Middle Years Programme
Our Middle Year Programme (MYP) in the Bilingual IB Pogramme follows the International Baccalaureate (IB) framework and the Swedish National Curriculum (Lgr22). These classes are taught both in English and Swedish, providing an invaluable opportunity for pupils to learn in a bilingual context.
The Middle Year Programme was authorized by the IB organization in 2017.
Teaching and learning in the MYP
Being an IB world school means that it is our aim to educate for life. Our ambition is to create internationally minded and knowledgeable citizens. We know that our students get a good start for higher education, whether it be a Swedish gymnasium, the IB Diploma program or a college/high school somewhere else in the world. Many come back to visit providing us with positive feedback regarding the success of our goals.
MYP at Vasa International caters for students aged from 12 to 16, and encourages pupils to make practical connections between their studies and the real world. It includes eight primary subject areas: language acquisition, language and literature, individuals and societies, sciences, maths, arts, physical and health education, and design.
Students in years four and five select six of these eight subject areas. In addition, students also complete one interdisciplinary unit, which involves at least two subject areas, every year. All MYP students are also required to submit a course work project on a topic of their choice.
According to IB, the “MYP aims to help students develop understanding, their emerging sense of self and responsibility in their community.”
The MYP is taught according to guiding principles such as teaching and learning in context; conceptual understanding; approaches to learning, (ATL); and service as action, through community service.
Teaching and learning in context
Learning is provided context, and connected to students’ own lives and their experience of the world. With the application of global contexts, MYP students are encouraged to develop an understanding of “their common humanity and shared guardianship of the planet” by exploring the following areas:
● Identities and relationships
● Personal and cultural identity
● Orientations in space and time
● Scientific and technical innovation
● Fairness and development
● Globalisation and sustainability
Conceptual understanding
MYP students use concepts to explore issues and ideas of personal, local and global significance, and examine knowledge holistically. The MYP prescribes 16 key interdisciplinary concepts, along with related concepts for each discipline.
Approaches to learning (ATL)
ATL helps students to “learn how to learn”. A common theme to all MYP subject groups, ATL provides a basis for independent learning, and encourages the application of knowledge and skills in previously unfamiliar contexts, thereby encouraging the development and application of students’ social, thinking, research, communication and self-management skills.
Service as action
All IB students are encouraged to be caring members of the community who demonstrate a commitment to service: a desire to positively impact the lives of others and the environment. Students “take action” when they apply what they learn in the classroom – and elsewhere – to everyday life.
Learn more about the MYP on the IB website here.
