that the IB Diploma Programme's curriculum is "less parochial than most American efforts" and helps students "think critically, synthesize knowledge, reflect on their own thought processes and get their feet wet in interdisciplinary thinking."

In the United Kingdom, the IB Diploma is considered to be more academically challenging than three or four A-levels. In 2006, government ministers provided funding so that "every local authority in England could have at least one centre offering sixth-formers the chance to do the IB." Due to the record numbers of students taking the International Baccalaureate Diploma exams instead of A-levels, "Children's Secretary Ed Balls last year ditched a flagship Tony Blair pledge to allow children in all areas to study IB."

Political objections to IB programmes in the United States have resulted in attempts to eliminate them from public schools. Thomas Sowell, senior fellow at the Hoover Institution at Stanford University, describes the IB Diploma Programme as "one of the endless series of fad programs that distract American public schools from real education in real subjects" and "indoctrination". Some schools in the United States have eliminated IB due to budgetary reasons and low student participation. In Utah, funding for the International Baccalaureate was reduced from $300,000 to $100,000 after Senator Margaret Dayton objected to the program because she didn't "want to create 'world citizens' nearly as much as I want to help cultivate American citizens who function well in the world."

References

1. "Overview of the International Baccalaureate Organization". Retrieved 2006-12-07.
2. "Three Programmes at a Glance". Retrieved July 15, 2009.
3. "IB Identity Announcement". Retrieved July 14, 2009.
4. "Who we are". Retrieved 22-July-2009. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help)
5. "Biennial Conference of IB Nordic Schools" (PDF). ibo.org. p. pg.7. Retrieved 06 July 2009. {{cite web}}: |page= has extra text (help); Check date values in: |accessdate= (help)
6. Elisabeth Fox (2001). "The Emergence of the International Baccalaureate as an Impetus to Curriculum Reform". International Education: Principles and Practice (2nd ed.). Routledge. p. 65. ISBN 0749436166. {{cite book}}: Unknown parameter |editors= ignored (|editor= suggested) (help); Unknown parameter |isnb13= ignored (help)
7. "International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme". Retrieved 2007-05-08.
8. Mary Hayden (2001). "Global Issues: A Necessary Component of a Balanced Curriculum for the Twenty-First Century". International Education: Principles and Practice (2nd ed.). Routledge. p. 94. ISBN 0749436166. {{cite book}}: Unknown parameter |editors= ignored (|editor= suggested) (help); Unknown parameter |isnb13= ignored (help)
9. "IBO History". ibo.org. Retrieved 06-July-2009. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help)
10. "International Baccalaureate Middle Years Programme". Retrieved 2007-05-08.
11. "PYP Curriculum". Retrieved 22-July-2009. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help)
12. http://www.ibo.org/mission/index.cfm
13. [http://ibo.org/programmes/profile/documents/Learnerprofileguide.pdf / "IB Learner Profile"]. IB Learner Profile Booklet. ibo.org. November2008. Retrieved 22-July-2009. {{cite web}}: Check |url= value (help); Check date values in: |accessdate= and |date= (help); line feed character in |url= at position 68 (help)
14. "Governments". Retrieved July 14, 2009.
15. http://www3.unesco.org/iycp/Report/IBO.pdf
16. "Literacy and Development: How can international education support UNESCO and other bodies in increasing literacy in the developing world?, pg. 5" (PDF). Retrieved July 14, 2009.
17. "The president's view on Fundraising and the strategic plan" (PDF). IB World. 40. International Baccalaureate Organization: 8. 2004. Retrieved 2009-07-13. {{cite journal}}: Cite has empty unknown parameters: |trans_title= and |coauthors= (help); Unknown parameter |month= ignored (help)
18. "IBO strategic plan approved" (PDF). IB World. 40. International Baccalaureate Organization: 2. 2004. Retrieved 2009-07-13. {{cite journal}}: Cite has empty unknown parameters: |trans_title= and |coauthors= (help); Unknown parameter |month= ignored (help)
19. "Find an IB World School". Retrieved July 15, 2009.
20. "IB regional offices". Ibo.org. Retrieved 2009-07-15.
21. "Associations of IB Schools". Retrieved July 13, 2009.
22. "world school associations". Ibo.org. Retrieved 2009-07-15.
23. "Associations". Ibo.org. Retrieved 2009-07-15.
24. "IB Asia Pacific region". Ibo.org. Retrieved 2009-07-15.
25. de Vise and Marimow (2009/02/24). "Curriculum Program Moving to Md". Washington Post. Retrieved July 29, 2009. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
26. "Governance Structure". Retrieved July 17, 2009.
27. Wallis, Claudia (2006-12-10). "How to bring our schools out of the 20th Century". Time. Retrieved 2009-07-16.
28. Rothman, Robert (Summer 2002). "A test worth teaching to". American Educator. Retrieved 2009-07-16.
29. Gross, Jane (2003-06-21). "Diploma for the 'Top of the Top'; International Baccalaureate Gains Favor in Region". The New York Times. Retrieved 2009-07-27.
30. Shepard, Jessica (2009/02/10). "Leap from Cardiff to Amsterdam for Baccalaureate". Guardian.co.uk. Retrieved July 28, 2009. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
31. Clark, Laura (2009/05/19). "Fears of 'two-tier' education system as pupils taking rival exam to A-levels rise by 40%". Daily MailOnline. Retrieved July 29, 2009. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
32. Ward, Paula Reed (2006-02-16). "Cutting international program embroils Upper St. Clair board in controversy". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Retrieved 2009-06-06.
33. Walters, Joanna (2006-03-14). "All American Trouble". Guardian.co.uk. Retrieved 2009-07-15.
34. Sowell, Thomas (2006-02-24). "Parents with backbone". Townhall.com. Retrieved 2009-07-28.
35. Kranhert III, John (2009-03-21). "Pinecrest Drops IB Program". The Pilot. Retrieved 2009-07-15.
36. Martindale, Scott (2008/03/12). "175 Saddleback Valley Teachers Face Layoff". OCRegister. Retrieved July 27, 2009. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
37. Dayton, Margaret (2008/05/21). "The Senate Site". Retrieved July 28, 2009. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
38. "League of Women Voters of Utah". 2008/02/28. Retrieved July 28, 2009. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)

External links

• International Baccalaureate official site

• Associations of schools
• School qualifications
• Educational assessment and evaluation
• Evaluation methods
• High school course levels