International Baccalaureate Organization
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The International Baccalaureate Organization (IBO), more commonly known as the International Baccalaureate (IB), is a
nonprofit A nonprofit organization (NPO), also known as a nonbusiness entity, nonprofit institution, not-for-profit organization, or simply a nonprofit, is a non-governmental (private) legal entity organized and operated for a collective, public, or so ...
foundation headquartered in
Geneva Geneva ( , ; ) ; ; . is the List of cities in Switzerland, second-most populous city in Switzerland and the most populous in French-speaking Romandy. Situated in the southwest of the country, where the Rhône exits Lake Geneva, it is the ca ...
, Switzerland, and founded in 1968. It offers four educational programmes: the IB Diploma Programme and the IB Career-related Programme for students aged 16 to 19, the IB Middle Years Programme for students aged 12 to 16, and the IB Primary Years Programme for children aged 3 to 12. To teach these programmes, schools must be authorized by the International Baccalaureate. The organization's name and logo were changed in 2007 to reflect new structural arrangements. Consequently, "IB" may now refer to the organization itself, any of the four programmes, or the diploma or certificates awarded at the end of a programme.


History


Inception

The foundations of the International Baccalaureate (IB) can be traced back to 1948, when Marie-Thérèse Maurette authored Educational Techniques for Peace. Do They Exist?. In this pioneering work, Maurette proposed an education model centered on international understanding and peace—principles that would later shape the core philosophy of the IB Diploma Programme (IBDP). Building on this vision, a group of educators at the International School of Geneva (Ecolint) took steps in the mid-1960s to formalize an international education framework. They established the International Schools Examinations Syndicate (ISES), which laid the groundwork for a more structured and globally recognized curriculum. Over time, ISES evolved into the International Baccalaureate Office (IBO), then the International Baccalaureate Organization, today known as the International Baccalaureate (IB).


First programme

The IB headquarters were officially established in Geneva, Switzerland, in 1968 for the development and maintenance of the IB Diploma Programme. The objective of this programme was to "provide an internationally acceptable university admissions qualification suitable for the growing mobile population of young people whose parents were part of the world of diplomacy, international and multinational organizations" by offering standardized courses and assessments for students aged 16 to 19. International Baccalaureate North America (IBNA) was established in 1975 by Peter Nehr, International Baccalaureate Africa, Europe and Middle-East (IBAEM) in 1986, and International Baccalaureate Asia Pacific (IBAP) during the same period. The International Baccalaureate now functions as a global organization with global centers in Geneva, Washington D.C., The Hague, Cardiff and Singapore.


Other programmes

The IB Middle Years Programme (MYP) was first offered in 1994. Within five years, 51 countries had MYP schools. A revised MYP programme, referred to as the IB Middle Years Programme New chapter was introduced in September 2014. The IB Primary Years Programme (PYP) was piloted in 1996 in 30 primary schools on different continents, and the first PYP school was authorized in 1997, with 87 authorized schools in 43 countries within five years. The IB Career-related Programme (formerly IB Career-related Certificate) was first offered in 2012.


Directors general

Alec Peterson was IB's first director general (1968–1977), followed by Gérard Renaud (1977–1983), Roger Peel (1983–1998), Derek Blackman (1998–1999), George Walker (1999–2005), Jeffrey Beard (2006–2013) and Siva Kumari (2013–2021). As of May 2021, Olli-Pekka Heinonen, a Finnish politician and director of the Finnish National Agency of Education, was selected by the board of directors to serve as director general, replacing Siva Kumari.


Organization

The IB is a nonprofit organization, selling its products and services to schools in a system analogous to a franchise network. Schools buy products and services from the IB ''–'' assessments, publications, the right to use branding ''–'' and in turn schools act as distributors, reselling the products and services to families. The IB maintains its head office in
Geneva Geneva ( , ; ) ; ; . is the List of cities in Switzerland, second-most populous city in Switzerland and the most populous in French-speaking Romandy. Situated in the southwest of the country, where the Rhône exits Lake Geneva, it is the ca ...
,
Switzerland Switzerland, officially the Swiss Confederation, is a landlocked country located in west-central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the south, France to the west, Germany to the north, and Austria and Liechtenstein to the east. Switzerland ...
. Assessment and grading services are located in
Cardiff Cardiff (; ) is the capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of Wales. Cardiff had a population of in and forms a Principal areas of Wales, principal area officially known as the City and County of Ca ...
,
Wales Wales ( ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by the Irish Sea to the north and west, England to the England–Wales border, east, the Bristol Channel to the south, and the Celtic ...
and the curriculum centre moved in 2011 to
The Hague The Hague ( ) is the capital city of the South Holland province of the Netherlands. With a population of over half a million, it is the third-largest city in the Netherlands. Situated on the west coast facing the North Sea, The Hague is the c ...
,
Netherlands , Terminology of the Low Countries, informally Holland, is a country in Northwestern Europe, with Caribbean Netherlands, overseas territories in the Caribbean. It is the largest of the four constituent countries of the Kingdom of the Nether ...
. Two other offices are located in Washington D.C.,
United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...
and
Singapore Singapore, officially the Republic of Singapore, is an island country and city-state in Southeast Asia. The country's territory comprises one main island, 63 satellite islands and islets, and one outlying islet. It is about one degree ...
. The organization is divided into three regional centres: IB Africa, Europe and Middle East (IBAEM), administered from The Hague; IB Americas (IBA), administered from Washington D.C.; and IB Asia-Pacific (IBAP), administered from Singapore. Sub-regional associations "are groups formed by and for IB school practitioners to assist IB schools, teachers and students in their communities—from implementing IB programmes to providing a forum for dialogue." There are currently fifty-six (56) sub-regional associations, including: * fifteen (15) in the IB Africa, Europe and Middle East (IBAEM) region; * thirty-six (36) in the IB Americas (IBA) region; * five (5) in the IB Asia Pacific (IBAP) region. In 2003, the IB established the IB Fund, incorporated in the United States, to enhance fundraising and keep funds raised separately from operational funds. In 2004, the IB approved a strategic plan to "ensure that programmes and services are of the highest quality" and "to provide access to people who are socio-economically disadvantaged." In 2010 and 2015, the strategic plans were updated after substantial consultation. The vision for the next five years was to more consciously establish the IB as a leader in international education and the Board outlined a vision and four strategic goals with key strategic objectives. Access remains fundamental to the mission of the IB and a variety of initiatives and projects are helping to take it forward in
Ecuador Ecuador, officially the Republic of Ecuador, is a country in northwestern South America, bordered by Colombia on the north, Peru on the east and south, and the Pacific Ocean on the west. It also includes the Galápagos Province which contain ...
,
Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It extends from the Baltic Sea in the north to the Sudetes and Carpathian Mountains in the south, bordered by Lithuania and Russia to the northeast, Belarus and Ukrai ...
,
Romania Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern and Southeast Europe. It borders Ukraine to the north and east, Hungary to the west, Serbia to the southwest, Bulgaria to the south, Moldova to ...
, the
Czech Republic The Czech Republic, also known as Czechia, and historically known as Bohemia, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. The country is bordered by Austria to the south, Germany to the west, Poland to the northeast, and Slovakia to the south ...
,
South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. Its Provinces of South Africa, nine provinces are bounded to the south by of coastline that stretches along the Atlantic O ...
,
Kazakhstan Kazakhstan, officially the Republic of Kazakhstan, is a landlocked country primarily in Central Asia, with a European Kazakhstan, small portion in Eastern Europe. It borders Russia to the Kazakhstan–Russia border, north and west, China to th ...
, Spain,
Philippines The Philippines, officially the Republic of the Philippines, is an Archipelagic state, archipelagic country in Southeast Asia. Located in the western Pacific Ocean, it consists of List of islands of the Philippines, 7,641 islands, with a tot ...
,
Malaysia Malaysia is a country in Southeast Asia. Featuring the Tanjung Piai, southernmost point of continental Eurasia, it is a federation, federal constitutional monarchy consisting of States and federal territories of Malaysia, 13 states and thre ...
,
Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...
, and
South Korea South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia. It constitutes the southern half of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and borders North Korea along the Korean Demilitarized Zone, with the Yellow Sea to the west and t ...
. The United States has the largest number of IB programmes (2,010 out of 5,586) offered in both private and public schools. The IB works with governments and non-governmental organizations across the world and has consultative status as a nongovernmental organization (NGO) at the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (
UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO ) is a List of specialized agencies of the United Nations, specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) with the aim of promoting world peace and International secur ...
) and has collaborative relationships with the
Council of Europe The Council of Europe (CoE; , CdE) is an international organisation with the goal of upholding human rights, democracy and the Law in Europe, rule of law in Europe. Founded in 1949, it is Europe's oldest intergovernmental organisation, represe ...
and the (OIF).


Governance

The IB governance is composed of an IB Board of Governors and six committees (access and advancement, audit, education, finance, human resources and governance). The Board of Governors appoints the Director General, sets the strategic direction of the organization, adopts a mission statement, makes policy, oversees the IB's financial management, and ensures autonomy and integrity of the IB Diploma Programme examinations and other student assessments. The structure of its different committees is based on respect, representation and collaboration. The Board of Governors can comprise between 15 and 25 members. Members are elected by the Board on the recommendation of the governance committee and from nominations presented by the Heads Council, Regional Councils and the Board. To encourage diversity of gender, culture and geography, there are only three ex officio positions: Director General (non-voting), the chair of the Examining Board and the chair of the Heads Council. Advisory bodies include the Heads Council and Regional Councils.


Reception

{, class="wikitable floatright" , +Countries with 40+ schools teaching IB programmes & Global Totals (as of 1 Sep 2022) , - !Country and region!! Primary!! Middle!! Diploma!! Career-related !! Schools , - , United States , , 634, , 736, , 961, , 156, , 1,922 , - , Canada , , 100 , , 174 , , 188 , , 6 , , 381 , - , China , , 160 , , 27 , , 83 , , 1 , , 263 , - , Australia , , 152 , , 49 , , 85 , , 2 , , 213 , - , India , , 127 , , 52 , , 155 , , 4 , , 204 , - , Spain , , 52 , , 39 , , 174 , , 3 , , 195 , - , United Kingdom , , 22 , , 26 , , 93 , , 44 , , 120 , - , Mexico , , 60 , , 44 , , 79 , , 17 , , 117 , - , Turkey , , 59 , , 14 , , 71 , , 0 , , 111 , - , Japan , , 55 , , 34 , , 66 , , 0 , , 105 , - , Germany , , 28 , , 15 , , 77 , , 6 , , 82 , - , Ecuador , , 20 , , 20 , , 77 , , 0 , , 80 , - , Hong Kong , , 41 , , 16 , , 37 , , 7 , , 70 , - , Indonesia , , 37 , , 21 , , 46 , , 5 , , 64 , - , Poland , , 13 , , 15 , , 56 , , 0 , , 64 , - , Switzerland , , 14 , , 13 , , 53 , , 7 , , 56 , - , United Arab Emirates , , 33 , , 24 , , 49 , , 17 , , 54 , - , Argentina , , 7 , , 2 , , 52 , , 0 , , 53 , - , Brazil , , 25 , , 10 , , 42 , , 0 , , 51 , - , South Korea , , 19 , , 14 , , 17 , , 1 , , 51 , - , Russia , , 25 , , 22 , , 29 , , 0 , , 46 , - , Egypt , , 20 , , 12 , , 36 , , 1 , , 42 , - , Singapore , , 23 , , 9 , , 30 , , 2 , , 41 , - !!! Primary!! Middle!! Diploma!! Career-related !! Schools , - , ''Total Schools Globally'' , , 1,375, , 1,264 , , 2,997 , , 118 , , 4,460 , - , ''Countries & Territories'' , , 104 , , 97 , , 140 , , 18 , , 151 , - The IB Diploma Programme was described as "a rigorous, off-the-shelf curriculum recognized by universities around the world" when it was featured in the 18 December 2006, edition of ''
Time Time is the continuous progression of existence that occurs in an apparently irreversible process, irreversible succession from the past, through the present, and into the future. It is a component quantity of various measurements used to sequ ...
'' titled "How to bring our schools out of the 20th Century". The IBDP was also featured in the summer 2002 edition of ''
American Educator ''American Educator'' is a quarterly journal published by the American Federation of Teachers focusing on various issues about children and education. In mid-2011, its total circulation was over 900,000. Recent authors include E. D. Hirsch Jr., ...
,'' where Robert Rothman described it as "a good example of an effective, instructionally sound, exam-based system." In the US, in 2006, as part of the American Competitiveness Initiative (ACI), President
George W. Bush George Walker Bush (born July 6, 1946) is an American politician and businessman who was the 43rd president of the United States from 2001 to 2009. A member of the Bush family and the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he i ...
and Education Secretary Margaret Spellings presented a plan for the expansion of Advanced Placement (AP) and International Baccalaureate mathematics and science courses, intending to increase the number of AP and IB teachers and the number of students taking AP and IB examinations, as well as tripling the number of students passing those exams. Howard Gardner, a professor of
educational psychology Educational psychology is the branch of psychology concerned with the scientific study of human learning. The study of learning processes, from both cognitive psychology, cognitive and behavioral psychology, behavioral perspectives, allows researc ...
at
Harvard University Harvard University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1636 and named for its first benefactor, the History of the Puritans in North America, Puritan clergyma ...
, said that the IBDP curriculum is "less parochial than most American efforts" and helps students "think critically, synthesize knowledge, reflect on their own thought processes and get their feet wet in interdisciplinary thinking." In 2006, government ministers in the United Kingdom provided funding so that "every local authority in England could have at least one centre offering sixth-formers the chance to do the IB." In 2008, due to the devaluing of the A-Levels and an increase in the number of students taking the IB exams, then-Children's Secretary Ed Balls abandoned a "flagship
Tony Blair Sir Anthony Charles Lynton Blair (born 6 May 1953) is a British politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1997 to 2007 and Leader of the Labour Party (UK), Leader of the Labour Party from 1994 to 2007. He was Leader ...
pledge to allow children in all areas to study IB." Fears of a "two-tier" education system further dividing education between the rich and the poor emerged as the growth in IB is driven by private schools and sixth-form colleges. While the number of Diploma Programme state schools has dropped under budget constraints, the new Career-related Programme has seen solid uptake in the UK with 27 schools in
Kent Kent is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Essex across the Thames Estuary to the north, the Strait of Dover to the south-east, East Sussex to the south-west, Surrey to the west, and Gr ...
alone. In 2006, an attempt was made to eliminate it from a public school in
Pittsburgh Pittsburgh ( ) is a city in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, United States, and its county seat. It is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania#Municipalities, second-most populous city in Pennsylvania (after Philadelphia) and the List of Un ...
,
Pennsylvania Pennsylvania, officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a U.S. state, state spanning the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern United States, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes region, Great Lakes regions o ...
. Some schools in the United States have eliminated the IBDP due to budgetary reasons and low student participation. In
Utah Utah is a landlocked state in the Mountain states, Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It is one of the Four Corners states, sharing a border with Arizona, Colorado, and New Mexico. It also borders Wyoming to the northea ...
, in 2008, funding for the IBDP was reduced from $300,000 to $100,000 after State Senator Margaret Dayton objected to the IB curriculum, stating, "First, I have never espoused eliminating IB ... I don't want to create 'world citizens' nearly as much as I want to help cultivate American citizens who function well in the world." Mayor
Rahm Emanuel Rahm Israel Emanuel (; born November 29, 1959) is an American politician, advisor, diplomat, and former investment banker who most recently served as List of ambassadors of the United States to Japan, United States ambassador to Japan from 2022 ...
of
Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...
, meanwhile, believes that IB should be an option for students in Chicago Public Schools. Elizabeth Brackett, reporting on her own experience of studying the IB in Chicago, found that it made for a stressful school experience but subsequently eased the pressures of university study. A further report by the
University of Chicago The University of Chicago (UChicago, Chicago, or UChi) is a Private university, private research university in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Its main campus is in the Hyde Park, Chicago, Hyde Park neighborhood on Chicago's South Side, Chic ...
concluded that Chicago Public School students who completed the IB curriculum were 40% more likely to attend a four-year college, 50% more likely to attend a selective four-year college, and significantly more likely to persist in college than their matched peers outside the IB. The City of Miami Beach Commission entered into an education compact with Miami-Dade County Public Schools with one of the initiatives of the compact to implement the IB curriculum throughout Miami Beach feeder schools. In some other parts of the world, the International Baccalaureate has been well received. The Asia-Pacific region has witnessed the fastest global adoption of the programme since 2010, tied to the privileging of English as a global cultural and symbolic capital and the diploma as an aspirational conduit for traditional and emerging middle classes in these regions, especially in Singapore and Hong Kong. In 2013, the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology of Japan and the IB announced a plan that will expand the opportunities for Japanese students to complete the IB curriculum in Japanese. In
Malaysia Malaysia is a country in Southeast Asia. Featuring the Tanjung Piai, southernmost point of continental Eurasia, it is a federation, federal constitutional monarchy consisting of States and federal territories of Malaysia, 13 states and thre ...
, a project has been developed in response to interest expressed by the Malaysia Ministry of Education (MoE) in working with the IB to implement the IB Middle Years Programme (MYP) in select secondary state schools. The Abu Dhabi Education Council (ADEC) signed an agreement with the IB to widen the options offered to parents and to meet the different needs of students in the
United Arab Emirates The United Arab Emirates (UAE), or simply the Emirates, is a country in West Asia, in the Middle East, at the eastern end of the Arabian Peninsula. It is a Federal monarchy, federal elective monarchy made up of Emirates of the United Arab E ...
. In April 2014, The King Faisal Foundation in
Saudi Arabia Saudi Arabia, officially the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), is a country in West Asia. Located in the centre of the Middle East, it covers the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula and has a land area of about , making it the List of Asian countries ...
and the IB signed a memorandum of understanding to develop IB programmes, including the IBDP, in up to forty primary and secondary schools, with the goal of intending to develop these schools as centres of excellence as IB World Schools. In
Peru Peru, officially the Republic of Peru, is a country in western South America. It is bordered in the north by Ecuador and Colombia, in the east by Brazil, in the southeast by Bolivia, in the south by Chile, and in the south and west by the Pac ...
, President Ollanta Humala has committed to building a high-performing schools network (COAR) made up of IB World Schools. In early 2016 thirteen new schools were authorized by the IB as part of this programme. In Ecuador, President
Rafael Correa Rafael Vicente Correa Delgado (; born 6 April 1963) is an Ecuadorian politician and economist who served as the 45th president of Ecuador from 2007 to 2017. The leader of the PAIS Alliance political movement from its foundation until 2017, Corr ...
has also committed to improving education in state schools by implementing IB programmes and by January 2016 there were over 200 state schools. With support from local organizations, there are thirteen state IB schools in
Russia Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the world, and extends across Time in Russia, eleven time zones, sharing Borders ...
. In
Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...
, various models have been implemented (3 types of schools in Spain: public schools, private schools and state funded-private or "concerted" schools) and led to extensive growth with 140 schools. Internationally, the IB continues to be recognized as innovative, and in 2014, the
World Innovation Summit for Education The Qatar Foundation for Education, Science and Community Development () is a state-led non-profit organization in Qatar, founded in 1995 by then-emir Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani and his second wife Moza bint Nasser Al-Missned. According to the ...
(WISE) announced the IB Career-related Certificate as a finalist for their annual WISE Awards. However, the IB came under heavy criticism around the world in 2020 for controversial estimated grades, set when
COVID-19 Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by the coronavirus SARS-CoV-2. In January 2020, the disease spread worldwide, resulting in the COVID-19 pandemic. The symptoms of COVID‑19 can vary but often include fever ...
precautions obstructed examinations. According to tertiary educational agency 7Acad, the diploma mean grade stands at a four-year low of 4.54 points, with total points at a five-year low of 28.51 pts as of 2019. A study published by the
University of Cambridge The University of Cambridge is a Public university, public collegiate university, collegiate research university in Cambridge, England. Founded in 1209, the University of Cambridge is the List of oldest universities in continuous operation, wo ...
showed that a Cambridge student, who had obtained a score of 41 or more, achieved above-average success while at Cambridge. Students who had received 38 or less, were receiving grades below the average of all Cambridge students. Those that had an IB score of 38 or 39, obtained above-average grades in science, and below-average grades in social studies and humanities.


Controversies


Marking guides plagiarism

In October 2010, the IBO was accused of plagiarising some of its confidential examiner marking guides from Wikipedia.


The Russian invasion of Ukraine

Following the
Russian invasion of Ukraine On 24 February 2022, , starting the largest and deadliest war in Europe since World War II, in a major escalation of the Russo-Ukrainian War, conflict between the two countries which began in 2014. The fighting has caused hundreds of thou ...
in 2022, the International Baccalaureate Organization (IB) initially restricted its operations in Russia, halting new school authorizations. However, unlike many other international educational institutions, IB continued its activities in the country, allowing existing schools to operate under its curriculum. This decision has been criticized for contradicting global sanctions and ethical stances taken by other organizations.


May 2020 examination results

In March 2020, the IB announced that exams for the May 2020 session had been cancelled as a response to the
COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...
. It claimed that the final grades would instead be calculated based on coursework, students' teacher-predicted grades, and historical school data. "Prior to the attribution of final grades, this process was subjected to rigorous testing by educational statistical specialists to ensure our methods were robust. It was also checked against the last five years' sets of results data," an IB spokesman said. In July 2020, the IB released its results for the Diploma Programme and Career-related Programme candidates enrolled in the May 2020 session. Over 17,000 signatories signed an online petition calling for a clarification of the grading methodology, and free remarking and retesting. Several educators have criticized IB's approach to the 2020 grading. The Office of Qualifications and Examinations Regulation stated it would "scrutinize" the grades. The Norwegian Data Protection Authority asked the IB to provide data under the
General Data Protection Regulation The General Data Protection Regulation (Regulation (EU) 2016/679), abbreviated GDPR, is a European Union regulation on information privacy in the European Union (EU) and the European Economic Area (EEA). The GDPR is an important component of ...
. Some argued that using a school's historical data to produce grades was unfair to black or low-income students, or students from smaller schools. Others complained about the lack of transparency and fair process of the grades' appeal process.


May 2021 examination session

In August 2020, amidst the continuing coronavirus pandemic, the IB announced a series of comprehensive amendments to its scheduled examinations in May 2021. They were inclusive of a few assessment components being discounted (for select subjects), and others being revised in length or syllabi. On 4 February 2021, the IB announced a dual exam route for the May 2021 examination: examinations were expected to take place in regions where a written assessment could be "administered safely", while candidates in other regions follow a non-exam "alternative route" based on coursework and predicted grades. This decision was met with stiff backlash as students taking the IB Diploma Programme protested against perceived injustice. Students argued that exams would harm student mental health and well-being as well as possible consequences for university admissions. The IB's dual system approach has also been criticized by exam boards such as
Cambridge Assessment International Education Cambridge International Education (abbreviated CIE, informally known as Cambridge International or simply Cambridge and formerly known as CAIE, Cambridge Assessment International Education and CIE, Cambridge International Examinations) is a pro ...
, who canceled their IGCSE and international A-level exams.


May 2024 examination leaks

In late April/early May, select IB final exams were leaked to the
subreddit Reddit ( ) is an American Proprietary software, proprietary social news news aggregator, aggregation and Internet forum, forum Social media, social media platform. Registered users (commonly referred to as "redditors") submit content to the ...
r/pirateIB and other platforms. To date, there have been documents shared for Mathematics, Physics, Biology, Chemistry, English, Chinese, German, Psychology, Digital Society, Geography, Business Management, Computer Science and Global Politics. Some online forums have been expressing student discontent, especially with concerns on unfair advantages in examinations, with claims of miscommunication from the IB. A statement from the IBO was published on 4 May, claiming that the organization had discovered a very small number of students engaged in "time zone cheating", further claiming that the cheating was not widespread. South China Morning Post rebutted this claim, having discovered over 45,000 downloads of papers. Significant numbers of students have raised concerns about grade boundaries being inflated as a result of the leaks. One group dedicated to leaking papers has affirmed the concerns, by restricting the release of English Lang. Lit. leaks to "protect the grade boundaries". Following the examination leaks, the IBO also experienced an alleged security breach in their IT Infrastructure, potentially exposing internal documents and further test papers. Upon inspecting data shared online by the unknown threat actor(s), vx-underground, a group dedicated to investigating malware and cybersecurity, confirmed on the morning of 6 May that the breach appeared to be legitimate. On 7 May, the IBO confirmed that some of their data from 2018 was breached, including employee names, positions, and emails. The organization also stated that no exam material has been compromised.


See also

* Cambridge International Education * European Baccalaureate * List of International Baccalaureate people * Schools offering International Baccalaureate *
Advanced Placement Advanced Placement (AP) is a program in the United States and Canada created by the College Board. AP offers undergraduate university-level curricula and examinations to high school students. Colleges and universities in the US and elsewhere ...


References


External links

* {{Interwiki extra, Q1190682 Associations of schools High school course levels School qualifications Organizations established in 1968