Approaches to Learning By Nancy Draime Jacksonville High School

IB mission statement  The International Baccalaureate aims to develop inquiring, knowledgeable and caring young people who help to create a better and more peaceful world through intercultural understanding and respect.  To this end the organization works with schools, governments and international organizations to develop challenging programmes of international education and rigorous assessment.  These programmes encourage students across the world to become active, compassionate and lifelong learners who understand that other people, with their differences, can also be right.

What is ATL?  The approaches to learning course emphasizes the development of transferable skills needed to operate successfully in society.  The course focuses on critical and ethical thinking, intercultural understanding and the ability to communicate effectively.  Approaches to learning is a timetabled course and a minimum of 90 hours is expected to be devoted to this course.

ATL “fits” into IB  The aims of approaches to learning are for the student to develop: good intellectual habits practical problem-solving skills self-awareness and an appreciation of identity, individual strengths and individual limitations an appreciation of ethical issues relating to his or her personal, social and work experience an awareness of his or her own perspective as one of many perspectives, and one that has been shaped by contingent cultural factors intercultural awareness the skill of communicating clearly and coherently personal and interpersonal skills for the workplace and beyond the skills of reflection and critical thinking in personal, social and professional situations an understanding that many questions, issues or problems do not always have simple right or wrong answers.

4 Units of ATL  Communication  Personal Development  Thinking  Intercultural Learning NOTE: Aspects of ALL Units will be taught during the 2 year ATL course.

ATL Requirements Community and service  The community and service component is based on the principle of service learning whereby service is a vehicle for new learning that has academic value. It provides students with opportunities to develop new skills and knowledge in real life situations. Students work with community members to undertake service activities that satisfy identified needs; the emphasis is on developing local knowledge, civic responsibility, social aptitude and personal growth.  It is expected that approximately 50 hours outside class time will be devoted to this component of the core.

ATL Requirements Language development  Language development ensures that all IBCC students have access and are exposed to a second language that will increase their understanding of the wider world.  Students are encouraged to begin or extend the study of an additional language that suits their needs, background and context.  Regardless of the DP courses studied, all IBCC students are required to undertake language development in which they must improve their language proficiency in a target language other than their best language.  A minimum of 50 hours is expected to be devoted to language development.

ATL Requirements Reflective project  Through a reflective project students identify, analyse, critically discuss and evaluate an ethical dilemma associated with a particular issue taken from the student’s career-related studies.  The project can be submitted in different formats including an essay, web page or short film.  This work encourages the student to engage in personal inquiry, action and reflection, and to develop strong research and communications skills.  The reflective project is submitted at the end of the course and is an opportunity for the students to draw together the various strands of their studies.  It can be submitted in any of the IB’s working languages (English, French or Spanish). Students should devote approximately 40 hours (in and out of class) to the reflective project.  Concurrency of learning is important in the IBCC.  The core activities should take place throughout the duration of the student’s studies; however, the reflective project is submitted at the end of the two years.  The school is responsible for developing appropriate programmes that will fulfill all the requirements specified in this guide for each component of the core.  It is suggested that a minimum of 230 hours should be set aside for the core over the two years of the IBCC.

Proposed How To’s  Offered to students during their Junior and Senior years at JHS - Starts school year. IBCC approved in March  Taught by Ms. Draime who has a business and marketing background.  Students can use their senior project as a basis for their ATL Reflective Project.  Targets CTE students who are in Health Sciences or Business concentrators.

Sources:  IB Career-related Certificate Core guide Published August 2012, Revised August 2013, Published on behalf of the International Baccalaureate Organization, Cardiff, Wales United Kingdom