It’s official! Martin Luther King, Jr. Middle School and Maynard Jackson High School are now authorized to offer the Middle Years Programme! The programming is a result of hard work and collaboration between Maynard Jackson High School and Martin Luther King, Jr. Middle School to prepare the Jackson Cluster for full IB implementation.
“Martin Luther King, Jr. Middle School is excited and honored to become an authorized IB World School,” said Principal Paul Brown. “This opportunity will allow us to continue our commitment to preparing our students to be globally ready for college and career. Through our partnership with Maynard Jackson High School, we have developed a vertical alignment for a common instructional framework and increased the rigor for our students as they transition into high school.”
Maynard Jackson High School already offers the International Baccalaureate diploma and career-related programming. The partnership between the two schools allows for students to continue their IB World curriculum as they transition from middle to high school.
Maynard Jackson High School Principal Adam Danser is proud of the schools’ collaboration: “I would like to commend the teams at both schools for their commitment to this process, which involved countless hours of collaboration, development, reflection, and professional learning, as well as the courage and determination to stretch themselves professionally for the good of our kids. I am particularly thankful for how this IB MYP journey has brought King Middle School and Maynard Jackson High School closer together.”
The desire to expand the IB framework stems from the community’s input and compelling data that proves IB programming has a positive impact on student achievement. In particular, research shows that IB students from Title 1 schools enroll in college at much higher rates than the national average.
Building on the momentum of the cluster middle and high school, the Jackson Cluster elementary schools are working to fully implement the Primary Year Programme (grades PK-5) to complete the clusters’ journey to become an International Baccalaureate Cluster. Implementing the PYP in the cluster elementary schools will ensure that students can thrive in the MYP programme at King Middle School. Currently, Wesley International Charter school is the only authorized elementary IB World School in the Jackson Cluster. Burgess-Peterson Academy had its IB authorization visit in May 2019 and is awaiting its authorization decision. Benteen, Dunbar, Parkside and Toomer elementary schools are in the IB candidate school phase and plan to apply for authorization within the next two years. Barack and Michelle Obama Academy is in the IB consideration phase and plans to begin the IB feasibility study in the next two years.
The IB programme offers an education for students from age 3 to 19, comprising of four programmes that focus on teaching students to think critically and independently, and how to inquire with care and logic. In short, IB encourages students to ask questions and to reflect on what they’ve learned, encouraging them to use these skills even after graduation.
“I am most thrilled for our kids, who, as students at IB World Schools, will be challenged to think globally, develop personally, and excel academically so that they can one day help to create a better world,” Principal Danser said.
Martin Luther King, Jr. Middle School believes the IB Middle Years Programme will shift the way students approach learning and empower them to achieve not only in the classroom, but globally.
“Becoming an IB world school will allow our students to have a shared awareness of what it means to be internationally-minded,” said Principal Brown.
To learn more about the International Baccalaureate, an Atlanta Public Schools signature program, please visit, https://www.atlantapublicschools.us/Page/55472.
