Training and Development The principal, coordinator and teachers involved in the PYP are required to undergo initial IBPYP training and commit to ongoing professional development. Advantages of the PYP

• smooth transition from the PYP to the Middle Years Program (years 6-10)

• provides an international curriculum for students

• development of the whole child through the learner profile

• builds on prior knowledge and provides continuity of learning

• encourages all students to take action • provides a framework for intercultural understanding thereby promoting international, peace, harmony and understanding.

For further information about the International Baccalaureate Organisation programmes:

www. ibo.org

How are students assessed? Teachers assess students by selecting or designing methods of assessment appropriate to the learning outcomes they intend to capture. Teachers also take into account the diverse, complicated and sophisticated ways that individual students use to develop and demonstrate their understanding. The prime objective of assessing students’ learning and performance is to give feedback to:

• students—to encourage lifelong learning

• teachers—to support their reflection on what to teach and how to teach it

• Parents—to highlight their child’s learning and development

What is the

International

Baccalaureate

Primary Years

Programme?

Blackwood

Primary School

Insert site

specific photo

Insert site

specific photo

The curriculum framework is further structured around three interrelated questions.

• What do we want to learn? The written curriculum.

• How best will we learn? The taught curriculum.

• How will we know what we have learned? The learned curriculum

The Primary Years Programme is aligned with the Australian Curriculum.

What is the PYP curriculum framework? The curriculum framework consists of five essential elements: concepts, knowledge, skills, attitude, action. The knowledge component is developed through inquiries into six transdisciplinary themes of global significance, supported and balanced by the subject areas.

This is illustrated by programme model below.

What is the IB Primary Years Programme? The International Baccalaureate Primary Years Programme (IBPYP) was developed in 1997. It is an international curriculum framework which is established in schools across the world. IB World schools are continually evaluated and accredited against international standards and practices.

The International Baccalaureate Primary Years Programme is designed for students aged 3 to 12 to foster the development of the whole child. It focuses on the total growth of the developing child, touching hearts as well as minds and encompassing social, physical, emotional and cultural needs in addition to academic development. Learner Profile The aim of all IB programmes is to develop internationally minded people who, recognising their common humanity and shared guardianship of the planet, help to create a better and more peaceful world. The learner profile is a set of personal qualities that IB learners strive to develop in themselves. A community of learners, including students and adults involved in the PYP strive to be: Inquirers, thinkers, communicators and risk takers so that we can be knowledgeable, principled, caring, open minded, balanced and reflective.

Inquiry The PYP curriculum is taught through guided inquiry. Inquiry is the process initiated by the students or the teacher. This process moves the students from their current level of understanding to a new and deeper level of understanding. This can mean exploring, wondering and questioning, making predictions and acting purposefully to see what happens, taking and defending a position and solving problems in a variety of ways. Answers provide a starting point for further study that promotes lifelong learning and taking action. An explicit expectation of the PYP is that successful inquiry will lead to responsible action, initiated by the student as a result of the learning process.

Students engage in 6 units of inquiry each year. These units cover each of the transdisciplinary themes (outer words on the diagram). At the conclusion of each unit of inquiry, staff and children evaluate and celebrate their learning. Curriculum taught at each year level is outlined in a Programme of Inquiry which builds on prior learning and provides continuity of learning in the primary years.

Insert site

specific photo