The Middle years at BIS is structured to meet children varied intellectual and developmental needs with an integration of the IB Middle years programme. It provides a framework for preparing students to confront the challenges of the 21st century by providing them with the skills and values they will need to develop into well-rounded, confident young adults ready to engage with the world. Children between the ages of 11 and 16 are typically self-conscious and beginning to negotiate their own identity in relation to their peers and the world around them; they seek recognition and are in the process of building their self-esteem. It is a crucial age in a child’s development – physical, intellectual and psychological and therefore, the MYP at BIS addresses the requirements of adolescent learners as they want to learn more about themselves, the world, and their position in it.
Community project and Personal project:
The Middle Years Programme provides middle school learners with two excellent platforms -the Community Project and the Personal project. Students get an opportunity to hone their social skills by explicitly working towards a cause for the community and develop learning skills through the Community project work. The Middle Years Program culminates with a self-directed and guided Personal project. Students independently select topics and create a highly personal and creative piece of work that demonstrates their ability to articulate their grasp of a subject. These projects are supervised and are completed over an extended period of time.
Service as Action
Service as Action in the MYP is an essential component of the learning process, both as part of the programme’s educational philosophy and as a practical outcome of students’ learning. The MYP aims to help students develop their personal understanding, their emerging sense of self, and their appropriate role and responsibility in their community. As students become more aware and acquire a better understanding of the context and of their responsibilities, they stand empowered to make choices about how to take thoughtful and positive action. Service as Action in the MYP aims at the quality and objective of the service which is more important than the act itself or the number of hours devoted to it. Students, in the final years of the program should have responsible roles in planning, organising and implementing service activities to reflect their learning curve. These service opportunities are aligned with the MYP 7 learning outcomes for service.
ATL Skills
Teaching and learning is supported by Approaches to Learning (ATL) which are deliberate strategies, skills, and attitudes that permeate the teaching and learning environment of MYP. These Skills are a solid foundation to learn independently and in collaboration with others. They also prove to be a common language that students and teachers use to reflect on the process of learning. These skills are relevant across the curriculum and help learners “learn how to learn”. ATL skills are learnt, taught, improved with practice and developed incrementally.
Subjects offered in The Middle Years Programme
The focus of the curriculum is interdisciplinary, and students are encouraged to make links across subjects. Students are encouraged to ask questions about the world around them in the MYP, and this inquiry is structured around a Contextual Concept that connects the local, national, international, and global platforms. As a result, teaching and learning is explored in a way that makes its relevance clear to the learner.
E- assessment:
At the completion of the IB MYP, the IB offers an external evaluation facility (e-Assessment) that allows students to receive a formal, internationally recognised credential. The MYP eAssessment is created to represent the MYP’s flexible curriculum framework. Because of its adaptability, it works well in a wide range of school contexts around the world.
It informs the next stages in a student’s academic journey, increases their ability to apply their thoughts to new settings, stimulates learning of skills, and matches the three types of performances that suit a 21st century adolescent learner.
Value addition
Students at BIS engage in structured activities and experiences that further their holistic development and seek to foster positive relationships with the broader community. The enrichment programme at BIS creates a pathway of opportunities integrating mainstream curriculum to the intercultural community and development of each child.
The value-added education is an objective and outcome-based approach towards experiences that prepare students to be balanced, productive and influential leaders of tomorrow. School keeps in mind the emotional and social wellbeing of their student community. It is this approach and implementation of it that sets BIS apart from other schools. Value added services such as Elocution, Mental maths and General awareness enhances cognitive development.
