Send us a text This episode, hosted by Kurt Carlson, features noted author and workshop leader, Julie Stern speaking with us about her work in conceptual teaching and learning. Julie is a keynote speaker for our 2019 MNIB Summer Conference at Bethel University. Registration can be found at our website . Their conversation, recorded over Skype, is filled with examples of students using concepts to transfer learning across subjects. Once students have an understanding of the big concepts, operatin...
May 28, 2019•24 min•Season 1Ep. 13
Send us a text In this episode, hosted by Angela Wilcox, we hear from two 9th grade students who describe their MYP Community Project. As Angela tells listeners, the Community Project is the culminating activity for students in MYP schools that do not include the 10th grade - in this case Hopkins North Junior High - a 7th through 9th grade school. The students featured are: Haiti Romero-Ruiz and Lily Sojos As the students said: "It’s not just about doing a project, it’s about making a difference...
May 25, 2019•13 min•Season 1Ep. 11
Send us a text In this episode of IB Matters we talk to Leon Wang of Firebird Design Lab about his work helping students through the design process. He has been a favorite trainer for our teachers here in Minnesota for his thoughtful and effective devopment of a design mindset in both teachers and students in our local IB schools. We thought our listeners would especially appreciate the way he combines his passion for taking action through activism with his work in design. Website: firebirddesig...
May 23, 2019•36 min•Season 1Ep. 10
Send us a text Humera Riyaz, a PYP coordinator at Eastern Public School in Bhopal India, (and one of our early listeners) spoke to us by Skype about her work. We focused on the role of inquiry in IB education and on teaching and learning through inquiry in the PYP. Humera is an experienced PYP educator and she talks about how she guides her teaching staff through training to be inquirers themselves even as they guide their own students. Her passion for the work is clear as she enthusiastically r...
May 23, 2019•26 min•Season 1Ep. 12
Send us a text In this episode, we talk to Kurt Carlson, a trainer in the IB Educator Network - known as IBEN. We will hear how the IB uses a cadre of current teachers (who take part in continuous professional development) as trainers for the entire network of IB teachers in schools across the globe. It is their work as IB Educators that ensures the IB principles and practices are in place in every IB school. IBEN members play different roles in the organization: subject area trainers, site visi...
May 10, 2019•23 min•Season 1Ep. 9
Send us a text In this episode, Kurt Carlson (MNIB President and IBEN trainer) takes us through the framework of assessment used in the Middle Years Programme to guide teaching and learning. He draws from his experience as a Science and a Design teacher to provide examples and to help us understand the MYP assessment strategies. If you are a parent or a teacher, this podcast will help you answer the question - How is teaching and learning going to be different in an MYP setting? Using criterion-...
May 09, 2019•23 min•Season 1Ep. 8
Send us a text In this episode we tackle the newest IB Programme, the Career-related Programme known as the CP. Chris Baker Raivo from Champlin Park High School describes the CP, detailing the overall framework and focusing on the core aspects of the programme. He also talks about how the CP is different from the more established IB Diploma Programme and how it serves students in a different but complementary way. You’ll hear that the CP is a better fit for some students looking to better unders...
May 01, 2019•26 min•Season 1Ep. 7
Send us a text In this Episode we talk to Max Athorn, Diploma Programme coordinator at Thomas Edison High School in Minneapolis. Max explains the nuts and bolts of how the IB Diploma Programme works including the six subject areas and the core of the DP: Theory of Knowledge (TOK), Creativity Activity, Service (CAS), and the Extended Essay (EE). Max also talks about how the role of Diploma Programme coordinator is a multi-faceted, multi-layered role. DP coordinators are at the center of many aspe...
May 01, 2019•35 min•Season 1Ep. 6
Send us a text In this episode Kirsten McPherson talks about the IB Primary Years Programme (PYP). Kirsten is the PYP coordinator at Matoska International School, a public school in the White Bear Lake school district near St. Paul, MN. Kirsten explains how the learning for PYP students is conceptual and contextual with examples of how students and teachers approach teaching and learning in her PYP school. We hear how local standards are brought to life when teachers break down the pre-written c...
Apr 30, 2019•18 min•Season 1Ep. 5
Send us a text Nine students from Champlin Park High School in Champlin, Minnesota describe how the Diploma Programme helped them to be prepared for University. Each talks about their readiness for the challenges of college and how they were often better prepared than their university classmates. Thanks to Chris Baker-Raivo (IB Career-related Programme Coordinator) for creating the video on which this podcast is based. The video of this episode can be found on our MNIB website at: www.mnibschool...
Apr 28, 2019•8 min•Season 1Ep. 4
Send us a text Angela Wilcox, the MYP coordinator at Hopkins North Junior High (and MNIB board member) explains for parents and others what makes the IB Middle Years Programme such a good fit for adolescents in this important age group. The MYP is the bridge between the PYP and more well-known Diploma Programme. Angela helps us understand how this bridge is built using concept-based teaching and learning. Students in the MYP make their own connections between subjects because they see how learni...
Apr 25, 2019•23 min•Season 1Ep. 3
Send us a text Part of a series of interviews with IB practitioners, this episode features Martina Talic of St. John's Prep School in St. Joseph MN. This brief visit with Martina is just a taste of what she brings to enhance IB instruction all over the Americas. As a member of the IB Educator Network (IBEN) she is trained by IB to deliver official training to Language teachers across the globe. This interview was conducted over lunch while she was teaching a one-day Language B (IB's term for sec...
Apr 24, 2019•11 min•Season 1Ep. 2
Send us a text Introducing a new podcast, IB Matters, which brings listeners content related to International Baccalaureate (IB) education. It is for students, parents, and teachers interested in learning more about IB and for those working in IB schools wanting to access pedagogical support for their teaching. The podcast is hosted in Minnesota by the MN Association of IB World Schools (MNIB) but is intended for a global audience. Email IB Matters: IBMatters@mnibschools.org Twitter @MattersIB I...
Apr 23, 2019•4 min•Season 1Ep. 1
