Schools
Three County Schools Excel With IB Designation
"There are few school systems anywhere that are doing what we are with our IB program," said program coordinator Mary Austin.
Three elementary schools across Anne Arundel earned the top designation among International Baccalaureate schools as IB World Schools.
Germantown, Manor View and Southgate elementary schools entered the IB program at the start of the 2011 school year. Since then, each school raised standards and implemented worldwide philosophies and curriculum to achieve the global designation.
The International Baccalaureate (IB) (PYP) is a curriculum model aimed at teaching students the skills needed to become lifelong learners on a global stage, according to Mary Austin, the school system’s coordinator for the IB program.
"It completes the cycle for students and families in our county to experience the IB curriculum from prekindergarten through 12th grade,” said Austin. “There are few school systems anywhere that are doing what we are with our IB program, and the accolades we have received are a testament to the incredible work of the employees at our schools.”
Austin has said implementing the program could help eliminate achievement gaps in elementary schools. Among the requirements for IB schools at the elementary level are learning a second language.
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