At the beginning of this school year, Clinton’s sophomores got their first glimpse into the world of the IB through the Middle Years Programme personal project. Over the span of 8 months, these students dedicated themselves to planning, researching and applying their knowledge to create a product and final report designed and inspired by their personal interests.
On April 2nd, they had the opportunity to display their work in the gymatorium to Clinton staff, parents, and current freshmen with the intent to inspire them for when it is their turn to undergo the demanding, but also fulfilling personal project journey.
The IB programme aims to develop knowledgeable, compassionate, students with intercultural understanding. The programme achieves this by encouraging students to be curious, self motivated, and to foster the ability to take control of their own learning. However, the IB can be extremely demanding. Understanding this, through the Middle Years Programme personal project, students can prepare for the IB by exploring and investigating their own interests, whatever that may be, from learning how to crochet to conducting their own scientific experiment, while also learning the fundamentals of the IB program!
To outline the process, when picking their topic, students think about their passions, while also considering the IB Global Contexts, six contexts that help students connect their interests to current global issues to form a greater understanding of the world around them. Students then conduct self-directed research and interview an expert in their topic to gather a wide range of information. Next, they create a product that demonstrates their learning of the topic. Throughout the whole project, students record their process in a journal providing evidence and reflections of their actions. Finally, they write a report summarizing their project including a reflection of what they learned, the research they conducted, the project they created, and which ones and how they utilized ATL skills.
Cora Riely, a current sophomore, recently completed her MYP project. She created a video about the journey of NYC’s trash as it was a topic she was curious to explore. She completed research, recorded clips and made sure to keep a journal of all her processes to make completing her project easier. Cora recommends for current freshmen when completing their projects to, “spread out your work. It helps make the project a lot less overwhelming. Also make sure that you do the little assignments along the way helps the work to not pile up at the end.”
As our school year comes to an end, freshmen should begin to think about what they’re passionate about and what challenges them. Personal projects help you discover your interests and imagine your future career path so when deciding your project, brainstorm topics that inspire you and give you the motivation to explore something that you are passionate about.
