September School Support Officer Update
It may feel like the start of the academic year was a lifetime ago, but this is my first chance to say welcome back! As well I know, this time brings its own particular combination of renewed energy, opportunity and, inevitably, pressure for IB schools and colleges. New cohorts are beginning to find their feet, returning students are suddenly faced with the reality of the year ahead and, almost before we have had time to settle back in, the next cycle of recruitment, applications and planning is already upon us.
It is perhaps no surprise, then, that recruitment and outreach are already featuring prominently in my conversations with schools and colleges. Open Events are looming in calendars, prospectuses and websites are being revisited and, once again, we are faced with the challenge of articulating clearly what makes an IB education distinctive.
Against a backdrop of continuing change across post-16 education, that feels more important than ever. The challenge is not simply to explain what the DP or CP is, but to communicate why these programmes might be the right choice for a young person. How do we explain the value of breadth, international-mindedness, independent research, critical thinking and the different pathways our programmes make possible? And how do we make those messages meaningful to students and families making very real choices about their futures?
As schools head into their autumn recruitment and Open Event season, this is an area where I am very happy to share thinking, resources and practice – and, just as importantly, to hear what is working in different contexts across our community.
For our IBCP schools and colleges, there is an additional dimension to that longer-term planning. Recent developments in post-16 qualification reform mean that questions about future Career-related Study (CRS) provision are beginning to become more pressing as the qualification landscape continues to change.
I have started exploring what IBCP schools and colleges are considering for their future CRS models. There are still unknowns, but this feels like precisely the sort of challenge where the collective experience of the IBSCA community can be particularly valuable. What are schools beginning to consider? What might future combinations look like? And what do we need to know in order to plan confidently while retaining the distinctive character of the IBCP?
If these conversations are beginning in your setting, I would be particularly interested to hear from you. Building a clearer picture of the thinking taking place across our schools will help us identify where further information, discussion or support might be most useful.
Meanwhile, for colleagues supporting university applications, September brings another familiar deadline rapidly into view. With the UK university admissions cycle now well underway, I am very conscious of the demands placed on our University and Careers Counsellors (UCCs) at this point in the year.
I am very happy to support colleagues with anything that arises during the application cycle – whether that is around UCAS applications and references, helping students articulate the particular strengths of their IB experience, questions around progression, or some of the more complex individual cases that inevitably appear at this time of year.
But perhaps this is also an opportunity to think beyond the immediate pressures of the university application season. One of the ideas I have been exploring recently whilst writing for our ‘IB in Practice’ series is the idea that good careers and progression guidance does not begin in the final years of school. Long before students are completing applications, they are developing their sense of who they are, what they value, what they might be good at and what possibilities might exist beyond school.
That makes this a conversation for our PYP and MYP communities too. There is a natural fit between the IB continuum and an approach to guidance that begins early: encouraging curiosity and aspiration, challenging assumptions about future pathways, helping young people recognise their developing skills and, as they grow older, enabling them to make increasingly informed choices.
So, while I am very happy to support our UCCs through the immediate demands of this application season, I would also love to hear from colleagues across PYP, MYP, DP and CP about how progression, aspiration and future pathways are embedded within your own settings. There is considerable practice across our community from which we can all learn.
I am also aware that evaluation is on the immediate horizon for a number of our schools and colleges, with visits taking place both this term and shortly after the winter break. If yours is one of them, please remember that support is available. Whether you have a specific question, would value another perspective on your preparations, or simply want to talk through where you are in the process, do get in touch.
At the beginning of another busy year, perhaps my message is simply: use the IBSCA network!
Please keep sharing the questions as well as the successes. Often, if something is occupying one school or college, it is occupying several others too – and sometimes the most useful support is simply finding the right people to have that conversation with.
I look forward to working with many of you over the coming terms– and I hope the new academic year has got off to a positive start!
Leanne Gibbons
School Support Officer, IBSCA