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The IB Curriculum Model (picture from the International School of Estonia)
Eduardo D.
In August 2023, the American International School of Guangzhou (AISG) introduced the long-awaited Middle Years Programme (MYP) in grades six through ten. Although it required extensive preparation from the school and demands significantly more effort from both teachers and students, the MYP aims to encourage students to connect their classroom learning with real-world experiences, while also preparing them for the transition to the IB Diploma Programme.
The months following the rollout were marked by confusion; students and teachers experienced new grading systems, course names, rubrics, and expectations.
The MYP was implemented in the 2023 school year but required rigorous preparation to ensure that the students would be as well-prepared as possible by the rollout date. According to AISG MYP Coordinator Mr. Emmerink, the initial decisions to incorporate the curriculum were made during the 2020-2021 school year.
Although the IB was pushing for verification fast, AISG postponed the rollout. “We chose to give ourselves extra time to implement it well,” explains Emmerink, “[providing Professional Development] to teachers during the first two years (that were mostly online) because China was still restricting travel.”
Eventually, on August 9th, students in grades 6 through 10, as well as teachers, walked onto the Science Park campus, deeply anticipating this new change’s impact. Today, students vividly recall their feelings about this day and the weeks that followed. Perhaps some things didn’t go as planned.
Laura H. and Eddie L. were then-tenth graders at AISG. Laura reflects, “Students and teachers were often confused about rubrics and changes to the curriculum, and I think that the school could have better prepared us by explaining [these changes] more thoroughly and formally.”
Eddie clarifies that the confusion wasn’t limited to his peers; teachers were also quite puzzled about what to do.
“There were issues of some teachers not knowing what exactly to teach because they didn’t know what was going on with the new rubrics and units,” he added.
On the other side of the faculty-student curtain, Emmerink acknowledges that this change made teachers’ work much harder, “especially because a lot of implementing work needed to be done… [such as] curriculum work that most students [didn’t] necessarily see on a daily basis.”
He elaborated that teachers now have to adhere to MYP guidelines and philosophy, meaning assessments needed to be rewritten and units had to be re-structured to consider elements of the MYP philosophy such as global context, key concepts, and related concepts.
At the same time, students struggled to measure their own academic performance, as Laura explains, “I was used to receiving relatively high grades, but after the transition to MYP, I found myself receiving grades as low as 4s.”
But for others, it wasn’t just the grading system that shook them, but rather the difference in expectation the entire curriculum brought for students.
“One of the biggest challenges I faced was adjusting to the MYP standards. Initially, I didn’t like how the MYP worked,” explains Eddie.
However, the community persevered through the transition. Emmerink shares, “It [was] challenging, but it [was] challenging in a good way because it [made] teachers think about what they’re teaching and why they’re teaching it… [It makes] them more reflective of what they do and why.”
One year later, the initial uncertainty has given way to students appreciating the curriculum’s focus on reflection, growth, and holistic development across all subjects while also recognizing how it has better prepared them for the IB Diploma Programme.
Eddie notes that although the transition was difficult, there was light at the end of the tunnel: “Later on, the school was able to adjust and formulate clearer communications which helped out.”
Laura added that appreciating the differences between the old and new was what helped her persevere through this change: “Ultimately, the only way to overcome this challenge was to try and understand that there is a difference between the two types of grades… at times the lower grades would demotivate me, but overall, I believe that it taught me the importance of growth.”
Eddie and Laura are now through their first months of the infamous IB Diploma Program, and they credit their MYP experience as crucial for their smooth transition into the challenging expectations of the IB curriculum.
Laura shares, “The stricter grading of MYP really prepared me for the high standards IB has for their students.”
Eddie adds to that thought, emphasizing the importance of reflection: “MYP taught me how to reflect on my own work, which has been really valuable in IBDP. I often remind myself that I can improve in various areas, and that mindset has helped me solve a lot of problems this year.”
As we begin our 2024-25 school year at AISG – our second with the curriculum – new students like ninth graders JC F. and Rashuia K. are attracted by the school’s incorporation of the MYP and share what they like about it at AISG.
JC and Rashulia are students with previous experience with the MYP. When asked how they felt about the curriculum at AISG, JC shared that the MYP improved his want to study as he also learned several vital time management skills.
In addition, Rashulia recognizes more beneficial differences between the MYP and other curriculums: “the biggest difference… [of the] MYP program is that MYP program leans toward [the] students’ whole study progress, encouraging students to have the connections with their future selves and to have the student themselves… develop.”
Lastly, Eva L. and Audrey L. are 9th and 10th graders at AISG who underwent the change and are still under the MYP curriculum. While acknowledging their rocky start, there has been an evident shift in their feelings about the curriculum.
For instance, while the rubrics of the new curriculum were previously the source of frustration and confusion, they are now viewed with a fresh perspective.
Eva begins by praising the curriculum: “I think the four different criteria make it very easy for me to understand how I am being graded. It’s really organized… [and] it impacted my learning a lot as I was able to understand how I am being graded more clearly, and so I can achieve to the best of my ability. It also taught me how to adapt to new learning structures and systems.”
Finally, Audrey shares her perspective as a 10th grade navigating the well-known MYP Personal Project, which strives to connect the student’s learning with their own passions and interests: “The MYP personal project… gives us opportunities to research and do what we are passionate about, I like that it is free and there is never a specific time where we need to complete work.”
Moving forward, Emmerink hopes that AISG will continue to foster a learning environment, hoping students learn that “what [they] do in school is not just beneficial for school; it also has a big impact on the world.”
As the years progress and AISG works to become an IB World School, the implementation of the MYP at AISG will continue to be monitored closely. Still, there seems to be a continuous trend of embracement and understanding of its positive implications among students. Here’s what we know for sure: the MYP’s long-term effect on learning and personal growth will undoubtedly shape the future of education within AISG.
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