• AVID (Advancement Via Individual Determination)

    AVID Decades of College Dreams AVID is an academic program designed to provide support to students who are in the “academic” middle. AVID students apply to be in the program and actually interview with a panel of teachers before being accepted into the elective. These students want to work harder and be more successful, committing themselves to a variety of obligations – including good attendance, appropriate behavior, and 1-2 hours of homework per night (an approximate total for all classes).

    During each AVID class, students receive instruction in reading/writing across the curriculum, note taking & test-taking strategies, study skills, organization and time management. Another aspect of the program focuses on career and college exploration through guest speakers, college tours, and research assignments. Additionally, as part of the AVID class, students receive approximately 40 minutes of tutoring from trained volunteers who facilitate small groups of students during tutorials.

    AACPS AVID page

     

    IB Middle Years Programme

    ib-challenge-1-the-beverage-container

    MacArthur Middle School / Meade High School IB MYP Partnership Academic Integrity Policy

     Academic Honesty Policy
    MacArthur Middle School/Meade High School IB MYP Partnership Assessment Policy

    Meade Partnership Assessment Policy
    MacArthur Middle School / Meade High School IB MYP Partnership Language Policy

     Meade Partnership Language Policy
    MacArthur Middle School / Meade High School IB MYP Partnership Special Educational Needs Policy

     Meade Partnership SEN Policy
    Why IB? What are the benefits?

    What is the IB MYP?

    The International Bacalaureate Middle Years Programme (MYP) is a five-year program designed for students in grades 6­ to 10 in the Anne Arundel County Public Schools. It is offered at Annapolis, MacArthur, and Old Mill North Middle Schools, and Annapolis, Meade, and Old Mill High Schools. MacArthur Middle School implements IB MYP throughout the whole school. As the instructional strategies and philosophies offered by the IB Organization are good for all learners, all students attending MacArthur Middle School are participants in the IB MYP.

    The IB MYP offers a teaching methodology that connects school subjects to the world outside school. Students are provided with opportunities to become effective communicators not only in their own language, but also in a second language. The IB MYP challenges students to consider their role in local and global communities and provides a strong foundation for the International Baccalaureate Diploma Program at the high school level. Throughout the IB MYP, students develop skills identified in the IB Learner Profile:

    • Inquirers
    • Knowledgeable
    • Thinkers
    • Communicators
    • Principled
    • Open-Minded
    • Caring
    • Risk-Takers
    • Balanced
    • Reflective

    International Baccalaureate (IB) is one of the fastest growing and most prestigious educational frameworks in the United States and is taught worldwide. This highly esteemed approach to learning, which began in 1968, is recognized for its rigor, high quality and global emphasis. An IB education requires students to learn on a deeper level, make connections to the world around them and ask questions. Students gain the skills, knowledge, concepts and attitudes to become critical and creative thinkers. IB students learn a second language, participate in community service and appreciate cultures around the world from an early age. IB courses differ from the traditional because the program takes a much broader view of curriculum. For example, through the study of literature, IB students learn history, geography, art, music and culture. Leading college admissions expert Barmak Nassirian recently told Education Week, a national weekly newspaper focusing on education issues, that IB is generally regarded as “the gold standard of school curriculum”.

    The IB Middle Years Programme offers a balanced education where students engage in eight IB MYP subject groups each year: English, World Language, Social Studies, Mathematics, Science, the Arts, Technology, and Physical Education. Each of the content areas views the curriculum through five special Areas of Interaction: Approaches to Learning, Community and Service, Environments, Human Ingenuity (the creativity of humankind), Health and Social Education.

    How do I apply to the IB MYP at MacArthur?

    The IB Middle Years Programme is a magnet program open to all students in Anne Arundel County. A student may apply for admission to the IB MYP school located in the designated geographic area for his/her home school. School designations and information about the application process are located on www.aacps.org.

    The IB MYP Subject Framework

     

     

    For more information regarding the International Baccalaureate Programme, visit www.ibo.org

    For questions regarding the Middle Years Program, contact Ms. Ann Gemellas, IB MYP Coordinator

    Related Information: http://www.ibo.org/communications/brand/downloads/files/computer/IB_HIGH_640x480.wmv

     

    Who Can Offer the IB MYP?

    Only schools authorized by the IB as IB World Schools can offer the Middle Years Programme (MYP).

    There are three phases to becoming an IB World School, authorized to offer the MYP.

    Feasibility study and identification of resources
    The school makes an in-depth analysis of the philosophy and curriculum, and identifies the resources needed to deliver it.
    Trial implementation period
    The school puts in place all the processes and resources needed to deliver the programme, including the training of teachers. The school must then implement the full programme for at least one year.
    School visit: Our visit that took place on April 22nd and 23rd of 2010 was successful. We have been granted status as an IB World School.
    At the end of the trial period, a delegation appointed by the IB visits the school and evaluates the school’s capacity to deliver the programme. If the outcome is positive, the school becomes authorized to offer the programme and attains the status of IB World School.
    The school’s delivery of the programme is evaluated by the IB four years after authorization and then every five years.
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    Are MMS teachers trained to teach the programme?
    Teachers receive training before and after a school becomes authorized to teach the programme.

    Before a school becomes authorized to teach the programme, the teachers involved are required to undergo training; either by attending an IB teacher-training workshop or by participating in school-based training organized by the IB.

    After a school becomes authorized, the teachers are encouraged to engage in an ongoing process of professional development by:

    • attending IB workshops and conferences
    • reviewing relevant support materials published by the IB online and/or in print
    • responding to appeals from the IB for teachers to participate in other curriculum-related activities (eg curriculum reviews, collecting samples of student work)
    • applying to become a moderator for the purpose of moderating internally assessed student work
    • applying to become an IB workshop leader.


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    Taken from: www.ibo.org

    Please contact Ms. Heather Giustiniani for more information about MacArthur’s MYP program: HGIUSTINIANIPEDDICORD@aacps.org