International Baccalaureate Program begins at Harrison Prep

Harrison Preparatory School is an official candidate for the International Baccalaureate (IB) Middle Years Program (MYP) and began implementing the IB curriculum at the start of the school year. The school finished a feasibility study -- the first of three steps to become an IB World School -- in June, after they identified school resources and analyzed the IB philosophy and curriculum.

"We are very excited to offer the Middle Years Program curriculum and practices at Harrison Prep," said Lisa Boyd, principal. "This program introduces our students to rigorous international standards and allows our staff to have access to an international community of teachers and resources. We are very excited."

As part of the trial implementation period—the second of three steps required to become an IB World School—Harrison Prep’s staff members are undergoing training, which will be completed this fall.

Casey Silbaugh, the school’s former instructional facilitator, has been hired as an IB coordinator to support staff with the overall implementation and the school recently hired an IB Spanish teacher to meet the requirement of two language offerings. IB also offers a technical advisor who oversees the implementation period to verify that things are being done correctly.

MYP curriculum is designed for 11- to 16-year-olds and is made up of eight subject groups with five areas of interaction that promote global understanding and encourage student self-direction, critical thinking and collaboration, including parent involvement and community service:

• Approaches to Learning: Fostering study skills and the learning process;
• Community Service: Working on projects related to improving the community;
• Health and Social Education: Developing a sense of responsibility for students’ own physical, mental and social well-being;
• Environment: Focusing on the interdependence of humanity and the world we live in; and
• Human Creativity: Exploring the processes, products and impacts of human innovation.

The IB MYP concludes in 10th grade with a personal project—an independent and significant piece of reflective work that is led by the student with supervision by a teacher. The personal project is accompanied by a document in which the student describes the approach and the method that he or she followed and provides a personal response to the issues concerned. The school uses published assessment criteria to assess the project.

To date, the Lakewood Rotary Club has donated $58,000 to the district to bring the MYP to Harrison Prep. Harrison Prep plans to begin work to bring the IB Diploma Program to the school once the MYP is firmly established.

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