This article interrogates the purpose of the International Baccalaureate (IB), which is becoming an increasingly prominent feature of education systems worldwide. It specifically explores the enduring tensions between claims of a distinctively well-rounded education aimed at the whole person and the more instrumental function of enabling students…

The International Baccalaureate's Middle Years Programme (IBMYP) is designed to support the development of creativity, critical thinking, international-mindedness and values. However, close inspection of the programme's assessment structure suggests that many of the competence-related and dispositional elements of the programme's…

The current study has aimed to compare the objectives, content, teaching-learning process, and evaluation dimensions of the International Baccalaureate Diploma Program (IBDP) Language A1 Course teaching program with those of the teaching programs of high school 12th grade Language and Expression and Turkish Literature courses in relation to…

Most nations now administer standardized tests--for adult job seekers and young students alike--but the Chinese remain the world's preeminent practitioners. The nation's national college entrance exam, known as the "Gaokao", lasts for nine hours across two days. The author has seen the intensity of China's work ethic firsthand as…

The International Baccalaureate was developed in the late 1960s with the purpose of providing international schools with a pre-university curriculum recognized by universities around the world. The educational programmes offered by the International Baccalaureate Organization claim to foster international understanding and an appreciation of the…

With an annual yearly growth rate of 9.3 percent over the last two decades, Advanced Placement courses have become a juggernaut in American high school education. AP courses are routinely perceived as an indicator of educational rigor, and many schools push to enroll low-income or minority students in these courses in the hope of preparing them…

Academic sociologists have recently increased their focus on improving high school sociology. Reform efforts include networking between teachers and universities, improving curriculum, and enhancing teacher training. I propose that this list be expanded to include setting curricular standards. Current trends in educational reform center on…

One indication that the lines between high schools and colleges are blurring is the growth in programs that permit students to earn college credit while still in high school. More than 250 educators and policymakers representing both the K-12 and higher education communities gathered on June 8-9, 2006 to discuss such "accelerated-learning…