The Middle Years Programme at Raha International School
Beyond The Ordinary
Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates
The IB Middle Years Programme at Raha International School Raha International School offers a balanced and academically challenging education, which is designed to develop individuals who are both independent learners and international citizens.
What is an IB education? The IB continuum of international education for 3-19 year olds is unique because of its academic and personal vigour. We challenge students to excel in their studies and in their personal growth. We aim to inspire a quest for learning throughout life that is marked by enthusiasm and empathy. The IB aspires to help schools develop well-rounded students with character: students who can respond to challenges with optimism and an open-mind; students confident in their own identities; students who make ethical decisions; students who join with others in celebrating our common humanity; students who are prepared to apply what they learn in real world, complex and unpredictable situations. The IB offers high-quality programmes of international education that share a powerful vision. An IB education is informed by the values described in the learner profile and: centres on learners – the IB’s student-centred programmes promote healthy relationships, ethical responsibility and personal challenge develops effective approaches to teaching and learning – IB programmes help students to develop the attitudes and skills they need for both academic and personal success works within global contexts – IB programmes increase understanding of languages and cultures, and explore globally significant ideas and issues explores significant content – IB programmes offer a curriculum that is broad and balanced, conceptual and connected. IB learners strive to become inquirers, knowledgeable, thinkers, communicators, principled, open-minded, caring, risk-takers, balanced, and reflective. These attributes of internationally minded people represent a broad range of human capacities and responsibilities that go beyond intellectual development and academic success.
Many of you may have seen the IB Middle Years Programme model before, but do you know what it means?
Breaking down the Middle years programme
What is the Middle Years Programme? The MYP is designed for students aged 11 to 16. It provides a framework of learning that encourages students to become creative, critical and reflective thinkers. The MYP emphasizes intellectual challenge, encouraging students to make connections between their studies in traditional subjects and the real world. It fosters the development of skills for communication, intercultural understanding and global engagement—essential qualities for young people who are becoming global leaders. It builds upon the knowledge, skills and attitudes developed in the IB Primary Years Programme (PYP)and prepares students to meet the academic challenges of the IB Diploma Programme (DP). The IB Middle Years Programme: addresses holistically students’ intellectual, social, emotional and physical well-being provides students opportunities to develop the knowledge, attitudes and skills they need in order to manage complexity and take responsible action for the future ensures breadth and depth of understanding through study in eight subject groups requires the study of at least two languages (language of instruction and additional language of choice) to support students in understanding their own cultures and those of others empowers students to participate in service within the community helps to prepare students for further education, the workplace and a lifetime of learning.
Transitioning from the PYP to the MYP The PYP prepares students for the MYP through its concept-driven, transdisciplinary approach. PYP students spend most of their time with one classroom teacher, exploring the connections between academic subjects. In the MYP, students begin the study of distinct disciplines; however, the PYP’s transdisciplinary themes--along with the programme’s strong commitment to collaborative teaching-- provides a strong foundation for interdisciplinary study in the MYP. Both programmes reflect the depth, breadth and balance that characterizes the IB continuum of international education. As students move from primary to middle level education, they benefit from the IB’s consistent educational philosophy. The MYP shares the PYP’s commitment to learning through inquiry and continues to develop attributes of the IB learner profile. Careful alignment between the programmes helps students flourish personally and academically as they enter the world of early adolescence.
What is
action & service?
Action (learning by doing and experiencing) and service have always been shared values of the IB community. Students take action when they apply what they are learning in the classroom and beyond. IB learners strive to be caring members of the community who demonstrate a commitment to service—making a positive difference to the lives of others and to the environment. Service as action is an integral part of the programme, especially in the MYP community project.
What about the personal
project?
Each student develops a personal project independently, producing a truly personal and creative piece of work that stands as a summative review of their ability to conduct independent work.
... And the community
project?
The community project encourages students to explore their right and responsibility to implement service as action in the community. Students may complete the community project individually or in small groups.
What is a
Learner profile attribute?
The IB learner profile promotes education of the whole person for a life of active, responsible citizenship emphasizing intellectual, personal, emotional and social growth. The attributes and descriptions of the learner profile define the type of learner RIS hopes to develop through its programmes. All members of the Raha Community, including students, teachers, administration, support staff and parents, strive to develop these qualities.
Inquirer
We nurture our curiosity, developing skills for inquiry and research. We know how to learn independently and with others. We learn with enthusiasm and sustain our love of learning throughout life.
Knowledgeable
We develop and use conceptual understanding, exploring knowledge across a range of disciplines. We engage with issues and ideas that have local and global significance.
Thinker
We use critical and creative thinking skills to analyse and take responsible action on complex problems. We exercise initiative in making reasoned, ethical decisions.
Communicator
We express ourselves confidently and creatively in more than one language and in many ways. We collaborate effectively, listening carefully to the perspectives of other individuals and groups.
Principled
We act with integrity and honesty, with a strong sense of fairness and justice, and with respect for the dignity and rights of people everywhere. We take responsibility for our actions and their consequences.
Open-minded
We critically appreciate our own cultures and personal histories, as well as the values and traditions of others. We seek and evaluate a range of points of view, and we are willing to grow from the experience.
Risk-taker
We approach uncertainty with forethought and determination; we work independently and cooperatively to explore new ideas and innovative strategies. We are resourceful and resilient in the face of challenges and change.
Balanced
We understand the importance of balancing different aspects of our lives—intellectual, physical, (spiritual) and emotional—to achieve well-being for ourselves and others. We recognize our interdependence with other people and with the world in which we live.
Caring
We show empathy, compassion and respect. We have a commitment to service, and we act to make a positive difference in the lives of others and in the world around us.
Reflective
We thoughtfully consider the world and our own ideas and experience. We work to understand our strengths and weaknesses in order to support our learning and personal development.
What is
Interdisciplinary learning?
In the Middle Years Programme (MYP), interdisciplinary learning supports students to understand bodies of knowledge from two or more disciplines or subject groups, in order to integrate them and create new understanding. Students demonstrate interdisciplinary understanding when they bring together concepts, methods, or forms of communication from two or more disciplines or established areas of expertise so that they can explain a phenomenon, solve a problem, create a product, or raise a new question in ways that would have been unlikely through a single discipline. Younger learners often make connections naturally between different areas of knowledge, in order to understand the world around them. In some cases, this is because they have not yet been socialized into the disciplinary perspectives that organize the academic world. Even though secondary education usefully organizes learning into disciplinary compartments as a response to increasing specialization, our ever-changing world also demands education that empowers people to integrate disciplines in novel and creative ways. As knowledge and information multiply, critical thinkers must successfully integrate disciplinary perspectives to understand complex issues and ideas.
What do students in the MYP
Learn?
The MYP requires at least 50 hours of teaching time for each subject group in each year of the programme. In years 4 and 5, students have the option to take courses from six of the eight subject groups within certain limits, to provide greater flexibility in meeting local requirements and individual student learning needs. Each year, students in the MYP also engage in at least one collaboratively planned interdisciplinary unit that involves at least two subject groups. MYP students also complete a long-term project, the Personal Project, where they decide what they want to learn about, identify what they already know, discovering what they will need to know to complete the project, and create a proposal or criteria for completing it
What
subjects
are covered in the MYP?
The eight subject areas identified within the PYP are: language & literature language acquisition individuals & societies sciences mathematics arts physical & health education design
What do we want students to
Understand?
The MYP identifies 16 key concepts to be explored across the curriculum. These key concepts, shown below represent understandings that reach beyond the eight MYP subject groups from which they are drawn. Teachers use key concepts from their own subject group(s)—as well as key concepts from other subject groups—to plan disciplinary and interdisciplinary units of work. The key concepts are: aesthetics change communication communities connections creativity culture development
form global interactions identity logic perspective relationships systems time, place & space
Related concepts promote depth of learning and add coherence to the understanding of academic subjects and disciplines. They are grounded in specific subjects and disciplines and they are useful for exploring key concepts in greater detail. Inquiry into related concepts helps students to develop more complex and sophisticated conceptual understanding. Related concepts may arise from the subject matter of a unit or the craft of a subject—its features and processes.
Will my child be ready for the
DP?
The MYP aligns most closely with the IB Diploma Programme (DP), ensuring a smooth transition for students who continue their education within the IB continuum.
What are
approaches to teaching?
The MYP aims to help students develop their personal understanding, their emerging sense of self and responsibility in their community. Teaching and learning in the MYP is underpinned by the following concepts: Teaching and learning in context (global contexts) Conceptual understanding (concepts) Approaches to learning Service as action, through community service
What are
approaches to learning?
A unifying thread throughout all MYP subject groups, approaches to learning provide the foundation for independent learning and encourage the application of their knowledge and skills in unfamiliar contexts. Developing and applying these skills help students learn how to learn.
What are
Concepts?
Concepts are big ideas that have relevance within specific disciplines and across subject areas. MYP students use concepts as a vehicle to inquire into issues and ideas of personal, local and global significance and examine knowledge holistically.
What are
Global contexts?
Students learn best when their learning experiences have context and are connected to their lives and the world that they have experienced. Using global contexts, MYP students explore human identity, global challenges and what it means to be internationally minded.
MYP students acquire the knowledge, skills and attitudes that they need in order to be successful in the final years of secondary school and beyond. The MYP’s focus on approaches to learning provides ideal preparation for the kind of rigorous study that opens doors to higher education.