Community Corner
North Allegheny Schools Consider Adding IB
Find out 5 things about International Baccalaureate, which is only offered in three other Pittsburgh-area schools.
By Patch Editor Becky Brindle
The North Allegheny School District could become one of the few providers in the Pittsburgh area to offer the International Baccalaureate program.
The idea is being considered in the district's six-year comprehensive plan that will go into effect for the 2014-15 school year.
The cost is estimated at $60,000 annually for three years to train 50 to 60 people to teach and manage the program, according to Pittsburgh Tribune-Review.
Currently in the Pittsburgh area, International Baccalaureate, or IB, is available in the Upper St. Clair School District, at Pittsburgh Public Schools' Barack Obama Academy for International Studies, and at Vincentian Academy, in McCandless, according to the report.
Three IB programs are offered in Upper St. Clair schools—IB Primary Years, IB Middle Years and IB Diploma Programme.
The North Allegheny School District could become one of the few providers in the Pittsburgh area to offer the International Baccalaureate program.
The idea is being considered in the district's six-year comprehensive plan that will go into effect for the 2014-15 school year.
The cost is estimated at $60,000 annually for three years to train 50 to 60 people to teach and manage the program, according to Pittsburgh Tribune-Review.
Currently in the Pittsburgh area, International Baccalaureate, or IB, is available in the Upper St. Clair School District, at Pittsburgh Public Schools' Barack Obama Academy for International Studies, and at Vincentian Academy, in McCandless, according to the report.
Three IB programs are offered in Upper St. Clair schools—IB Primary Years, IB Middle Years and IB Diploma Programme.
Here are five things you may or may not know about IB:
- The International Baccalaureate is an international education foundation headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland.
- IB offers four educational programmes for children aged 3-19.
- The Diploma Programme requires the writing of an independently researched, 4000-word essay.
- All IB diploma students must study the "theory of knowledge," which is designed to give students a broader understanding of the interactions between their different school subjects.
- There are currently 1,441 IB programmes in the United States.
What do you think about adding IB to the North Allegheny School District? Tell us in the comments section below.
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