International Baccalaureate
International Baccalaureate® (IB) Diploma Program (DP)
The International Baccalaureate® (IB) Diploma Program (DP) provides comprehensive rigorous education with an international perspective for 11th and 12th graders emphasizing analytical thinking, reading and writing skills with an international perspective. Students may choose to pursue the IB diploma or take individual certificates in IB courses. Heritage High School and Loudoun Valley High School are authorized IB World Schools.
Public, private, and home school rising 9th-grade students who are Loudoun County residents and fully registered LCPS students may show interest in registering for the lottery to pursue the IB DP program in December of their 8th-grade year. Students zoned to attend Heritage or Loudoun Valley do not need to submit interest in the lottery. Visit the website for more information.
The Mission of the International Baccalaureate Program®
The International Baccalaureate® aims to develop inquiring, knowledgeable and caring young people who help to create a better and more peaceful world through intercultural understanding and respect.
To this end the organization works with schools, governments and international organizations to develop challenging programs of international education and rigorous assessment.
These programs encourage students across the world to become active, compassionate and lifelong learners who understand that other people, with their differences, can also be right.
IB Learner Profile
The aim of the IB program is to develop internationally minded people who, recognizing their common humanity and shared guardianship of the planet, help to create a better and more peaceful world. IB learners strive to be:
Inquirers
Knowledgeable
Thinkers
Communicators
Principled
Open-minded
Caring
Risk-takers
Balanced
Reflective
For more information, including a video produced by the International Baccalaureate Organization, visit http://www.ibo.org/en/programmes/.
The IB Diploma Program
The IB Diploma program is designed as an academically challenging and balanced program with final assessments that prepare students for success in college and life beyond. The diploma program is a two-year program for juniors and seniors. College credit may also be earned depending on the subject results and the individual university acceptance policies. The IB Diploma Program:
Balances subject breadth and depth and considers the nature of knowledge across disciplines through the unique Theory of Knowledge course,
Encourages international-mindedness starting with a foundation in the students’ own language and culture,
Develops a positive attitude to learning that prepares students for university education,
Requires rigorous external assessments with global standards, and
Emphasizes the development of the whole student – physically, emotionally, intellectually, and ethically.
IB DP Courses in Loudoun County Public Schools
IB DP courses can be offered at two different levels – higher (HL) or standard (SL). Most IB DP courses are two-year sequences with a few exceptions among the SL offerings. IB DP courses offered at individual Loudoun County Public Schools vary slightly.
The IB Diploma and Certificates
Students can elect to seek the IB diploma by successfully completing the following requirements:
One course in each of the six different subject areas with a minimum total score of 24 (out of 45) on the six assessments,
Theory of Knowledge course,
Creativity, Activity, and Service (CAS), and
Extended Essay in an area of interest to the student.
Creativity, Activity, and Service
Creativity, Activity, and Service (CAS) requires that students actively learn from the experience of doing real tasks beyond the classroom. Students can combine all three components or do activities related to each one of them separately. Students are required to reflect upon their activities.Theory of Knowledge (TOK) is a course designed to encourage each student to reflect on the nature of knowledge by critically examining different ways of knowing (perception, emotion, language, and reason) and different kinds of knowledge (scientific, artistic, mathematical, and historical).
The Extended Essay
The extended essay is a requirement for students to engage in independent research through an in-depth study of a question relating to one of the subjects they are studying.
For more information about the IB Diploma Program visit our website at www.lcps.org/IB or visit the IBO website at www.ibo.org/diploma.
Please note that not all IB courses are currently offered at both Heritage and Loudoun Valley High Schools.