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School becomes the first in Louisiana to adopt International Baccalaureate Program
At the onset of his high school career, Boutte knew he needed to distinguish himself from the rest of the crowd and pick a high school that offered a rigorous, yet diverse, curriculum to help him polish his transcript and prepare him for his college years. "I wanted to be in an environment where I would be challenged," said Boutte, who graduated in May from the University Lab School at LSU and plans to study pre-medicine at Xavier University in the fall. Boutte, along with students from around the world, are finding that challenge with the LSU Lab School's International Baccalaureate (IB) Program. The program, founded in Geneva in 1968, started as a campaign to create a standard, multinational pre-university program to meet the needs of geographically mobile high school students. It later expanded to the lower grades, and now is offered in almost 1,500 schools around the world, giving elementary and secondary students an intercultural perspective to learning, Since students are exposed to a wide array of topics and challenged to meet rigorous internationally validated standards, many educators regard IB as the "Cadillac" of college preparatory programs. Some universities in the U. S. award advance placement standing to IB students, as well as offering significant amounts of financial assistance. Over two years, junior and senior high school students working toward their IB diploma must complete six advanced courses in literature, foreign language, humanities, science, math, and electives, plus a seventh unifying critical thinking course called Theory of Knowledge. They must also complete 150 hours of documented community service and write an original 4,200 word essay. Finally, IB diploma students subject themselves to 25 hours of external examinations that are issued by the International Baccalaureate Organization, the organization that oversees all three diploma programs. "The main benefit to students is they receive a more complete education," said Steve Delacroix, IB coordinator at the Lab School. "The program is so well rounded and rigorous that it is truly like doing college work." So far the program is getting much support from Lab School teachers and students. "Our teachers are in love with IB because it connotes best practice," said Delacroix. "It has permeated the school and created a culture of excellence and endeavor that we think has improved the school." Presently, 121 students out of 161 are taking at least one IB course and 36 are working toward an IB diploma. In 2003, 17 students followed the IB diploma program and 14 passed the IB exam. "Once the 2003 diploma class scores were tallied, their performance surpassed the world average of 79 percent," Delacroix said. College Ready Research shows students who take IB course work, or the more familiar advance placement courses, are considered better prepared for college. In a 1999 study in which high school students were tracked for 13 years, the U.S. Department of Education found that students who took demanding high school courses like advanced placement and IB were more likely to graduate from college than their counterparts who only took regular classes. Another very practical benefit that Exner reaped from the program was that it taught her how to manage her time wisely. "IB definitely influenced my college preparation by introducing me to difficult courses in high school so once I got to college; I was prepared academically to handle it. The program also helped shape the time management skills necessary for college life and all its responsibilities." The IB spread Earlier this year, teachers and principals from the six initial participating schools, along with Jefferson Parish IB Coordinator Rosalind Mathes, visited the Lab School to observe and question its teachers and administrators. "We were very impressed with the way the Lab School has implemented the IB program," said Mathes. "The faculty and administrators were so helpful in answering all our questions. We are lucky to have a school so close to turn to for guidance as we face the challenges that will inevitably occur when starting a new program." Unlike the Lab School, which offers a public kindergarten through 12 campus learning environment and charges tuition to offset the local tax base, Jefferson Parish plans to pilot the program in three East Bank schools Bridgedale Elementary, Riverdale Middle, and Riverdale High and three West Bank schools Boudreaux Elementary, Livaudais Middle, and Ehert High. Jefferson Parish school officials said these schools are feeder schools to one another, giving students the opportunity to stay with the program as they advance. A $2.1 million grant from the state's Education Excellence Fund will finance the program in Jefferson Parish. Jefferson Parish is using the program to focus new attention on high-achieving and middle-of-the road students and re-introduce studies such as art, music, and foreign languages that have been butchered by budget cuts in recent years. Also, Diane Roussel, superintendent of Jefferson Parish schools, said IB will give the school system the ability to market public education to families that normally only consider private schools. Currently, 40 percent of the parish's student population attends private schools.  While the IB program is still in its infancy in Louisiana, educators hope that in addition to making public schools more attractive, IB can also help attract out-of-state families into local school districts as it has previously done in other states. "People are moving from out of state and from in state to this county because they know we have good schools," said Flo Durway, who oversees IB in three elementary schools, four middle schools, and three high schools throughout Wake County, North Carolina. Flordia, a state with the second highest number of students with IB diplomas, has been able to keep many of its high-school graduates in state because a Florida scholarship program allows students with IB diplomas to attend any public university, in the state for free. At a time when Louisiana residents are constantly being inundated with new plans for economic development, educators are hoping the IB program will help Louisiana achieve the best the economic incentive of all . . . academic prestige. "To have that in Louisiana and spread throughout Louisiana schools would do wonders for our reputation. It certainly would improve both our secondary education and college education that would follow it," Delacroix said. Contact Michelle Spielman | LSU
University Relations Related Links University Lab School |
As
state and national colleges and universities increase their standards
for admission, today's high school seniors, like Hal Boutte, 18,
realize that it takes more than just good grades and a passing score
on the college entrance exam to get into a choice school.
In
2000, the 
The
IB Diploma program is optional for 11th and 12th grade Lab School
students. However all students in these grades are encouraged to
take at least one IB course. In grades kindergarten through 10,
the program is integrated throughout the normal school curriculum.
Amanda
Exner, a LSU freshman and alumna of the Lab School's first IB Diploma
class, is on a fast track to gradation. Upon entering LSU, she tested
out of all the required courses for freshmen and sophomores, freeing
up many valuable credit hours to take electives that pertain to
her declared major, psychology. She hopes one day to become a clinical
psychologist.
In
the fall, Lab School students won't be the only ones reaping the
benefits of this world-class curriculum. Several public schools
in Jefferson parish will begin implementing IB in the 2004-2005
school year.
