International Baccalaureate 

Quick Facts 

for Citrus County Students

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.

WHAT IS IT?

•	An internationally recognized program.
•	A high quality curriculum that aims to encourage critical thinking by the study of traditional disciplines while encouraging an international perspective.
•	A program designed for the academically able student who can function across the curriculum and who has learned to manage time well.

WHY DO IT?

•	IB provides a broad general education will still allowing specialized study in areas corresponding to the individual’s particular interests and plans for the future.
•	IB educates the “whole person.”
•	IB encourages students to appreciate cultures and attitudes other than their own and to be informed, tolerant, and willing to communicate with others.
•	IB has an international acceptability, which allows for both flexibility and mobility.
•	The IB approach to education is not encyclopedic.  The emphasis is on helping students to learn how to learn and how to analyze.

In February of 2009, Lecanto High School received official authorization from the Director General of International Baccalaureate, Jeffery Beard, to offer the IB Diploma Programme.
IB Course Offerings at Lecanto High School

Group 1		Language A1					English

Group 2		Language B					Spanish

Group 3		Individuals and Societies			History of the Americas
									Integrated Technology in Society

Group 4		Experimental Sciences			Chemistry
									Biology
									
Group 5		Mathematics/Computer Science		Math Studies
									Math Standard Level

Group 6		Arts						Visual Art

MANDATORY:  	Theory of Knowledge Class, Extended Essay, CAS (Community, Action, 
       Service)

IB Hexagon of Learning

     			English							Spanish

THEORY OF KNOWLEDGE

EXTENDED ESSAY

CAS

							Ther

   Individuals											     Experimental
     & Societies											       Sciences

		  Mathematics							   The Arts

WHAT WOULD MY HIGH SCHOOL SCHEDULE LOOK LIKE?

PRE-IB LECANTO 10th Grade Classes

AP English Language                    AP Euro History

Math (Honors)		           Pre-IB Chemistry

Pre-IB Spanish II		          Pre-IB Art Inquiry 

Elective				Elective

PRE-IB LECANTO 9th Grade Classes

Pre-IB English I		        Pre-IB Inquiry Skills

Math (Honors)			Pre-IB Biology 

AP World History		Pre-IB Spanish I

Elective				PE/Health

IB 12th Grade Classes

IB English 			IB History

IB Math				IB Science

IB Spanish			IB Art

TOK/EE				Elective

IB 11th Grade Classes

IB English			IB History

IB Math (Honors)		IB Science

IB Spanish			IB Art

Elective				TOK/EE

* Please note, students in PIBS and IB students will be on a different schedule than most of the other students.  They will be following a partial block/partial alternating block schedule.  

HOW DO I APPLY FOR Lecanto’s Pre-IB Program for 9th and 10th grade?

Pick up an application from any Citrus County Middle School OR Lecanto High School.  Fill out the form and return it.  Your acceptance into the IB / PIBS program will be determined by the below requirements.

Admission Requirements

-- A/B honor roll and no more than 1 C (preferred) in any academic area during the 8th grade year.

-- FCAT 7th grade READING level 3 

-- FCAT 7th grade MATH level 3.
					** At this time, we are not reviewing end of course exams!

-- Essay WRITING level 4 on an FCAT Writes Scale (as graded by IB Diploma Program Coordinator)
	
-- Honors Algebra OR Algebra taken in 8th Grade—preferred.  Students who have not had Honors Algebra or    Algebra can still apply and will be given serious consideration.

(Out of state students must submit alternate standardized test scores, usually the Iowa Basic or Stanford tests)

IN THEIR OWN WORDS: QUOTES ABOUT IB FROM

									        Educators, Students, Parents

“The International Baccalaureate programme raised the bar for all advanced academic programmes in Fairfax County Public Schools.  Student enrollment and achievement in IB courses at our most diverse schools show that high expectations lead to high performance.  The IB programme teaches our students that being smart is not a matter of heredity, but of motivation and hard work.  The programme leads students to deeper understandings of themselves and the world around them—basic skills for success in the 21st century.”
				--Bernadette Glaze
				  Coordinator for Advanced Academic Programmes
				  Fairfax County (Virginia) Public Schools

“Send us prepared students a la IB…It is the “best” high school prep curriculum an American school can offer.”
				--Marilee Jones
				   Director of undergraduate Admission
				   Massachusetts Institute of Technology

“I have always been a supporter of the International Baccalaureate.  It is a thoughtful and genuinely intellectual curriculum with an unusually high degree of integrity and connectedness.  There is no other curriculum anywhere that does a superior job of both education students and inspiring a true and broad-based love of learning.”
				--William Shain
				   Dean of Undergraduate Admissions
				   Vanderbilt University

“As I reflect on my high school experience, I am proud to say that I am a member of the IB program.  Though very rigorous and challenging, the IB program has helped me to live up to my full potential as a student as well as a person.  This program requires you to work hard, take education seriously, and stretch your mind to do things that you never thought were possible.  I am very thankful for the opportunity to participate in a program that holds my future to a standard of excellence that does not waiver.  From the IB program, I have acquired study habits and work skills that will serve me well in college and throughout my life.”
				--Sierra Minott, former IB student
				  Fort Myers High School, Class of 2006
				  Fort Myers, Florida

“As a parent, initially unfamiliar with the IB programme, I feel very fortunate that my children were enrolled in a school system that led them to Park View and the IB.  From providing the eldest with the opportunity to trust her faith in her abilities and reach for the unknown, to teaching my middle child that having to readjust your goals part way through something is part of learning, to providing the youngest with a challenging and rich environment to stretch and thrive in, The IB programme was an integral component to their successful transition into three Nova Scotia universities.  All three of my children found first-year university a breeze.”
				--Jacky Dulong,
				   parent of former IB students. 
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

WILL ALL THREE HIGH SCHOOLS OFFER IB?

	No.  At this time, the only school in the county that will offer IB is Lecanto High School.

WHY WAS LECANTO HIGH SCHOOL CHOSEN FOR IB?

	Because it is in the middle of the county, students who live on the fringes of the county will not have to 
be unduly inconvenienced.

WILL BUSING BE PROVIDED FOR OUT OF ZONE STUDENTS?	
	
Yes!  Citrus County Schools will provide busing for those students who desire it.  All services, however, are subject to budget approval.

CITRUS COUNTY SCHOOLS OFFER DIFFERENT ACADEMIES.  HOW DOES IB FIT IN?

	IB is not an academy.  IB is a curriculum, an international one.  The curriculum of IB is NOT determined 
by the county or state of Florida, but rather by a worldwide collaboration of educators.

HOW DOES IB FIT INTO THE STATE OF FLORIDA REQUIREMENTS FOR GRADUATION?

The state of Florida is very supportive of IB.  According to Florida statute 1003.43, the general requirements for a high school graduate are as follows:  “Graduation requires successful completion of either a minimum of 24 academic credits in grades 9 through 12 OR an International Baccalaureate curriculum….”

WILL IB GET ME INTO THE COLLEGE OF MY CHOICE

No.  IB cannot get you into the college of your choice.  IT CAN, however, give you a much better chance of getting into the college of your choice.  For example, one statistic mentions that only 12% of Yale applicants get into Yale.  For IB students, almost 30% get in.

WHAT IS AN IB DIPLOMA?

An IB Diploma is a diploma awarded by the International Baccalaureate organization.  Without getting too technical, students have to earn passing marks in all 6 courses they take and satisfactorily complete the Theory of Knowledge Class (TOK), meet the 8 objectives of Creativity, Action, and Service (CAS), and submit a 4,000 word Extended Essay (EE).  

IF I DON’T GET THE IB DIPLOMA, DOES THAT MEAN I DO NOT GRADUATE HIGH SCHOOL?

Not at all.  An IB Diploma is given in addition to a diploma from Lecanto High School.  Regardless of whether or not you get the IB Diploma, your graduation from Citrus County will depend solely on your grades in your classes—just like any other student.

WILL COLLEGES BE UPSET IF I DON’T GET AN IB DIPLOMA?

Absolutely NOT.  In fact, colleges will already have accepted you prior to knowing whether or not you have earned an IB Diploma.  To be honest, colleges just want to see that you have taken the most challenging curriculum offered to you.  If you take IB, you will have.

SHOULD I BE CLASSIFIED A GIFTED STUDENT TO SUCCEED IN IB?

IB is NOT a gifted program.  It is simply a rigorous curriculum designed to prepare any and all hardworking students for tomorrow’s international world.

IF IB IS FOR EVERYONE, WHY IS THERE A REQUIREMENT TO GET INTO THE PROGRAM?

In order to succeed, students will need to have solid skills in reading and math and writing prior to entering the program.  The requirements that we have established are to ensure that students are placed in appropriate classes.

 IF I GET INTO THE PROGRAM AND DECIDE TO LEAVE, I CAN, RIGHT?		

Nobody will ever be forced to stay in IB.  HOWEVER, there will be an application to leave the program.  If you choose to enter the IB program, we expect a serious commitment on your part.  At Lecanto High School, we are committed to doing everything that we can to help you earn an IB Diploma.  We ask that you have the same determination and goal.

I’M A LITTLE NERVOUS.  I DON’T THINK I AM VERY SMART, AND I AM WORRIED ABOUT ALL I HAVE TO DO.

Students ask that question every day.  To be honest, if you are serious about your education, you have nothing to worry about.  At Lecanto High School, we want to HELP you succeed.  Your success is our success.

I HAVE HEARD THAT IB STUDENTS ARE ONLY BOOKWORMS.  THEY HAVE NO LIFE.  IS THAT TRUE?

NOT AT ALL!!!!  IB students are normal high school students.  They play sports, join clubs, play in the band, perform in the theatre, hang out with friends, go to the mall, and take fun electives.  IB students are normal students, who also participate in a very specialized program.