Middle School Courses
Over the past
several years we have developed the middle school curriculum at YIS with
several themes guiding its construction:
- The program needs to act as a bridge, drawing upon
the students’ experiences from the inquiry-based Primary Years
Program of the elementary
school, yet providing the content and concepts required for starting high
school;
- The program needs to provide balance across the
disciplines;
- The program needs to provide opportunities for
intercultural awareness and also for developing a strong sense of
self-awareness;
- The program needs to draw upon current
brain-research and adopt the pedagogical approach appropriate for the age.
Detailed
course information, including aims and objectives, skills, assessment and
specific course descriptions, may be accessed through the links at the left.
Please note: In the 2010-11 school year, the same
themes will be guiding our curriculum in the middle school. However, we will
accomplish these through the phased introduction of the International
Baccalaureate Middle Years Program (MYP). We will begin with grade six in
2010-11 and add a further grade level each year, until we reach full
implementation in the 2014-15 school year, when our first MYP certificates will
be awarded. The current International General Certificate of Secondary
Education (IGCSE), which operates in grades 9 and 10, will be phased out, with
the final cohort of students completing the IGCSE program in the 2013-14 school
year. After this date, we would look to facilitate the IGCSE examinations for
those parents who wish their children to take them.
Academic Cycle
Beginning
in the 2010-11 school year, the middle school will operate on a 10-day academic
cycle. A breakdown of the number of class periods per 10-day cycle is shown in
the following table:
