Notre Dame has been authorized to offer the IB-PYP since 2010. It is the only Catholic school in the state with all three levels of International Baccalaureate.On the opening day of its recent Asia-Pacific conference in Singapore, the International Baccalaureate (IB) released new research findings that illuminate the excellence of its Primary Years Programme (PYP) for children 3-12 years old. Conducted by a research team at Deakin University in Melbourne, Australia, this new study suggests that, compared to a nationwide sample of students, PYP students achieve particularly well in science literacy based on Australia’s national assessment program.
Notre Dame offers the PYP to students in junior-kindergarten through 5th grade.
“Primary education standards are high in Australia,” acknowledges Ian Chambers, IB director for Asia Pacific, “yet the PYP demonstrates its transformational power on both student performance and teaching and learning. The PYP provides a strong foundation, nurtures curiosity and prepares students for their educational journey and the challenges of life.”
The researchers administered the 2012 National Assessment Program (NAP) in Science Literacy (SL) to Year 6 students in 10 schools that have delivered the PYP for at least three years. (The assessment is normally conducted triennially with a randomly selected national sample of students.) Both government and non-government schools were included in the study: some in urban locations, some in regional locations. The testing instrument included both an ‘objective test’ component and a ‘practical task’ component. In results that combined assessments of both components, fully 83.3% of PYP students tested at or above the suggested science proficiency level for Year 6. Nationally, only 51.4% of children were at or above the suggested proficiency level for Year 6, with 48.6% of students falling below the suggested proficiency level. In addition, 23.6% of PYP students performed at levels characterized as ‘exemplary.’ This compared with 9.3% of the national sample performing at the ‘exemplary’ level.
In addition to performing well on Australia’s NAP-SL test as a group, PYP students demonstrated science literacy that met or exceeded national proficiency levels by gender. PYP girls achieved a mean achievement score 56 points higher than the national mean score for girls. Most PYP girls—79%—performed at or above their anticipated science proficiency level for Year 6, compared to 51% of girls in the national sample who performed at or above the anticipated proficiency level. Meanwhile, boys achieved mean achievement scores nearly 70 points higher than the national mean score for boys. While 80% of PYP boys achieved results at or above their anticipated proficiency level, only 52% of boys in the national sample did so. Both PYP boys and girls performed above their expected proficiency levels in higher proportions than those in the national sample.
“PYP places a strong focus on inquiry-based learning,” Helen Barrett, head of PYP programme development, said. “The PYP is developed collaboratively between specialist and generalist teachers, with a transdisciplinary approach to inquiry. When the program concludes [at approximately age 12], rather than being tested, students demonstrate their ability to identify, investigate, and offer solutions to real-life problems through a collaborative Exhibition project.”
Find a research summary of this study here.
Find the full research report here.
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About International Baccalaureate
Founded in 1968, the International Baccalaureate (IB) is a not-for profit foundation, which offers four high quality programs—starting with the Primary Years Programme— and a continuum of challenging education for a worldwide community of schools. The PYP has been taught since 1997. For 45 years, IB programs have gained a reputation for rigor and high academic standards, for preparing students for life in a globalized 21st century, and for helping to develop citizens who will create a better, more peaceful world. Currently, more than one million IB students attend more than 3,700 schools in 147 countries.
About Notre Dame Preparatory School and Marist Academy
Notre Dame Preparatory School and Marist Academy is a private, Catholic, independent, coeducational day school located in Oakland County. The school's upper division enrolls students in grades nine through twelve and has been named one of the nation's best 50 Catholic high schools (Acton Institute) four times since 2005. Notre Dame's middle and lower divisions enroll students in jr. kindergarten through grade eight. All three divisions are International Baccalaureate "World Schools." NDPMA is conducted by the Marist Fathers and Brothers and is accredited by the Independent Schools Association of the Central States and the North Central Association Commission on Accreditation and School Improvement. For more on Notre Dame Preparatory School and Marist Academy, visit the school's home page at www.ndpma.org.