The ISB Programme

ISB follows the IB Primary Years Programme (IBPYP) for children from ages 3 to 11.

Primary Years Programme schools share a common philosophy - a commitment to a high quality, and challenging education, where students not only develop their knowledge and skills in the traditional subject areas, but intercultural understanding and respect.

Following a visit from The International Baccalaureate Organization in November 2009, The International School of Bologna has achieved the status of being an authorized IB Primary Years Programme school.

Features of the Programme                                                                                       
The goal of teaching is to improve student learning. To best achieve this for all students, the learning environment at ISB is:

Collaborative                                                                                                     
Emphasis is placed on students learning how to learn. Explicit learning outcomes and the learning process are made transparent to the students. Students and teachers work together to develop goals and strategies to improve learning. Learning often involves group activities focused on skills for leadership, social interaction and problem solving.

Conceptual                                                                                                 
Students are encouraged to engage with significant ideas, providing a context where students can develop conceptual understandings, whilst also acquiring knowledge, skills and attitudes.

Differentiated                                                                                                 
Learning experiences are differentiated to accommodate the range of abilities and learning styles of all students. Teachers use a variety of assessment strategies and tools to provide information about student learning, which is used to inform instruction.           

Inquiry-based
Across all subject areas students are invited to investigate issues through structured and purposeful inquiry. Students are encouraged to; be curious, be inquisitive, ask questions, explore and interact with the environment physically, socially and intellectually. This ensures students are actively engaged in their own learning.                                                                               

Transdisciplinary                                                                                             
Students engage with the curriculum in the traditional subject areas. However, teaching is not always confined to teaching subjects in isolation. Students engage in units of inquiry, where learning requires students to be developing knowledge and skills across a number of subject areas.

For further information about the IB Primary Years Programme, visit http://www.ibo.org