The International Baccalaureate (IB) Diploma Programme

Background Information

There are three different IB (International Baccalaureate) qualifications each of which is designed for students of a different age group. The qualification for Sixth Form students is called the IB Diploma.

The IB Diploma has existed for forty years. During that time it has become increasingly well known and respected across the world. It is now running in over 2000 schools in more than 100 countries, with well over half a million students studying for it at any one time.

 

The IB Mission Statement

General information about number of applicants, pass rates and other useful statistics relating to IB assessment each year can be found in the IB Statistical Bulletin, for which there is a link below.

Particularly useful in the UK, and included as a link below, is the IBSCA sponsored Curriculum Content Guide. This provides very detailed information about the IB programme and individual IB subjects, with comparisons to their equivalent AS/ A level subjects.

For more information see:

The IB Mission Statement: The IB information pages
http://www.ibo.org/general/who.cfm

IB Statistical Bulletin
http://www.ibo.org/facts/statbulletin/

IB Curriculum Content Guide
http://www.ibsca.org.uk/media/IBCoursesDec2007.pdf

Wikipedia on the IB
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_Baccalaureate_Organization

Directgov pages about the IB Diploma http://www.direct.gov.uk/en/EducationAndLearning/QualificationsExplained/DG_10039027

The Parents guide to the IB (by Dr. Marc Van Loo, 2004) http://www.cambridge.org/us/education/ib/assets/pdf/IB_parents.pdf

IB Programme Guide - Click here to download

Please be aware that information relating to the IB is regularly updated on the IB website and non-IB sponsored web pages may not always be as up to date.

 

What does the IB Diploma consist of?

Students on the IB Diploma study six subjects, and follow three core development programmes. The six subjects must be chosen from carefully defined groups of subjects so that students will all include English, Maths, a second language, a science and a humanity amongst their studies. 

The nine parts of the diploma (6 subjects + 3 core development programmes) are as follows:

Subject 1	the main fluent language
Subject 2	a second language which can be studied at a more advanced level (language B) or at a beginners level (ab initio).
Subject 3	a subject from the Individuals and Societies group of subjects. This broadly equates to humanities, as generally defined by UK schools.
Subject 4	a science subject. This includes both traditional separate sciences as well as a combined science and geography course (Environmental Systems)
Subject 5	a maths subject
Subject 6	an arts subject or a second subject from one of the other 5 groups of subjects
Core 1	an extended essay of 4000 words which students write on a topic of their own choice
Core 2	a ToK (Theory of Knowledge) course which involves learning about the nature of knowledge and its limitations
Core 3	CAS (Creativity, Action, Service). This is a personal development programme which students follow, typically for an afternoon a week over the two year course. Students must involve themselves in activities which develop their creativity, their active involvement and their community service.

 Students will choose three of their subjects to be studied at Higher Level (240 hours) and three to be studied at Standard Level (150 hours).  This difference in levels is mainly a different in the amount of material covered, although on some courses there can be a difference in complexity due to the options selected and the order in which the materials are covered.
A common misconception in the UK is to equate the difference between IB Higher Level and Standard Level with the difference in A levels between AS level (first part of the A level) and A2 level (the second part of the A level). In the case of A levels there is a very clear difference in complexity between the two different levels as AS is pitched deliberately at a standard between GCSE and full A level. There is no such intermediate level in the IB.

For more information about individual subjects, subject groups and general organisation of the IB Diploma see:

The IB website and links to separate subject group pages
http://www.ibo.org/diploma/curriculum/

Wikipedia IB Diploma page and links to separate group pages
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_Baccalaureate

IBSCA Curriculum Content Guide
http://www.ibsca.org.uk/media/IBCoursesDec2007.pdf

The Baccalaureate (The Guardian)

Please be aware that information relating to the IB is regularly updated on the IB website. Non IB sponsored web pages may not always be as up to date.

 

How the IB Diploma is assessed

The IB Diploma incorporates a variety of approaches to assessment, including written coursework, final exams, performances and presentations.

Coursework amounts for up to 40% of the assessment in most subjects, although in the case of arts and performance related subjects (eg music) it will typically be more.  IB coursework encompasses a range of activities so that it can develop students and assess them on a typically wider range of skills than alternative qualifications have sometimes allowed. Assessment tasks can range from written pieces of work to making presentations on a topic.

The final assessments are taken each year during the first 3 weeks of May. An assessment paper, or in some cases two papers, is taken in each of the 6 subjects that have been studied. ToK (Theory of Knowledge) is assessed by an essay. Students are given a list of titles and then have a month to choose a title and write the 1200 word essay.  The extended essay is assessed externally and sent off to an examiner. CAS is not formally assessed but if students do not have a record of their CAS activities that indicate they have completed the programme then they will not pass that element of the Diploma programme.

The award of a diploma requires a student to pass every element of the Diploma (ie 6 subjects + ToK, extended essay and CAS). If a student were to fail a part of the diploma it is possible to resit that individual part of the diploma up to twice. When results are awarded it is also possible to query them and ask for a re-mark if necessary. The IB builds a special safeguard into its awarding system so that any student result that is 2 or more grades different than the grades which the school submit as ‘expected grades’ is automatically remarked to check for accuracy. This is a different approach to that taken by other UK awarding bodies and it tends to lead to fewer queries of grades. If a student wishes to resit a paper it is possible to do so in the November following the May examination session, although it is worth being aware that not all IB schools run the November re-sits sessions.

One of the features of IB assessment which appeals to many students is that results come out earlier than A levels. This means that if the results are not exactly what was hoped for students have time to begin exploring alternatives before A level students are aware of their grades and before University ‘clearing’ begins.

Final grades for the IB Diploma are worked out as follows:

• Each of the six subjects are marked out of 7
• Three marks are awarded for the quality of ToK, extended essay and CAS

A minimum pass for the diploma is 24/45. Approximately 0.1% of students each year get 45/45

For further information:

IB on the approach to assessment
http://www.ibo.org/diploma/assessment/

Wikipedia article on the IB Diploma
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_Baccalaureate