Sixth Form seems a long way off when you are in the Prep School, but it comes around surprisingly quickly! So, we were delighted to welcome our Head of School, Aiden Ainsworth-Cave (Upper Sixth), along with Fred Dickson and Hugo Willson (Lower Sixth), to assembly on Monday to talk about the International Baccalaureate (IB).
Aiden, Fred and Hugo, who are all studying the IB, told boys about the exciting subject and qualification choices in the Sixth Form. They also helped dispel some of the myths about studying the IB.
As ever, our Prep boys had some brilliant questions afterwards, including:
- What languages can you learn on the IB?
- How do they know you have written 4,000 words? (in the extended essay)
- How do you write an essay about maths when maths is numbers and calculations?
- How long does it take to do the IB?
- How much time is needed to study in the evenings?
When asked why he chose the IB, Fred explained, “I wasn’t sure which subjects to narrow down to for A-Level. Doing the IB allowed me to keep my options open. I also liked that the IB is assessed on both coursework and exams.”
While our Prep boys do not need to choose whether to study A-Level or the IB just yet, we hope they already have some of the answers to questions that are likely to come up.
About the IB at Bedford
Bedford School boys are extremely fortunate that, as an alternative to the traditional A-Level pathway in the Sixth Form, they can study the International Baccalaureate Diploma, which is an excellent route into leading universities in the UK and around the world. It is a very forward-looking qualification offering unrivalled breadth, and it is widely acknowledged by educationalists as the ‘gold standard’ in post-16 education.