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Middle Years Programme (Grade 7 – 10)

At Al Zahra College we are committed to the vital task of preparing our students to flourish within an increasingly global environment.  We aim also to develop active learners with strong values who can empathise with others and pursue lives of purpose and meaning. Students at Al Zahra College are supported to make the most of their talents and to discover and relish the joys of intellectual and creative commitment.

During the MYP (middle years programme – Years 7-10), the NESA Curriculum is delivered through the methodology and philosophy of the International Baccalaureate. The MYP provides a rigorous framework that builds on the knowledge, skills and attitudes developed by the IB PYP (Primary Years Programme). As a school, we aim to equip our students with the skill-sets and attitudes required to live successfully and with integrity in the 21st Century.  Approaches to learning in the MYP encourage our students to manage their own learning, to connect the classroom to the larger world, to develop an understanding of global challenges and to act as responsible citizens.

MYP students acquire the knowledge and attitudes they need to participate in the senior years of high school, the IB Diploma programme and beyond.

The MYP Framework

The International Baccalaureate Middle Years Programme (MYP) encourages students from Year 7 to Year 10 to make practical connections between their studies and the real world, preparing them for success in further study and in life. The programme empowers students to inquire into a wide range of issues and ideas of significance locally, nationally and globally. The result is young people who are creative, critical and reflective thinkers. 

The Middle Years Programme (MYP) divides academic studies into eight Subject Groups. The Subject Groups are very similar to the courses offered to students through the mandatory NESA curriculum. 

The MYP builds on the knowledge, skills and attitudes developed by the IB Primary Years Programme currently being delivered by the Al Zahra College PrimarySchool with great success. Building upon our existing programme of assessment ensures that excellent standards of teaching and learning are maintained. Each subject is assessed through four specific criteria A, B, C and D (refer below for the subject specific criteria focus).

For more information about the Al Zahra College MYP Curriculum, please refer to our MYP Curriculum Guide Here.

Why Is Al Zahra College Delivering The IB?

We believe that the MYP allows us to deliver our vision to be a world class school, while supporting each student to explore and achieve their potential. The MYP provides a rigorous framework that integrates powerfully with local educational requirements. It centres on learners, develops effective approaches to teaching and learning, works within global contexts, helping students understand different languages and cultures, explores significant content, developing disciplinary and interdisciplinary understanding that meets rigorous international standards.

“An IB education aims to transform students and schools as they learn, through dynamic cycles of inquiry, action and reflection.  Teachers enable and support students as they develop the approaches to learning they need – for both academic and personal success” (Ibo.org).

The Learner Profile

The IB aspires to help schools develop well-rounded students who respond to challenges with optimism and an open mind, are confident in their own identities, make ethical decisions, join with others in celebrating our common humanity and are prepared to apply what they learn in real world, complex and unpredictable situations. The MYP is designed to help students grow to exhibit the IB “learner profile,” which includes the following traits: 

InquirersKnowledgeableThinkers
CommunicatorsPrincipledOpen-minded
CaringRisk-takersBalanced
Reflective  

The Personal Project 2020

MYP students in their final year explore an area of personal interest over an extended period. It provides them the opportunity to consolidate their learning and develop important skills they’ll need in both further education and life beyond the classroom. It also helps them develop confidence to become principled, lifelong learners.

Elements of the personal project

In the Personal Project, Approaches To Learning (ATL) skills for self-management, research, communication, critical and creative thinking, and collaboration and formally assessed. Students complete three elements:

  1. product or outcome—evidence of tangible or intangible results: what the student was aiming to achieve or create
  2. process journal—ideas, criteria, developments, challenges, plans, research, possible solutions and progress reports
  3. report—an account of the project and its impact, to a structure that follows the assessment criteria. The report includes a bibliography and evidence from the process journal that documents students’ development and achievements.

The report is assessed by the supervisor and externally moderated by the IB to ensure a globally consistent standard of excellence. Each project is awarded a final achievement grade (Ibo.org).

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