Lately, a number of middle school children are weighing their options for high school and are presenting to their parents the idea of attending an Inter Baccalaureateschool. Most parents however are not familiar with the IB school program so I interviewed Ryan, a sophomore at Hillsborough High School, to breakdown the IB program in its entirety.

“IB is pretty much just high school with more work and more learning,” said Ryan.

Students in IB have to take four years of foreign language either Spanish or French. In junior and senior years, classes are divided into two categories: HL and SL. HL being higher level and SL being standard level.

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I just came home from a camp this last week and found emails upon emails with one containing a link showing the top 1300 High Schools in the US. Come to find out, East High is ranked #472 on this list. What a shock it was for me to actually find my own high school on this list!

Making such a list not only makes me swell with pride for my school, but also makes me to realize just how good of an education I am getting from East, especially being in the IB program there. According to Newsweek, the schools were ranked by a ratio (that was devised by the man of the name Jay Mathews) that takes the number of AP, IB, and/or Cambridge tests taken by students at the particular school in 2007 and is then divided by the number of graduating seniors. Knowing that East did well enough to make it in the top 50% of this list is amazing! This goes to show also that not only are there smart kids in the IB program, but that those students take AP classes and do well enough to help get East on the list.

I had school pride before I knew this and didn’t think it was possible to have more school spirit, but after finding my own high school on this prestigious list, I couldn’t help but sit here at my computer and smile, having a little celebration. Reading East High on the list made me realize just how important and amazing the education I am getting at East and through the IB program. I am fortunate enough to be at a public school and in such a program as the IB program that cares enough about their students and their education to push them to do well not only in school but also on important tests. Knowing that is what makes my pride spill over!

So for those of you that also found your school amongst the other schools ranked, I hope you reacted in such a way as I did. Because knowing you get an education that’s good enough to be ranked with other schools across the nation is a pretty big deal!

So a few times, I have mentioned the IB program or its more formal name: The International Baccalaureate Program (or Programme if you want to go with proper English!) and some of you are probably wondering what exactly this program is.

IB is an accelerated program that pushes you to your absolute limits in the academic sense. We also joke that it pushes us to the brink of insanity! But of course, depending on the person, this could describe any program that one finds challenging. Only select schools have the IB program incorporated within their school while other schools are completely IB-focused.

First though, you have to be accepted. The application process to become an IB student includes: writing a personal essay, getting middle school teacher recommendations, filling out paperwork, and you can even shadow an IB student for a day, giving you the feel of IB and the classes. Then after doing all the paperwork and other various tasks, you take the admissions exam (which could be considered to be along the same lines as an SAT or ACT, your acceptance practically depends on this test). After the exam, you are notified if you are going to be called in to interview or not. At the interview, you sit down with either an IB teacher or administrator and discuss whether or not IB is right for you, whether or not you are ready for IB, etc. etc. and after your interview you get to sign a paper saying you will be a part of the IB program (a time many of us look back on and say we sold our soul!).

Then comes the actual program. Your Freshman and Sophomore years are considered your years in the “Pre-IB” program. Two years designed to prep you for the actual IB program. Once you are a Junior, the fun begins! Course load goes up, difficulty of classes goes up, and you begin your testing to determine whether or not you receive your diploma. There are two types of tests: SL and HL. SL (or Standard Level) means you take the Pre-IB course then one year of the actual IB course (Junior/Senior year) and test. HL is the same except you take the IB class both your Junior and Senior year. While you need a certain amount of points to receive your diploma, there are also many other small rules you have to remember such as your 3 HLs must combine for a total of 12 points.These small rules are what normally keep a diploma candidate from receiving his/her diploma.

So if you are a student who enjoys being pushed academically, give the IB program a try! If you decide its not for you, you can simply drop out anytime you wish. Many drop it the end of their freshman year of some where during the Sophomore year simply because they decide its not for them. Although, the program is excellent and I feel I am prepared for college, even without my Senior year!