IB

The Institute of Education Sciences within the U.S. Department of Education awarded the University of Pennsylvania’s graduate school of education with $700,000 in grant money.

The federal Institute of Education Sciences, the main research arm of the U.S. Department of Education, is sponsoring a first-of-its-kind longitudinal study of the International Baccalaureate (IB) program, the popular college-prep curriculum used in schools.

The department will award $11 million in grants to 39 states to help low-income students cover costs associated with the tests.

Amid heightened concern about preparing students for a global economy, the academically demanding International Baccalaureate program is catching on fast in U.S. schools.

The International Baccalaureate program—once known mostly for its challenging high school version—is becoming more and more popular with elementary school parents, according to this Washington Post story. The IB's elementary incarnation, called the Primary Years Programme, is now in 72 U.S. schools. According to the story, parents who choose the program for their children are looking for a more global take on education, along with a challenging curriculum. Education Week looks at the International Baccalaureate program here and explores the reasons why the IB program is getting a boost from the Bush administration's push for improved math and science.

International Baccalaureate—or IB—academic programs are gaining recognition nationwide for their rigorous curricular standards and the high-achieving students the classes draw. The program was created in Switzerland in 1968 to provide a common educational framework that would be recognized worldwide, with a focus on putting learning into an international context and encouraging students to develop their own projects. But in Minnesota, there's a growing furor about the IB program. Last month, two separate congressional district Republican conventions approved resolutions denouncing IB, and the classes were also a divisive issue in last fall's school board race in Minnetonka, Minnesota. Opponents charge that the IB curriculum "teaches global citizenship as a priority over American citizenship," in the words of one detractor. But supporters argue that IB imbues education with creativity. "It's giving big ideas to chew on for an extended period of time...not just jumping from one thing to the next," said Paula Palmer, the Minneapolis coordinator of IB programs. Part of the reason IB is so contentious is the cost: While states chip in a portion of IB funding (about $1 million in Minnesota), schools still cover much of the tab, to the tune of more than $100,000 per year in at least one case. With 519 IB schools already recognized in the United States and other schools lining up to apply, the community-support issue will likely come into sharper focus as planning for the next school year intensifies.

Known for its demanding curriculum and global outlook, the International Baccalaureate is seeking to capitalize on an endorsement from this country’s top elected official, even as it faces a challenge at the grassroots level.

Eighteen parents in the Upper St. Clair, Pa., district have filed a lawsuit in federal court to reverse the school board’s decision to eliminate the International Baccalaureate program.

The International Baccalaureate program is coming to the Philadelphia public schools.

The International Baccalaureate program is becoming increasingly popular. In Supertest, Jay Mathews and Ian Hill elaborate on why the International Baccalaureate program is becoming more influential.

Eight districts in North Carolina will share four new high schools focused on international studies, as the state expands its drive to prepare students for the global marketplace, Gov. Michael F. Easley has announced.

School board members in South St. Paul, Minn., have voted to expand the district’s rigorous International Baccalaureate Diploma Program to the primary and middle school levels.

The International Baccalaureate Organization, a nonprofit venture that provides curriculum programs to schools in 117 countries, is launching its own campaign to help schools in the devastated tsunami zone.

If senior year is for slacking off, counting down until Beach Week, and reveling in the long-awaited privileges that come with reigning atop the high school food chain, somebody forgot to tell Gabe Mandujano.