The International Baccalaureate (IB) Diploma Programme
An academically challenging, stimulating and inspiring programme of education
The International Baccalaureate (IB) Diploma Programme is an academically-challenging and balanced programme of education that works to develop students who live, learn and work in a rapidly changing world.
With a focus on independent thinking, academic rigour, community service, inter-cultural understanding and respect for others, the Programme prepares students for success at university and beyond.
Our teaching and learning philosophy is to encourage learners who are open to challenge, willing to develop their abilities and achieve their personal best, take risks and accept mistakes, make ethical decisions and enjoy learning.
This vision complements the IB Diploma programme which aims to develop inquiring, knowledgeable, open-minded, reflective, caring and principled young people who help to create a better and more peaceful world through effective communication, intercultural understanding and respect.
The IB Learner Profile underpins the programme and ensures the development of the whole person. Our student success rate for the IB diploma was 96% in 2023. Students also often engage in Creativity, Activity, and Service projects as part of their experiential learning process.
The IB Learner Profile
The International Baccalaureate learner profile came to existence from the IB mission statement. The International Baccalaureate aims to develop inquiring, knowledgeable and caring young people who help to create a better and more peaceful world through intercultural understanding and respect.
To this end the organization works with schools, governments and international organizations to develop challenging programmes of international education and rigorous assessment. These programmes encourage students across the world to become active, compassionate and lifelong learners who understand that other people, with their differences, can also be right.
The Learner Profile has become the values that define the type of learner that IB students aim to be. IB learners are internationally minded individuals that strive to create a better world through understanding the world’s global interconnectedness and humanity. The IB Learner Profile attributes are:
- Inquirers: Develop a natural curiosity that allows them to become lifelong learners.
- Knowledgeable: They explore ideas of importance and dig deep into its meaning creating a balance of their learning.
- Thinkers: They apply thinking skills that allow them to tackle complex problems in creative ways.
- Communicators: They understand and can articulate information in confident, creative ways, including a second language.
- Principled: Students are honest, fair, just and full of integrity. They strive to solve their own problems and to take responsibility for their own actions.
- Open-minded: Students understand and embrace other cultures. They recognize and celebrate their own backgrounds and learn tolerance for others.
- Caring: Students actively care about others and participate in active service.
- Risk-Takers: Students are brave in the face of new challenges. They strive to take on new roles and to defend their own beliefs.
- Balanced: Students understand the need to be emotionally, physically and mentally balanced. They strive for this in themselves and others.
- Reflective: Students reflect on their own learning. They are able to adjust for weaknesses and strengths.
If you’re still undecided about the best academic pathway to take, the IB has launched a new video series on how the Diploma Programme prepares students for university, and why universities value the experience that IB students bring along.
- Provides students a careful balance of subject breadth and depth
- Addresses the nature of knowledge across disciplines through the unique Theory of Knowledge course
- Encourages international-mindedness, including a foundation in the student’s first language and culture and in a second language
- Develops a positive attitude to learning that prepares students for university education
- Offers a strong reputation for its rigorous external assessment with published global standards, this qualification is welcomed by universities worldwide.
- Emphasises the development of the whole student – physically, intellectually, emotionally and ethically
- All Year 12 students who meet the entry requirements can enter. It is not limited to students who achieve highly
- It is taught over two years with final examinations held at the end of Year 13. Students can also take NZQA scholarship exams
- The students select one subject from each of the six subject groups, with some variation possible, within these choices: Studies in Language and Literature, Language Acquisition, Individuals and Societies, Sciences, Mathematics, The Arts
- Three subjects are studied at a higher level and the remainder are studied at a standard level. While both are two-year courses, higher level has more content and requires deeper thinking.
- Each subject includes at least 20% internal assessment
The IB Diploma Programme comprises three important additional compulsory components:
1. Extended Essay
The extended essay of some 4,000 words offers the opportunity for IB students to investigate a topic of special interest, usually one of the student’s six Diploma Programme subjects, and acquaints them with the independent research and writing skills expected at university.
2. Theory of Knowledge
Theory of Knowledge has an emphasis on the development of critical thinking skills, encouraging students to be aware of subjective biases and to develop the ability to analyse evidence. This is a key element in encouraging students to appreciate other perspectives.
3. CAS (Creativity, activity, service)
Creativity, activity, service is at the heart of the Diploma Programme, involving students in a range of activities that take place alongside their academic studies throughout the IB Diploma Programme.
Where are our IB Diploma graduates now?
The IB Dux for 2023 is Christina Cai.
Christina is an outstanding student who consistently achieves scores across all her subjects at the top of the range. For those of you who are unaware each of the 6 Diploma subjects is graded out of 7 with 3 points for the central core of Extended Essay, Creativity, Action and Service or CAS and the Theory of Knowledge. This means the top score possible is 45 points. We fully anticipate that Christina will score in that prestigious 40+ range.
These results are all the more commendable given Christina arrived at Dio as an International Student in that tumultuous year of 2020, and then was unable to return home as COVID shut our borders. Her resilience and determination to make the best of things in that and subsequent years speaks volumes for Christina’s strength of character.
Christina’s reports speak of her exemplary commitment to her studies, her clarity of thought in both written material and oral discussions and her willingness to unpack all aspects of a question to reach her conclusions. Christina is a student who brings a wealth of original and thought provoking contributions to her classes, but she remains humble and grateful for the support of those around her.
Outside of the classroom Christina has fostered the sharing of her culture as part of the Chinese Cultural group and given back supporting younger International Students as the Deputy Head of International students this year.
Congratulations Christina on being the IB Diploma Dux for 2023
The 2023 award went to Maisie Cavanagh.
This is awarded to a student in Year 13, who, throughout the two years of the Diploma, has consistently demonstrated the attributes of the IB Learner Profile.
The IB Learner Profile can be considered as a map of a lifelong journey in pursuit of international-mindedness. It aims to develop active, compassionate and lifelong learners and to prepare students to make exceptional contributions both at school and beyond. The IB mission is to encourage students to be Inquirers, Knowledgeable, Thinkers, Communicators, Principled, Open-minded, Caring, Risk-takers, Balanced, and Reflective, thus educating the whole person for a life of active, responsible citizenship.
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