IB Terms and Acronyms Glossary

Acronyms & Terms

Explanation

IB

International Baccalaureate, describes both the organization and the curriculum

IBO

International Baccalaureate Organization, the parent organization for all IB programmes and schools worldwide. A foundation registered in Switzerland, the IB is non-profit. It is governed by an elected Board of Governors, which appoints the Director General, sets the strategic direction of the organization, adopts a mission statement, makes policy, oversees the IB's financial management, and ensures the autonomy and integrity of IB Diploma Programme examinations and other student assessment. Board membership represents cultural and geographical diversity.

DP

Diploma Programme, the curriculum offered by IB and designed for students in grades 11-12. It consists of two-year courses in 6 subject areas as well as several IB Core requirements (see below).

IA

Internal Assessment, the assessments students complete during the IB courses. Some of these are marked by the teacher and moderated by IB. Others are marked by IB examiners. Each IB course has one or more IAs.

HL

Higher Level: designation for the courses taught and assessed at a more rigorous level. IB Diploma students take 3 HL courses.

SL

Standard Level: designation for the courses taught and assessed as a less rigorous level. These courses have different IAs and exams than HL and may have fewer topics taught or texts studied. IB DP students take 3 SL courses. The system of selecting 3 HL and 3 SL courses promotes well-being and balance for IB DP students.

IB Courses

IB curriculum courses which are taken individually. Students get LWSD credit and will also earn college credit with passing scores. Course students can take any combination of IB Courses that fit their graduation requirements. They may choose any combination of HL and SL IB Course levels.

TOK

Theory of Knowledge is an IB DP core requirement. It’s taught as a course over 100 hours both years of the DP. Students must pass the course to receive their IB Diploma. TOK is a course about how we know what we know. It examines knowledge in a variety of subject areas and real-world contexts.

EE

Extended Essay is a 4000-word research paper completed in one of the subject areas of a student’s DP courses. The requirements and expectations are slightly different for each subject. Students will work on this essay over more than 11 months. ICS EE coordinator will teach DP students about how to approach the research and writing of their EE. They will have ICS teacher in the subject they choose as their EE supervisor with a minimum of 3 required meetings. The EE is marked by an IB examiner.

CAS

Creativity, Activity & Service is an ungraded, required element of the IB DP. Students must be continuously involved in outside experiences in the three areas. “Activity” is physical activity like sports or hiking and can be achieved through team participation or solo pursuits. “Service” is unpaid volunteering. Students show their ongoing involvement (two years) through written reflections and evidence gathered in a portfolio. They will each be assigned to a CAS advisor who reviews their progress. If students fail to complete CAS, they will not receive their IB Diploma.

IB Core

Elements of the IB DP outside the 6 academic courses: TOK, EE, and CAS. Only full Diploma candidates complete the IB Core. EE and CAS are independent but supported by teachers and other community members.