Group 6

The Arts

IB Arts & Electives courses are designed to foster critical, reflective and informed practice, help students understand the dynamic and changing nature of the arts, explore the diversity of arts across time, place and cultures, and express themselves with confidence and competence. At Uplands we offer the following courses: 

Film Studies

Film is a powerful and stimulating art form and practice.

The Uplands film studies course aims to develop students as proficient interpreters and makers of film texts. Through the study and analysis of film texts, and through practical exercises in film production, the film course develops students’ critical abilities and their appreciation of artistic, cultural, historical, and global perspectives in film. Students examine film concepts, theories, practices, and ideas from multiple perspectives, challenging their own viewpoints and biases in order to understand and value those of others.

Uplands HSD and DP film students experiment with film and multimedia technology, acquiring the skills and creative competencies required to successfully communicate through the language of the medium. They develop an artistic voice and learn how to express personal perspectives through film.

The course will work to build students critical and creative skills to improve their knowledge of cinema and appreciate it as a medium of communication as well as an art form, to encourage independence of thinking and their enjoyment of film.

Over the two years students will analyze and research cinema from around the world focusing on topics ranging from the Hollywood studio system, political and social comment evident in British cinema, right through to the cinematography of European films, the high energy Bollywood movies and the symbolic use of anime in Japanese cinema. From this, candidates will be expected to examine film production, form and reception, and relate these to cultural, social and political contexts.

Starting in year 12, term one students are introduced to the Uplands Film course, with its core components and assessment procedures. For each unit of work, there is a defining concept and at least one topic of inquiry. For term one these include:

1: Beginnings: the early years of cinema.

Inquiry: How did filmmakers establish and develop the language of film, and how much of it is still used today?

2: Expressionism in Cinema

Inquiry: How did filmmakers begin to go beyond photographic realism to create mood and feeling?

3: Montage

Inquiry: How did Soviet filmmakers develop editing and how are their discoveries still in use today?

In each unit students will have the chance to develop the skills required for the final assessments, so that there is one aspect of each unit devoted to textual analysis (reading film), comparing films and their contexts (Comparative Study) and making filmed sequences based on the ideas contained in each unit (Production Portfolio). The Textual Analysis is completed by the end of the first year.

In year 2, the seniors in Film have been working on a number of items for their film coursework, with the Production Portfolio taking center stage. The PP consists of three individual film reels, each focusing on a different aspect of filmmaking (editor, cinematographer, director, sound design, etc.), as well as a three-page film report detailing their intentions, process and techniques, and reflection over the work completed for each specific role. Each film reel is up to three minutes long, and may be a collection of smaller film clips used to highlight growth in a specific area of film they are producing their reel in.

In addition, HL students also begin to plan and produce a 7-minute collaborative film project with the other students in class. Each student in the group will write a production report on their role in making the film.

All film students have been introduced to the Comparative Study, which will be the focus for their remaining work when the production of their films has wrapped.

The course is ideal for anyone who has a genuine interest in film and the arts. Creative thinking and practical skills will be encouraged to promote critical autonomy.


Music


Music is a practical subject that encourages discovery through experimentation, risk-taking and the presentation of ideas. The IB DP Music course is multifaceted and gives students the opportunity to actively engage in music as creators, performers and researchers. It emphasises working both individually and collaboratively.

Prior learning

The music course at both SL and HL requires no formal prior training in music. The course is designed to allow students to experience music on a personal level while expanding their musical identity. The individual student’s prior experiences will determine the students’ pathways through, and engagement with, the course.

Course details:

The Music DP was revised in 2020 and is now more in line with contemporary Music practices. There is no longer a formal written ‘Listening Paper’ exam with the new DP music program.

Throughout the course, students embody three roles:

In these roles, they inquire, create, perform and reflect on the course’s three musical processes:

Students and teachers have the flexibility and agency to personalize their own approaches to musical forms, genres and pieces.

The exploration of diverse musical material is focused through the lenses of four:

Areas of Inquiry 

1. Music for sociocultural and political expression 

Examples may include protest songs, liturgical music, national anthems 

2. Music for listening and performance 

Examples may include, cool jazz, chamber music of the Western art tradition, experimental music.  

3. Music for dramatic impact, movement and entertainment

Examples may include music for film, ballet or musical theatre 

4. Music technology in the electronic and digital age 

Examples may include electronic dance music, technology in popular music production.

Engagement with these Areas of Inquiry takes place across three contexts:

 

The Areas of Inquiry offer a ‘matrix’ onto which students have the flexibility and agency to plan and map their own focus for study. This new flexibility is about forging deep, life-long connections between students’ passions and interests and the wider world of music and music-making.

Distinction between SL and HL

The syllabus differentiates between SL and HL. The greater breadth and depth required for HL is reflected through an additional assessment task – formulating and communicating intentions for a project that is based on: • real-life practices of music-making • their experiences as developing musicians in this course • their collaboration with others.

Theatre

Theatre is a composite art that is forever evolving in new forms. It nourishes, sustains and extends the human spirit. It is a means of exploring society and relationships within it. Through it, there may emerge possibilities for individual and communal understanding. Theatre is about transformation. It is the application, through play, of energy and imagination to frame, reflect, expose, critique and speculate. These activities should engage and develop the sensibilities of all the students who participate in them. By studying theatre, and engaging with it practically, students will discover how elusive, fascinating and varied theatre can be.

At one extreme, theatre is national, institutionalized and commercial, while at the other it is provincial, subversive and experimental. The Diploma Programme theatre course is designed to encourage students to examine theatre in its diversity of forms around the world. This may be achieved through a critical study of the theory, history and culture of theatre, and will find expression through workshopping, devised work or scripted performance. Students will come to understand that the act of imagining, creating, presenting and critically reflecting on theatre in its past and present contexts embodies the individual and social need to investigate and find explanations for the world around us.

The theatre course emphasizes the importance of working individually and as a member of an ensemble. Students are encouraged to develop the organizational and technical skills needed to express themselves creatively in theatre. A further challenge for students following this course is for them to become aware of their own perspectives and biases and to learn to respect those of others. This requires a willingness to understand alternative views, to respect and appreciate cultural diversity, and to see the varied role that theatre plays in reflecting these. As a result, the theatre course can become a way for students to celebrate the international and intercultural dynamic that inspires and sustains some forms of contemporary theatre, while appreciating the specifically local origins that have always given rise to performance, and which, in many parts of the world, still do.

At the core of the theatre course lies a concern with clarity of understanding, critical thinking, reflective analysis, effective involvement and imaginative synthesis—all of which should be achieved through practical engagement in theatre.

Difference between SL and HL

Theatre students at both SL and HL are presented with a common core syllabus that encourages the development of certain skills, attributes and attitudes, as described in the “Objectives” section of this guide. Due to the nature of the theatre course, there may be no great difference in the complexity or artistic merit of the work produced by students at SL and HL. However, the difference in recommended teaching times at SL and HL signals a clear distinction between the demands made on students. It is expected that students at HL will use the extra time available to develop their personal research and practice in theatre, and to extend their understanding of the ideas, practices and concepts encountered during the course. The differences between the requirements of the theatre course at SL and HL are outlined in the table below.

Theatre and Prior Learning

The theatre course at both HL and SL requires no previous experience in drama or theatre. Since the course is designed to enable students to experience theatre on a personal level, achievement in this subject is reflected in how students develop, extend and refine the knowledge, skills and attitudes necessary for studying this art form. Students’ individual ability to be creative and imaginative, and to communicate in dramatic form, will be challenged and extended through the theoretical and practical content of the course.

The theatre course provides a relevant learning opportunity for a diverse range of students as it lays an appropriate foundation for further study in theatre, performing arts and other related subjects. In addition, by instilling discipline, and refining communication and group-work skills, it offers a valuable course of study for students who may wish to pursue a career or further education studies in areas unconnected to theatre.

The Journal

Students at both HL and SL should keep a journal from the outset of the course. This is the student’s own record, charting development, challenges and achievements, and, as such, students are free to determine what form it should take (written, audio and/or visual). The aim of the journal is to support and nurture development and reflection, and it is expected that much of the students’ assessed work will emerge from it. Students should also be encouraged to explore connections between different areas of learning throughout the course. The journal is not directly assessed or moderated but, since what it contains will reflect the sensibility of individual students, and will contain their responses to the different areas of learning, it should be regarded as a fundamental activity of the course.

Visual Art

The visual arts course enables students to engage in both practical exploration and artistic production, and in independent contextual, visual and critical investigation. The course is designed to enable students to study visual arts in higher education and also welcomes those students who seek life enrichment through visual arts.

Studio work/Exhibition – 40%

Students should be introduced to art concepts and techniques such as:

Students should be encouraged to explore art, craft and design traditions from past, present and emerging cultural backgrounds, and local, national and international contexts.

At the end of the course, students should have produced studio work that communicates their understanding of conceptual content, their technical skill and their sense of critical awareness. They should also have developed an understanding of the artistic process from the generation of initial ideas through the various stages that lead to the completion of a final studio work.

All studio work needs to reflect personal involvement and be linked to the investigation contained in their workbooks.

The students will stage an exhibition of their studio work. There will be a visiting external assessor who will view the exhibition, read the workbook and hear what the students have to say about their work.

Choice of Media 

The students select media related to their individual strengths and interests, whilst understanding that the facilities may provide some limitations. Students should be reminded that quality work that shows a developing maturity of artistic understanding at the end of the course is preferable to work that shows a superficial acquaintance with a large number of different skills and techniques.

As with all choices of media, visual arts students who wish to work in alternative or emerging media must remember that this is a visual arts course and their work will be assessed against criteria specific to visual arts.

Comparative Study -20%

The students will choose three different artworks from differing cultural contexts. They will critically analyse the individual artworks including the cultural context and function and purpose of each piece.  In conclusion, they will compare and contrast all three artworks.  The Higher Level students will be required to make connections with their own artwork and make it explicit how they have been influenced by the artworks they have examined.

Investigation Workbooks – 40%

The purpose of the investigation workbooks is to encourage personal investigation into visual arts, which must be closely related to the studio work undertaken.

The investigation workbooks should incorporate contextual, visual and critical investigation. They should function as working documents and support the student’s independent, informed investigation and studio practice. Investigation workbooks provide an opportunity for reflection and discovery and they play a key role in allowing ideas to take shape and grow. They should contain visual and written material that address contextual, visual and critical aspects of the investigation. They should also reflect the student’s interests and include wide-ranging first-hand investigations into issues and ideas related to visual arts. There should be a balance in the investigation between analytical and open-ended discussion, illustrating the student’s creative thinking.

The workbook is assessed internally and selected pages are sent away to be moderated.