Big-picture view
INTERNATIONAL BACCALAUREATE PROGRAMS HELP STUDENTS PREP FOR CHALLENGES AHEAD.
When it came time for his eldest daughter to enter middle school, David Dancey and his family were at a crossroads. Should she remain at Toronto’s TMS — the school she had attended since Montessori — or try something new?
“TMS had recently become an IB (International Baccalaureate) accredited school,” he says. “We were concerned that the rigors associated with an IB education may infringe on other aspects of her teenage years.”
Those fears were unfounded, however. “As we researched IB, we really felt it made sense as a continuum from Montessori. The program offers a broad-minded approach to education. It fosters an enjoyment of learning and develops independent learners while ensuring students are not solely focused on academics but also on being good global citizens,” says Dancey.
What’s more, he says, there is accountability. “Both teachers and students are evaluated outside of the school and the country. This helps ensure that education is being delivered and maintained at a particular level rather than being a microcosm of an individual school.”
His daughter flourished as a result of her IB education and it prepared her well for the transition from high school to university this year, Dancey says.
“She was well-equipped to handle the jump in academic expectations because she had already been engaged in university level courses at TMS.” Her younger sister will graduate from TMS in 2020.
Irfan Dhanidina, 20, agrees that an IB education offers a seamless transition to university. Dhanidina is currently a third-year student at Carlton University in Ottawa, studying health science and economics. He is also a graduate of TMS.
“I have witnessed my peers at university struggle because they had no prior exposure to the workload and level of detail required here. I was well-prepared — especially in essay writing, because IB offers a specific writer’s craft course,” he says. “Now, rather than taking a week or two, I can put out an A-plus paper in just two days.”
Managing pressure is another area in which an IB education plays a positive role, adds Dhanidina. “Most of those around me freak out over tests and exams. While I may feel some pressure over these things, it’s about time management and organization, which I worked on in IB. The day before a big exam, I can be sitting in a room watching a movie while others are still studying at five a.m.”
To ensure students think beyond academics, TMS and IB have a CAS (creativity, activity, service) program. Each student must contribute in every component. “It’s like doing volunteer work but on a much bigger scale,” says Dhanidina.
For the service component of the program, Dhanidina volunteered at a tutoring centre for the disadvantaged students of new refugees. “I was working with 12-year-olds who were functioning at half that grade level. It was an eye-opening experience in which I gained an appreciation for what I have and the opportunity I had been afforded with such an elaborate education,” he says.
He founded a writing club for the creativity component that also offered assistance to students who needed help with class projects. When his sister graduated from TMS last year, he and fellow alums created a keepsake book for her class. For the activity element of the CAS program he coached the under-14 ball hockey team and reestablished the school’s golf club.
Learning more about, and stretching himself, through IB led to an ‘aha’ moment for Dhanidina. “I was able to conduct an experiment for my finalyear essay which I don’t believe I could have done elsewhere — testing the effects of therapeutic hypothermia on bacterial replication. TMS provide incubators and I worked with the lab co-ordinators and teachers at the school,” he says. “My essay was reviewed by teachers from around the world and this is what set me in the direction of biotechnology and medical research.”
TMS believes in providing students with opportunities to grow that can be applied to many concepts as they go forward in life, says Kirsten Eastwood, the school’s executive director of community development. “Students gain a real understanding of what is going on globally and learn the value of giving in all forms through hundreds of hours of community service. They have a sense of connectivity, are encouraged to try new things and learn to be reflective as they channel what they love doing into programs to pursue at university,” she says. “And, as IB is recognized at universities around the world there is no limit to where students can apply, including the U.S. and Europe.”
As parents you take a leap of faith when making decisions for your children, says Dancey. “My wife and I feel this has been an excellent fit for our children and our family. What we have seen happen in reality is what the school said would happen. They are earnest educators who want the best for your children, so we believe it is an excellent investment.”
Adds Dhanidina: “At an IB school you will really get the opportunity to watch your child grow. When they graduate they will walk across the stage a whole different person. I became a whole different person — from one who was shy and quiet to one who gained in confidence and found his vocation and a passion for helping others.”
AT AN IB SCHOOL YOU WILL REALLY GET THE OPPORTUNITY TO WATCH YOUR CHILD GROW. WHEN THEY GRADUATE THEY WILL WALK ACROSS THE STAGE A WHOLE DIFFERENT PERSON. I BECAME A WHOLE DIFFERENT PERSON. — IRFAN DHANIDINA, IB GRADUATE
IB IS RECOGNIZED AT UNIVERSITIES AROUND THE WORLD