International Baccalaureate Career Program

Owen J. Roberts High School (OJRHS) is an International Baccalaureate World School for the Career-related Program.  IB World Schools are schools that share a common philosophy – a commitment to high quality, challenging, international education that Owen J. Roberts believes is important for our students.  The IBCP is a two-year program beginning in a student’s junior year.  Students enroll in the program in the winter of their sophomore year. Students who enroll in the program take an intensive, highly structured curriculum in their junior and senior years. More information about the International Baccalaureate organization and the IBCP program is available at www.ibo.org.   Information about the IBCP at OJR can be found on the OJRHS website. This section of the Program of Studies describes the courses that will be offered for the IBCP at OJRHS.

The International Baccalaureate Career Program (IBCP)

Career-related program students will access a broad, flexible education which will help develop knowledge, practical training, intellectual engagement, and international-mindedness, while also developing higher-order cognitive skills and academic behaviors that enhance their employability and expand their world view. (Paraphrased from Dr. Siva Kumari, IB Director General 2014).   The IBCP at OJRHS will prepare students for flexibility and mobility in a range of Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Math (STEAM) careers, Navy Junior Reserve Officers Training Corps (NJROTC), Computer Science and Business as well as enhance their continuing education at post-secondary schools.  The mix of career-related courses combined with the knowledge and skills obtained from studying Diploma Program courses will broaden the student’s experience base and enhance their access to higher education institutions and training programs.

Students can either take the IBCP two-year program or take individual IB courses as electives or to fulfill other graduation requirements. Each course has a culminating exam that can be used to earn advanced placement and or credit at colleges and universities.

Students who complete all of the requirements of the IBCP program at OJRHS will receive an IBCP Certificate in addition to earning their OJRHS diploma.  Our IBCP graduates have gone on to a variety of 4 year colleges and universities as well as career and technical training institutions.

IBCP Requirements

There are three required components the IBCP Program at OJRHS:  IB Diploma Courses, the IB Core Course and the Career Related options described below.  The organization of the program is shown on the chart below. Descriptions of each of the main components of the program are described below the chart.

1.   IB Diploma Courses                Minimum of 3 credits over 2 courses

Completion of at least two Diploma Program courses for a minimum of 3 credits over 2 years. These courses are weighted at the AP/IB level. Students need to take at least one of the two courses over a two-year period (junior and senior year).

1.   IBCP Core                                  2 credits over 2 years

Completion of the IBCP Core Class over 2 years. This is also referred to as the Personal and Professional Skills (PPS) course and includes organizational time for the three components of the Core.  This course carries honors weight.  All components of the Core are scheduled as a single class, taken two periods a cycle for two consecutive years.  The course is scheduled as a hybrid course as there is independent work to be completed for each of the 4 core components, which is monitored and evaluated throughout the two-year period.  A full description of the IBCP Core components can be found below. These include:

1.          Personal and Professional Skills Course.

2.          Reflective Project (submitted senior year)

3.          Service Learning and Portfolio (required 50 hours with mentor supervision)

4.          Language Portfolio, including concurrent foreign language development (minimum of 50 hours, submitted senior year).

1.   OJR IB Career Area Courses   2 credits

Completion of at least two credits worth of career-related courses from OJRHS’s Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Math (STEAM) Career electives, NJROTC Program or Computer Information Systems and Business programs. Biology is a prerequisite to the Life Sciences course option.  Course offerings in each option are presented below:

STEAM Engineering

1.       Introduction to Engineering (CP and Honors level)  1 credit—Dual Enrollment With Montgomery County CC

2.       Principles of Engineering (CP and Honors level)  1 credit

3.       Engineering and Design  (CP and Honors level) 1 credit

4.       Computer Aided Drafting and Design (CP and Honors level) 0.5 credit

5.       Architectural Engineering and Design (CP and Honors level)  0.5 credit

6.       Mechanical Engineering And Design (CP and Honors level)  0.5 credit

7.       Product Engineering and Design (CP and Honors level)  0.5 credit

The above 7 courses can be found in the Technology Education section.

STEAM Life Sciences

1.       Ecology: Temperate and Tropical Systems (CP and Honors level) 1 credit

2.       Genetics (CP and Honors level) 1 credit—Dual Enrollment with Delaware Valley University

3.       Biotechnology (CP and Honors level) 1 credit

4.       Anatomy & Physiology (Honors level)- 1 credit

5.       Allied Health (Honors level) – 1 credit-  Dual Enrollment with Immaculata University

The first 4 courses can be found in the Science section.  Allied Health can be found here.

Computer and Information Systems and Business

1.       AP Computer Science A (AP level, Dual Enrolled with Montgomery County CC)  1 credit

2.       AP Computer Principles (AP level)  1 credit

3.       Accounting 2 (H level) 0.5 credits

4.       Accounting 3 (H level) 1 credit

5.       Business Law (CP level) 0.5 credits

6.       Entrepreneurship (H level) 1 credit

7.       Marketing Management (CP level) 1 credit

These courses can be found in the following locations: Mathematics (AP Computer Science classes) and Business (Business courses).

NJROTC

1.   Naval Science 1 (CP level)  1 credit

2.   Naval Science 2 (CP level)  1 credit

3.   Naval Science 3 (CP level)  1 credit

4.   Naval Science 4 (CP and Honors level)  1 credit

The above 4 courses can be found in the NJROTC section.

Information for Rising Juniors

Students interested in the IBCP program should express interest to their school counselor and obtain additional information regarding the requirements and benefits of the program.  Owen J. Roberts has an IBCP Coordinator who will review the program with interested students who can then apply for the program.  Students apply to the program in December of their sophomore year. The application process is not intended to discourage students from entering IBCP, but to ensure incoming students and families understand the expectations and intent of the IBCP program, to assess each candidate’s level of preparation for the program and to ensure that all components of the program are able to be scheduled over the junior and senior year.  Students entering into the IBCP are strongly encouraged to consult the IBCP Coordinator regarding their course selections.  Suggested course planning schedules are available to assist the student in planning so that all of the IBCP requirements and OJRHS graduation requirements are met.  Students who have applied and have been accepted into the OJRHS IBCP program will be given priority during scheduling of IB Diploma courses. 

STEAM Engineering:  Students desiring to take STEAM Engineering courses during their junior and senior year should have completed two years of high school math, both 9th and 10th grade science, social studies, and English.

STEAM Life Sciences:  Students desiring to take STEAM Life Sciences courses during their junior and senior year should have completed two years of high school math, both 9th grade science and Biology, social studies, and English.

Computer and Information Systems (CIS) and Business:  Students desiring to take STEAM CIS and Business courses during their junior and senior year should have completed two years of high school math, both 9th and 10th grade science, social studies, and English.

NJROTC:  Students desiring to take NJROTC classes during their junior and senior year as part of the IBCP should consult with our NJROTC commander and have completed one year of NJROTC coursework as a prerequisite.

If students still need to take Health 2 in their junior year they should strongly consider taking Online Health or taking Health 2 in the summer prior to their junior year to allow room in their schedule for possible electives or additional academic courses.

Information for rising 10th and 11th graders

Freshman and sophomores interested in IB should consider taking graduation requirements such as Health 1 and 2 before their junior year to allow more flexibility in scheduling for their junior and senior years.  Options include Online Health 1 and 2 and taking one or both of these classes over the summer.  Students wanting to enter Life Sciences will need to have completed a biology class by the end of 10th grade.

IB Diploma Courses

IB LANGUAGE & LITERATURE HL * YEAR 1                   

Grade(s): 11                           Credit(s): 1.0                      Weight: AP/IB/DE              

Length: Year                         

Traditional: 01920               Periods/cycle: 5

The Language A: Language and Literature course is a two-year course that introduces the critical study and interpretation of written and spoken texts from a wide range of literary and non-literary genres. The formal analysis of texts is supplemented by awareness that meaning is not fixed but can change in respect to contexts of production and consumption.

In the language A: language and literature course students will learn about the complex and dynamic nature of language and explore both its practical and aesthetic dimensions. They will explore the crucial role language plays in communication, reflecting experience and shaping the world. Students will also learn about their own roles as producers of language and develop their productive skills. Throughout the course, students will explore the various ways in which language choices, text types, literary forms and contextual elements all effect meaning. 

* Literature selections, assessments, and examination requirements for the HL necessitate the two-year offering.

IB LANGUAGE & LITERATURE HL * YEAR 2                     

Grade(s): 12                           Credit(s): 1.0                      Weight: AP/IB/DE            

Length: Year                          Fee: IB Exam fee

Prerequisite:  IB Language & Literature HL Year 1

Traditional: 01930               Periods/cycle: 5

The Language A: Language and Literature is a two-year course that introduces the critical study and interpretation of written and spoken texts from a wide range of literary and non-literary genres. The formal analysis of texts is supplemented by awareness that meaning is not fixed but can change in respect to contexts of production and consumption.  

Through close analysis of various text types and literary forms, students will consider their own interpretations, as well as the critical perspectives of others, to explore how such positions are shaped by cultural belief systems and to negotiate meanings for texts. Students will engage in activities that involve them in the process of production and help shape their critical awareness of how texts and their associated visual and audio elements work together to influence the audience/reader and how audiences/readers open up the possibilities of texts. With its focus on a wide variety of communicative acts, the course is meant to develop sensitivity to the foundational nature, and pervasive influence, of language in the world at large.

* Literature selections, assessments, and examination requirements for the HL necessitate the two-year offering.

IB LITERATURE & PERFORMANCE SL                

Grade(s): 11-12                     Credit(s): 1.0                      Weight: AP/IB/DE              

Length: Year                          Fee: IB Exam fee

Prerequisite:  CP or Honors English 10 or 11 or AP English Language & Composition

Traditional: 01940               Periods/cycle: 5

The IB DP Literature and Performance course is an interdisciplinary synthesis of the Language A and Theatre courses. It incorporates essential elements of literature and performance and aims to explore the dynamic relationship between the two. At the heart of the course is an interaction between (i) a conventional literary emphasis on close reading, critical writing and discussion and (ii) the practical, aesthetic and symbolic elements of performance. A distinctive outcome of this synthesis is the performance of a piece transformed from poetry or prose. In this exciting, creative process text is viewed from different angles in a way that goes beyond what is characteristic of either literary or theatre studies as single disciplines. The course as whole examines literary and dramatic texts and seeks to develop intellect, imagination and creativity. It encourages intercultural awareness through a study of texts from more than one culture.

IB MATHEMATICS: APPLICATIONS & INTERPRETATION SL *YEAR 1             

Grade(s): 11                           Credit(s): 1.0                      Weight: AP/IB/DE              

Length: Year

Prerequisite:  CP Algebra 2 or H Algebra 2.

Traditional: 02950               Periods/cycle: 5

This course caters to students who already possess knowledge of basic mathematical concepts and who are equipped with the skills needed to apply simple mathematical techniques correctly. This course focuses on topics that are needed to prepare students for calculus and statistic topics in an application to the real-world, such as algebraic concepts and theories, expansion on functions, problems involving exponential and logarithmic functions, trigonometry, statistics and sequences. It meets the needs of students whose interest in mathematics is more practical than theoretical but yet seek challenging content. A graphing calculator is required for this class.

* The requirements of this course necessitate a two-year offering.

IB MATHEMATICS:   APPLICATIONS &   INTERPRETATION SL  *YEAR 2        

Grade(s): 12                                 Credit(s): 1.0                Weight: AP/IB/DE              

Length: Year                          Fee: IB Exam fee

Prerequisite:  IB Mathematics & Interpretation SL Year 1

Traditional: 02960               Periods/cycle: 5

This course is a continuation of IB Mathematics: Applications and Interpretation SL Year 1. The course caters to students who already possess knowledge of basic mathematical concepts, and who are equipped with the skills needed to apply simple mathematical techniques correctly. This course will focus on topics that are needed to prepare students for calculus and statistic topics in an application to the real-world, such as algebraic concepts and theories, expansion on functions and equations involving exponential and logarithmic equations, trigonometry, and the unit circle, statistics and sequences. It is intended to meet the needs of students whose interest in mathematics is more practical than theoretical but seek more challenging content. This course is the second year of the two-year course and will focus more on the Calculus and Statistic components in application to the real-world. A graphing calculator is required for this class.

* The requirements of this course necessitate a two-year offering.

IB BUSNESS MANAGEMENT SL                         

Grade(s): 10-12                     Credit(s): 1.0                      Weight: AP/IB/DE              

Length: Year                          Fee: IB Exam fee

Prerequisite: None

Traditional: 06330               Periods/cycle: 5

The IB Diploma Program Business Management course is designed to develop students’ knowledge and understanding of

business management theories, as well as their ability to apply a range of business management tools and techniques. Students learn to analyze, discuss and evaluate business activities at local, national and international levels. The course covers a range of organizations from all sectors, as well as the socio-cultural and economic contexts in which those organizations operate. Emphasis is placed on strategic decision-making and the operational business functions of human resource management, finance and accounts, marketing and operations management. Six concepts underpin the course (change, culture, ethics, globalization, innovation and strategy), and allow students to develop their understanding of interdisciplinary concepts from a business management perspective. The course encourages the appreciation of ethical concerns, as well as issues of corporate social responsibility (CSR), at both a local and global level. Through the study of topics such as human resource management, organizational growth and business strategy, the course aims to develop transferable skills relevant to today’s students.

IB DESIGN  TECHNOLOGY SL      

Grade(s): 10-12                     Credit(s): 1.0                      Weight: AP/IB/DE              

Length: Year                          Fee: IB Exam fee

Prerequisite: CADD                                               

Traditional: 10910               Periods/cycle: 5

IB Design Technology focuses on analysis, design development, synthesis and evaluation. Both design theory and practice will be explored in this course. Inquiry and problem-solving are at the heart of the subject. IB Design Technology requires the use of the design cycle as a tool, which provides the methodology used to structure the inquiry and analysis of problems, the development of feasible solutions, and the testing and evaluation of the solution. In this course, a solution can be defined as a model, prototype, product or system that students have developed independently. Critical-thinking and design skills, will be applied in a practical context after design theory had been developed through course work. Specific topics will include: Ergonomics, Resource Management, Sustainable Production, Modelling, Innovative Design, Prototyping and final production and testing of a design project.

IB PHILOSOPHY SL                    

Grade(s): 10-12                     Credit(s): 1.0                      Weight: AP/IB/DE

Length: Year                          Fee: IB Exam fee

Prerequisite:  ST, CP or H Western Civilization or AP World History

Traditional: 03920               Periods/cycle: 5

Philosophy is a systematic critical inquiry into profound, fascinating and challenging questions such as: What is it to be human? Do we have free will? What do we mean when we say something is right or wrong?  These abstract questions arise out of our everyday experiences, and philosophical tools such as critical and systematic thinking, careful analysis, and construction of arguments provide the means of addressing such questions.  The course is focused on stimulating students’ intellectual curiosity and encouraging them to examine both their own perspectives and those of others. Students are challenged to develop their own philosophical voice and to grow into independent thinkers, in addition to engaging with some of the world’s most interesting and influential thinkers. The course also develops highly transferable skills such as the ability to formulate arguments clearly, to make reasoned judgments and to evaluate highly complex and multifaceted issues.

IB ENVIRONMENTAL  SYSTEMS & SOCIETIES SL          

Grade(s): 11-12                     Credit(s): 1.0                      Weight: AP/IB/DE

Length: Year                          Fee: IB Exam fee

Prerequisite: Concurrent enrollment in Algebra 2 and completion of two Lab sciences   (Earth Science, Biology, Chemistry, Physical Science)

Traditional: 04910               Periods/cycle: 5

Environmental Systems & Societies SL combines the techniques and knowledge associated with the experimental sciences and individuals and societies. This course provides students with a coherent perspective of the interrelationships between environmental systems and societies; one that enables them to adopt an informed personal response to the wide range of pressing environmental issues that they will inevitably come to face. Students’ attention can be constantly drawn to their own relationship with their environment and the significance of choices and decisions that they make in their own lives. Specific topics to be studied include: Systems and Models, Ecosystems structure, function and change, Ecosystem Biodiversity, Biomes, Human Population, Natural Resources, Energy Resources, Food Resources, Water Resources, Pollution, Solid and Domestic Waste, Atmospheric Studies, Global Warming, and Environmental Value Systems. 

IB CORE  * YEAR 1                                  

Grade(s): 11                           Credit(s): 1.0                      Weight: H

Length: Year

Prerequisite:  Concurrent enrollment in IBCP Program.

Hybrid: 91111                       Periods/cycle: 2

Year 1 of the 2-year IB Core designed to enhance students’ personal qualities and professional development. This course places the Diploma Program courses and the career-related study into context and draws all aspects of the framework together. There are four required components of the Career-related Program Core: personal and professional skills, service learning (50 hour requirement outside of school), language development (50 hour requirement of a world language taken junior year), and a reflective project. During year 1, the students will create and start their service learning in the community, and will start to plan and research their reflective project on their ethical dilemma of choice.

 * The requirements of this course necessitate a two year offering.

IB CORE  * YEAR 2                              

Grade(s): 12                           Credit(s): 1.0                      Weight: H

Length: Year

Prerequisite:  IB Core Year 1 Course

Hybrid: 91112                       Periods/cycle: 2

Year 2 of the 2-year IB Core will continue to enhance students’ personal qualities and professional development focusing on intercultural understanding, applied ethics, and effective communication. This course places the Diploma Program courses and the career-related study into context and draws all aspects of the framework together. There are four required components of the Career-related Program Core: personal and professional skills, service learning (50 hour requirement outside of school), language development (50 hour requirement of a world language taken junior year), and a reflective project. In the second year CORE course students will complete their community service, submit their Language Development Portfolio and complete and submit their Reflective Project on their chosen ethical dilemma.