IB Diploma Programme: Expanding access to all students in Costa Rica
By Denis Gutiérrez Morales, coordinator, IB Diploma Programme, Colegio Bilingüe de Palmares, Palmares, Costa Rica
Colegio de Palmares was founded in 1958 and, since then, has evolved into an institution with a clearly defined mission and vision that focuses on providing a highly-competitive, quality education for its students.
With the challenges of today’s society in mind, our institution became a bilingual school in 2003. In 2006, Colegio Bilingüe de Palmares received a visit from IB America’s council member, Steve Aronson, and María Consuelo Burgos-Cantor, who brought with them a proposal that would change the course of the school, and the lives of our students, our educators, our head of school, and our entire community. Their proposal was for the Colegio Bilingüe de Palmares to offer the IB Diploma Programme. Becoming an IB World School at first seemed out of our grasp. However, as I listened to Mr. Aronson and Ms. Burgos-Cantor, my motivation grew. Although I felt that this would be a great opportunity for both our students and the community of Palmares, I also knew that this initiative would represent a number of challenges that were not only social, but also economic, institutional, academic, and administrative affecting the entire community.
There were several obstacles to overcome during the application phase. We needed to improve the school’s infrastructure by building new classrooms and laboratories, as well as updating the library facilities. Additionally, we needed to raise funds for workshop fees for our staff. We did not know if the students’ families would be able to afford the costs associated with offering the programme. Also, not everyone within the community supported this innovative initiative as some people had little prior knowledge of the programme. Lastly, we needed to convince the Ministerio de Educación Pública (Ministry of Public Education) of Costa Rica that offering the IB curriculum would give our students the chance to receive a quality education. Successful implementation of the programme was dependent on the Ministry’s approval of the programme and the commitment to pay the salaries of the teachers teaching the programme.
In November 2006, our school began the authorization process to become an IB World School, and, from that moment on, we worked hard to fulfil the organization’s requirements. Mr. Aronson’s help was essential, as he provided the school with the funding and support necessary to carry out the authorization process. At the same time, Mr. Aronson also worked with other members of the community to create an organization that would financially support the Diploma Programme in Costa Rican public schools so that money would no longer be an obstacle for public school students to receive a high-quality education.
To educate parents, students and the community about the International Baccalaureate, we brought in IB alumnae to speak about their experiences as diploma graduates. Additionally, we sent our interested teachers to private IB World Schools across Costa Rica so that our staff could experience the programme first hand. We also designed a plan in which teachers could meet to discuss the philosophy, methodology, standards, guidelines and mission of the International Baccalaureate. All of these efforts increased the support and commitment to the IB within our learning community.
Convincing the Ministry of Public Education to approve the programme was another obstacle. We coordinated several meetings with representatives from the Ministry throughout the process in order to educate them on the programme and on our proposal. We arranged a visit to the school by the vice minister, and had our own students present their views on why the IB Diploma Programme was necessary for the school. After seeing the strong infrastructure of the school, as well as the great commitment of the school community, the Ministry of Public Education gave its approval and commitment to pay the salaries of those teaching the programme.
Colegio Bilingüe de Palmares was authorized to offer the IB Diploma Programme in November of 2007. After we were officially authorized, the Ministry of Public Education began recognizing the IB Diploma Programme exams, foregoing the necessity for students to also have to take the national Costa Rican exams. In a typical show of support, the community of Palmares, including past graduates of the school, private businesses, cooperatives, the Asociación Cívica (Palmares Civic Association), local authorities, and residents, received the news that the International Baccalaureate had authorized Colegio Bilingüe de Palmares with great enthusiasm.
Palmares’ journey to authorization to offer the programme has been a very special experience for everyone involved, breaking the traditional mould of public education. It is a quality education that brings about change in the people who embrace it, promoting reflection, critical analysis, and evaluation. As the head of the school, it is very motivating to be able to watch a group of young people working hard to achieve their goals as they incorporate values such as hard work, resolve, and discipline.
Our first Diploma class was made up of 34 students and 15 teachers, all of whom bravely accepted the challenge of preparing and carrying out the internal and external assessment processes that are an integral part of the programme. In November 2009, our first group of students took their IB exams. We are proud to say that a total of 33 students earned the full diploma. This is a significant achievement for all of us, proving that with discipline, hard work, and a positive attitude, all obstacles can be overcome.
I urge public schools that want to take on the challenge of the IB Diploma Programme to dare to dream, and to not let the opportunity for a different, high-quality education that reflects the requirements of today’s society pass them by.
