The International Baccalaureate (IB) was developed to prepare today’s students for tomorrow’s world and promotes international understanding and service. The mission and philosophy of Mackintosh Academy aligns closely with those of the International Baccalaureate (IB) and consequently, after a comprehensive authorization process, we were officially authorized as an IB World School in 2006.
Inquiry-Based Learning
The essence of the IB Programme is structured inquiry. Structured inquiry allows students to build meaning and refine their understanding. It provides a framework for students and teachers to investigate key concepts and enduring understandings in the major disciplines and across disciplines. Students are encouraged not only to experiment, research and find possible answers to important questions, but develop their own questions and lead their own inquiries within the topic being studied. The integrative curriculum creates opportunities for exploration, active learning, and meaningful connections across subject areas.
The IB programme addresses the social, emotional, physical, cultural needs of children, as well as essential academic ones. The IB programme encourages students to think about the world outside of their personal sphere, and to be meaningful contributors and socially responsible citizens within that world.
A key component of all three IB programmes is the Learner Profile. Mackintosh Academy and the IB programmes promote the education of the whole person, emphasizing intellectual, personal, social and emotional growth through all domains of knowledge. The Learner Profile is comprised of a set of ideals that can inspire, motivate, and unite learners. It permeates our teaching, discussions, investigations, and reflections daily as we look for evidence of being an inquirer, knowledgeable, a thinker, caring, a communicator, a risk-taker, principled, reflective, balanced, and open-minded. They are a set of characteristics that every international-minded leader and citizen refines and develops throughout their lifetime.
More information about the International Baccalaureate Program can be found at www.ibo.org
