The IB Middle Years Programme

Principles and Framework

The Middle Years Programme is a course of study designed to meet the educational requirements of students aged between 11 and 16 years (grades 7-10). It is designed to include the requirements of the Japanese curriculum and incorporate the MYP’s educational principles and framework.

“In the programme model for the MYP, the first ring around the student at the centre describes the features of the programme that help students develop disciplinary (and interdisciplinary) understanding.

The new MYP model (November 2012) two main circles wherein the circle closest to the centre of the model now contains four elements.

• Approaches to learning (ATL)—demonstrating a commitment to approaches to learning as a key component of the MYP for developing skills for learning.
• Approaches to teaching—emphasizing MYP pedagogy, including collaborative learning through inquiry.
• Concepts—highlighting a concept-driven curriculum.
• Global contexts—showing how learning best takes place in context.

The second ring describes some important outcomes of the programme.

• Inquiry-based learning may result in student-initiated action, which may involve service within the community.
• The MYP culminates in the personal project (for students in MYP year 5) or the community project (for students in MYP years 3 or 4).

The third ring describes the MYP’s broad and balanced curriculum.

• The MYP organizes teaching and learning through eight subject groups: language and literature, language acquisition, individuals and societies, sciences, mathematics, arts, physical and health education, and design.
• In many cases, discrete or integrated disciplines may be taught and assessed within a subject group: for example, history or geography within the individuals and societies subject group; biology, chemistry or physics within the sciences subject group.
• The distinction between subject groups blurs to indicate the interdisciplinary nature of the MYP. The subject groups are connected through global contexts and key concepts.”¹

To learn more about the MYP, visit http://www.ibo.org/myp/

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¹ Middle Years Programme MYP: From principles into practice (September 2014)