LTC 094-2012 District Administration Article r
I BEACH E' D
AMI
OFFICE OF THE CITY MANAGER t 12 IM;' E E
NO. LTC #,'094-2012 - i CE
LETTER TO COMMISSION .
To: Mayor Matti Herrera Bower and Members of the City Commission
From: Jorge M. Gonzalez
City Manager pn
Date: April 5; 2012
Subject: District Administration Article - Widening Participation to an IB Education-
The purpose of this Letter to Commission (LTC) is to share the article Widening
Participation to an IB Education published in the District Administration April 201.2
magazine.
Miami Beach is recognized as being "the only City in America to have the IB curriculum
throughout all of its schools — and very much at the' municipality's initiative. The
International Baccalaureate (lB) initiative allows teachers to create a continuum of
access and excellence in education, giving students the tools they need to succeed
academically at an early age. Implementation of the IB citywide allows schools the
flexibility to take advantage of the richness of their student base and the learning
opportunities available within our City
District Administration (DA) is the most widely received and regularly read publication for
K -12 district -level school leaders nationwide. DA provides cutting -edge coverage of
education technology, news, curriculum, policy, finance, profiles and more to this
exclusive audience across print,. digital and in- person event platforms.
We have made excellent progress to date in the implementation of the various
components of our Education Compact and continue discussions with-City schools as
we strive to meet the educational needs of our children. Information is available on our
City's website.on the Education Tab.
Should you have any questions, or need additional information, - please feel free to
contact me.
JMG /LDk
Attachment
Widening Participation to an International Baccalaureate Education District Administrati... Page l of 6
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Wed, 0312112012 - 2: 38pm Feature 1
Widening Participation to an International
Baccalaureate Education
A new IB Career- related Certificate program will pair academic
rigor and international focus with technical training.
By: Ed Finkel `
District Administration, April. 2012
The global economy demands
globally educated workers and
citizens. About 1,300 schools in the
United States —and a total of about <'��+
3,200 in 141 countries worldwide — .;
have turned to the International ta nal Bic cal?u�� ^ �te s c�r.�:��er�,Certirtaie
Baccalaureate (IB) curriculum as
their ticket to educating students
who are worldly -wise.
"Globalization is costing jobs and,
really, the American dream, "says
Stephen Spahn, chancellor of The
Dwight School in Manhattan, which`*. r "
in 2007 became the first school in
tt i'
the United States to offer the IB .
curriculum from pre -K through.
grade 12. "How are you going to
create people who remain
competitive at all levels. of society? It
P �'
is equal opportunity that's at stake Students in the IBCC program at Roosevelt High School
here." in the Minneapolis Public Schools take part in the Open
House lastfall, part of the eighth grade recruitment
But only 25 or 30 percent of process. They explain the programs for prospective
students in IB World Schools are students and parents.
taking the program. "The diploma program is not for all," says Jeffrey Beard, director-
general of the IB.
In September, however, IB will add a fourth curricular option aimed at those who don't
feel academically prepared to enter the diploma program and don't necessarily plan to
attend a four -year college. This International Baccalaureate Career - related Certificate
(IBCC) program, which will pair some of the same academic rigor and international
focus with technical skills training for juniors and seniors, has been in pilot phase for
the past several years.
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The pilot schools include Binghamton
High School in the Binghamton City
(N.Y.) School District; Benjamin H.
Hardaway High School of the Muscogee
County (Ga.) School District; Granite Bay °°-
High School of the Roseville Joint Union'` '
High School District in Granite Bay, Calif.;
Western Hills High School of the Fort
Worth Independent School District in
Benbrook, Texas; Patrick Henry Senior
High School and Roosevelt High School in
Minneapolis Public Schools; Poudre High —
School of the Poudre School District in Ft . Minneapolis Public Schools'students study the
Collins, Colo.; and Oconomowoc High. brain in the Teach the Team Brain project, in
School of the Oconomowoc (Wis.) Area which they work in groups in part to teach
School District. each other about the brain and create a 3D
model of an aspect of the brain.
About loo more schools in the U.S. have
applied to follow in the path of these pilot schools this fall, when the program launches.
"This increases student access," says Albert Penna, principal at - Binghamton High,
which in 1996 became the third public high school in the United States to adopt the IB
diploma program. "[IBCC] blends very nicely the academic, international and career
pathways."
Big Future for IBCC
Spahn of The Dwight School believes that IBCC eventually will dwarf the regular IB
program. "Whereas you might have 500,000 students doing the diploma program in
the United States, I see 5 to 10 million students doing the IBCC," he says. "Every school
has kids who are passionate about digital photography, computer applications, making
films —where we are capturing their interest so they have a career. This is a step that is
really critical for America."
IBCC differs from typical vocational - technical
education in several ways, Spahn says. First, an
early course called "Approaches to Learning"
instills in students a sense of how each academic
discipline builds their knowledge. "You are
skilled at beginning to integrate knowledge from
f- different resources. No vocational program does
-.� that," Spahn says.
_ Secondly, each student must complete a career
project —a sort of practical "mini- thesis " — guided
Binghamton (N.Y.) High School by a mentor. "You're getting an individualized
juniors, left, in Approaches to approach to work on a project," Spahn says. "It's
Learning,, a key IBCC class, ask FEMA
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representatives, facing the camera, going to be, `I'm actually going to redesign and
about contaminants that have reengineer an engine,' which is different from, `I
exacerbated flood clean -up in worked in an automotive workshop.' You learn to
Binghamton. innovate."
Thirdly, Spahn cites the foreign language requirement for both years, and lastly, a
requirement that students take a concentration of academically rigorous coursework in
an area that interests them. For example, a Mexican - American student might want to
refine his or her use of the Spanish language. "That's meant to tap into the spark of
genius," Spahn says. "Everybody has something they're good at. We call it personalized
learning."
Final grades in IBCC courses are based heavily on how those projects are constructed
and presented. "They're forced to construct something and show how they've done the
research," Beard says.
History of IB
Founded in 1968 in Geneva, Switzerland, the IB traditionally has consisted of three
programs —a primary years program for students aged 3 to 12, a middle years program
for those aged 11 to 16, and a diploma program for those aged 16 to 19. The curriculum
emphasizes teamwork, critical thinking skills, and cultural and linguistic fluency, and it
encourages students to think about issues from different points of view.
"The teacher will ask leading questions: Why is
this important? Why do you think this way?
Students are forced to articulate," says Beard.
Rather than lecture, teachers use discussion and
writing assignments to pull out concepts. "It's
`explain, define, compare and contrast, "' he adds.
"The skills they pick up, as a result, are at a much
higher level."
The IB curriculum is based on a "hexagon" of
academic areas — language acquisition, language
and literature, individuals and societies, Binghamton High School juniors in
mathematics and computer science, upstate New York use a whiteboard to
experimental sciences, and the arts. Those who study ways to alleviate future N.Y.
progress through the diploma program must flood damage.
complete an extended essay based on in -depth
study of one of their subjects, examine different ways of knowing (such as perception or
emotion) and different kinds of knowledge (like scientific or artistic), and undertake a
service task outside the classroom.
Spahn remembers asking Alec Peterson, the first director general of IB, what makes a
great education. "He said very simply, `If you drop a person anywhere in the world, can
they thrive ? "'
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'Beard believes the IB program meets Peterson's criteria. "Increasingly, the call is' for
students who can understand the world, understand other cultures, speak different
languages, have the ability to relate "to other cultures," he says. "That demand happens
to line up very well with what we promote automatically: teamwork; cultural skills,
critical- thinking skills;
1
Initially developed for private international schools aimed at the children of diplomats,
IB has become increasingly public- school- focused: 95 percent of current IB World
Schools in the United States are public. "The notion that International Baccalaureate is
for private schools, elite schools, is false,." Beard says. "We are now primarily in public
schools.
Miami: Beach, Fla., has be'come
possibly the only city in of .
America to have the IB
curriculum throughout, all of 1ss2
g f A group of international school
.1966-
its schools —and very'mueh "at 1 teaclu rs worldwrdP led initially 4
a h teachers at the International
Alec Petersen M
the munici ality s initiative. Y e a named th
P `y School of Geneva, cspatesthe
Although the City is not IS oiplanta Programme.for high director•genorai:
school students,
officially responsible for 1968
education, Miami Beach drew The first official trial examinations,
up a compact with massive or student practice exams that
1977 helpteacnersassesssfndent
Miami – Dade County Public the IS opens its first of four preparaj +mess, are held.
Schools to mplement-IB with reglonal otfices —IB Norte L
America, in Now York works
a $500,000 infusion from the with schoglsin the United States, 1978
"'..City t0 Support teacher the Caribbean and Canada. The Africa Europe and Middle 1
East regional office opens in
training• ,. Sar iasos London. -
# ,a
Universities 19$2 "
" '
We are an international city,
recognize d,e'IB
diploma cattle The IS establishes IS Latin America
through the eifprts in Buenos Aires and lBAsfa •Pacific
and we need to have an ..
` f Petersan,directar m Singapore.
o
international educational " 3 of one beet. of .ry
system 'says Leslie Rosenfeld, EducauanStudlss
at Oxford University, E ,
educational liaison.for IB with and r 1994
'
Miami Beach which has "six ' and public .leaders. The IS adds the Middle
Years Programme (MyP),
"'cuff far students
schools. "If you speak to _.Y 1997 _
Thu IB it ddsthe PrunaryYears age ft to 16.-
me of'the community Programme JHP ?far students < " .
about Miami Beach High t ago 3 to) 1. IS Africa, Europe and
Middle East settles in Geneva
School, its no longer perceived r b
as, `I. -have no choice [but to g0
there].' It's a viable and 2006 2006
' r the oneal 2008
attractive option. It's a s r g October 28 mark Sdpye3rssnm
Competitive option.
he offigial lotiriding of the R Tl e
IS Be. of favernors celubrates ill ,
IBCC Ready.to.Roll Out Atlanta with n lecture and gala dinner.
j
2012
Binghamton 'High School has The iBCC program is horn.
seen a number of benefits to
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date from IBCC. Average daily student attendance has risen to 93 percent from around
70 percent before the program was implemented. With approximately 70 percent of
students in any given year on free or reduced lunch, Binghamton nevertheless sends
more than 90 percent of its students to two- and four -year colleges or into the military,
Penna says. Currently, the school has 1,600 students; 52 are doing the diploma
program, 42 are doing IBCC, and more than Soo are taking individual IB courses.
Students are required to take at least'three courses in their career core for IBCC,
courses that Binghamton has developed in partnership with the Clifton Park, N.Y.-
based career - preparation. program Project Lead the Way.
A 15- year -old organization that has placed hands -on, engineering- oriented programs in
more than 4,2oo schools, Project Lead the Way has been impressed with how
seamlessly and intentionally the three IBCC schools with which it has partnered have
been able to fuse those hands -on programs with the schools' corresponding academic
subjects, says Mark Schroll, director of strategic partnerships.
For example, he says, "If you're solving for `X' in an algebra course, then you walk into
engineering and use those kinds of thought processes to design a circuit. Teachers don't
have time to show the relevance in math class. They love Project Lead the Way because
kids say, `Oh, that's what you use it for!"'
In schools that don't offer IBCC, "All we can do is recommend that students take these
classes that correspond; that doesn't mean it happens by requirement. It happens if it
can," Schroll adds. "IBCC ensures that kids will get this wonderful mix of core
academics and a place to apply those academics."
Although career preparation is the focus in IBCC, students are also required to take a
foreign language, take courses that develop teamwork and analytical skills, and
participate in public service projects. "It's where the local curriculum meets the global,"
Penna says. "It also prepares students very well for 21st- century learning skills; for
them to be internationally minded, respecting the opinions of others. If we're looking at .
the cognitive skill sets of students, their ability to do research, to analyze, to
communicate, to have confidence and be able to present— they're doing PowerPoint,
they're being conversant with global literature, they're reading The New York Times.
It's not a narrow band of technical skill."
The program attracts students who want a viable career pathway. "Every public school
in the nation has cohorts of kids who are not necessarily Cornells, or Harvards, or
Dartmouths, but these are good kids," says Penna. "They want to be anchored in a solid
'foundation."
"Sometimes our kids start out thinking they're not ready for Harvard or someplace like
that," says Robert Gazda, director of IBCC at Binghamton. "Sometimes, over two years,
they start thinking, `Yes I can. Yes I can.' Some of them want to end up being
electricians; some, of them want to be electrical engineers. [IBCC] provides them an
opportunity to really find out what [ambitions] they have."
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I -
Binghamton has been refining its program during the
past.three years with input from local community
colleges and businesses like Lockheed Martin, Gazda
says. "They are aware that students are coming out of
this that [they] may want to hire someday," he says. In
Minneapolis, Roosevelt High School.began IBCC in
2008 -20og, and Patrick Henry Senior High followed in
2010 -2011. Both had strong tech education programs
with an emphasis on health careers, and IBCC has
Jeffrey Beard, middle, named infused skills like cultural and linguistic competency to
the director- general of1B in better serve growing immigrant. populations in the Twin
2006, celebrates 40 years of
IB in 2008. Cities area, says Paula Palmer, program coordinator for
International Baccalaureate and College in the Schools.
Minneapolis has the IB diploma program already in six of its seven high schools,'and
IBCC has broadened its reach. "It has cast a wide net for the IB philosophy and vision
by bringing in career tech ed kids, "Palmer says. "It bridged the best of both programs.
It's brought more academic rigor into career tech ed, and it's brought different kinds of .
kids into the IB world."
The tech students have been prompted to think more deeply about the mechanical skills
they're learning and their potential applications. "It opens up their minds to think
differently about their field," -Palmer says. "Just because they can build it, should they?
That's the most powerful outcome of this. It's taking their technical skills to a new level
of awareness."
At last year's graduation in Binghamton, IBCC students. wowed potential employers
with that awareness. "People from the business world were saying, `I can't believe these
kids -how they talk, how they think. I'll take anybody who comes out of this school,'"
recalls Beard. "We think it's going to be as popular as the diploma program over the
years.
Ed Finkel is a contributing writer for District Administration.
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