About IB

IB Mission Statement 

The International Baccalaureate aims to develop inquiring, knowledgeable and caring young people who help to create a better and more peaceful world through intercultural understanding and respect.  To this end the organization works with schools, government and international organizations to develop challenging programs of international education and rigorous assessment.  These programs encourage students across the world to become active, compassionate and lifelong learners who understand that other people, with their differences, can also be right. 

 In order to complete public school enrollment, the following information must be presented in person to the Student Services Department. All registration documents must be provided in English. Translated documents must be notarized to certify their accuracy and be accompanied by the original document. 

Once students have been cleared to attend Mount Vernon City School District and Mount Vernon HS enrollment is established, students will participate in the International Baccalaureate (IB) Programme at Mount Vernon High School through a school-wide commitment shared with the IB World Schools’ common philosophy—a commitment to improve the teaching and learning of a diverse and inclusive community of students by delivering high-quality programs of international education that share a powerful vision. 

The International Baccalaureate, a globally recognized honors program, provides challenging academics paired with a social and emotional framework for developing balanced, well-rounded students. Our upper grades program is built as an “International Baccalaureate for ALL” model.   

Application for participation in specific IB courses or to become a Diploma Programme students are offered at MVHS and are available to all enrolled students in grade 10.  Students must continue to maintain enrollment and be in good standing as a student in Mount Vernon High School for the entirety of their time in attendance at the school. 

A select group of sophomores will be selected to attempt the Diploma Programme (DP) beginning in their 11-12 grade years.  These students selected to participate in the Diploma Programme will have completed, coursework and Regents exams in Algebra 1, Geometry, Living Environment, Chemistry, Global History, and English, by the end of 10th grade. Those interested in pursuing university programs as a post-secondary, undergraduate in a STEM field, have the option of taking physics.   

Once in the 11th and 12th grades, these students in the Diploma Programme will take coursework in the following six areas that are a mix higher level (HL) and standard level (SL): History, Language and Literature, Economics, Math, Environmental Systems and Society, and Spanish.  IB courses have a minimum teaching time of 150 hours in SL courses and 240 hours in HL courses. All IB Diploma candidates will be expected to complete an Extended Essay, the Theory of Knowledge course, and engage in a Creativity, Action, and Service (CAS) project. Students interested in the Diploma Program must also apply for admission in the Spring Semester of grade 10.   

 In addition, during Grade 10, all other students are given the opportunity to pursue Certificate Candidacy which allows them to take fewer than the six courses required to be a DP student. Applying for an IB course is open school-wide and all applicants must submit a short-answer application that gauges interest, preparedness and commitment. All admissions decisions take place at the building level once a student is registered at Mount Vernon High School Students interested in the Certificate Candidacy may apply in the Spring semester of grades 10, 11 or during the first 10 school days of 12th grade. 

All students who apply are counseled by his/her school counselor and the IB Coordinator to make sure he/she understands both the expectations of MVHS and the International Baccalaureate Organization. If a student is qualified and still wants to pursue the either program, they will be allowed to do so. 

Mount Vernon High School and the International Baccalaureate Organization aims to develop inquiring, knowledgeable and caring young people who help to create a better and more peaceful world through intercultural understanding and respect. To this end, the organization works with schools, governments, and international organizations to develop challenging programs of international education and rigorous assessment. These programs encourage students across the world become active, compassionate, and lifelong learners who understand that other people, with their differences, can also be right. 

• Mount Vernon High School, as an IB World School Candidate for both the Middle Years and Diploma Programs, is working to promote Academic Honesty.  We will act with integrity, and a sense of fairness and justice.  

  ACADEMIC MISCONDUCT 

  Mount Vernon High School defines academic misconduct as behavior (whether deliberate or inadvertent) that results in, or may result in, the student or any other student gaining an unfair advantage in one or more components of assessment. Behavior that may disadvantage another student is also regarded as academic misconduct. Academic misconduct is a breach of these regulations and includes, but is not restricted to, the following: 

  1. Plagiarism—This is defined as the representation, intentionally or unintentionally, of the ideas, words or work of another person without proper, clear and explicit acknowledgment.
  2. b.Collusion—This is defined as supporting academic misconduct by another student, for example, allowing one’s work to be copied or submitted for assessment by another.
  3. c.Duplication of work—This is defined as the presentation of the same work for different assessment components and/or DP core requirements.
  4. d.Misconduct during an examination(for example, taking unauthorized material into an examination, behavior that disrupts the examination or distracts other students, or communicating with another student, use of electronic devices). 
  5. Any other behavior that gains an unfair advantage for a student or that affects the results of another student(for example, falsifying a CAS record, disclosure of information to and receipt of information from students about the content of an examination paper via any form of communication/media).

  Academic Honesty Policy and the School Community 

  1. The students: the students will receive the Academic Honesty Policy from their teachers in both the fall and the spring.  The policies will be reviewed and the students will sign an agreement attesting to their knowledge and possible consequences of the policy. 
  2. The parents: the parents will have to co-sign the policy in tandem with their child, acknowledging as above. 
  3. The community: the Academic Honesty Policy will be displayed prominently in the classrooms, and teachers are advised to refer to it periodically. 

  NORMS: Students are expected to produce authentic work at all times.  

  Classroom Procedures. Teachers are expected to minimize the opportunities for students to partake in collusion, misconduct, or academic dishonesty. These actions include, but are not limited to, making sure no student has a cell phone on their person during an in-class assessment, placing desks far enough apart so students cannot read each other’s answers, and varying/changing assessments and labs from year to year, and being vigilant while the assessment is taking place. 

  Citations. Proper use of referencing conventions is expected in all courses. Teachers will provide the students with the format of referencing that is appropriate to the course (e.g. MLA or APA). 

  Teachers will review submissions using an approved plagiarism tool.  Should an incident of academic misconduct be suspected of taking place, students will be notified and the incident will be referred to the academic coordinator. 

    

   Procedures if Academic Misconduct is suspected on assessments 

  1. If a student is suspected of academic malpractice during an in-class assessment, the teacher will move the student, remove from reach anything the student was using to gain unfair advantage on the assessment, and allow the student to finish the assessment.
  2. b. If a student is suspected of academic malpractice on an assessment, the student will be notified of this fact and the teacher will contact and talk to the student’s parent(s)/guardian(s) - either on the phone or in person.
  3. c. The student and the teacher will be required to write a statement regarding the incident, in a timely manner. The teacher will be responsible to provide information on the infraction, the penalty, and date/details of discussion with student and parent.
  4. If the student is found to have committed academic malpractice (intentional or unintentional), the student will have to re-do the assessment and a 20% deduction from the in-school grade will be taken off the new assessment once it is graded as a sanction for academic malpractice. Students who are enrolled in the IB Program will be subject to the IB Academic Policies that are listed below. 
  5. e. In the case of an assessment that would have taken a significant amount of time to produce, the student will be given a reasonable amount of time to submit the new assessment. Exams must be re-administered within 3 days of the infraction. 
  6. If a student or parent/guardian believes an incorrect determination has occurred, the student or parent/guardian may appeal the determination to the administrator in charge of supervising the academic department of the teacher.The decision of the administrator is final. 
  7. h.If a pattern of academic misconduct begins to emerge,an administrator will work with the school’s Student Support Team and the parent(s)/guardian(s) of that student. Additionally, other sanctions may be put in place toward the goal of permanent remediation of this issue. 

  All students in the IB program are subject to the following regulations as prescribed by the IB  academic honesty guidelines: 

  21. (21.1) If questions arise about the authenticity of a student’s work before submission for assessment, the situation must be resolved within the school. If possible academic misconduct (for example, plagiarism, collusion) is identified after a student’s work has been submitted to the IB Organization for assessment, the school’s DP coordinator must inform the IB Organization as soon as possible. For work that is internally assessed, “submission” refers to the deadline by which teachers’ marks must be submitted to the IB Organization. For work that is externally assessed, other than the scripts from the written examinations, “submission” refers to the student signing the declaration of authenticity for their work.
  22. (21.2) When a school, an examiner, or the IB Organization establishes evidence to suspect academic misconduct by a student, the school will be required to conduct an investigation and provide the IB Organization with statements and other relevant documentation concerning the case. If a school fails to support the investigation into possible academic misconduct, no grade will be awarded to the student in the subject(s) concerned.
  23. c. (21.3) If the IB Organization notifies a school that a student is suspected of academic misconduct and that the IB Organization has the intention of initiating an investigation, at the discretion of the head of school it is permissible for the student to be withdrawn from the session or from the subject(s) in which academic misconduct may have occurred. However, at the discretion of the IB Organization the investigation into the suspected academic misconduct by the student may still proceed and a decision be reached on whether to uphold or dismiss academic misconduct. If a student is withdrawn from a subject no mark for that subject may contribute to the award of a grade in a future examination session.
  24. d. (21.4) Students suspected of academic misconduct must be invited, through the school’s DP coordinator, to present a written statement that addresses the suspicion of academic misconduct. If a student declines to present a statement, the investigation and decision on whether the student is in breach of regulations will still proceed.
  25. (21.5) The majority of cases of suspected academic misconduct will be presented to a sub-committee of the Final Award Committee. The sub-committee will normally comprise IB Organization staff, school representatives, and chief/deputy chief examiners, but any group or combination of these persons may make decisions on cases subject to the approval of the Final Award Committee. The sub-committee will be chaired by the chair or vice-chair of the Final Award Committee, or a chief examiner nominated by the vice-chair.
  26. (21.6) Decisions of the sub-committee are made on behalf of and under the supervision of the Final Award Committee. After reviewing all statements and evidence collected during the investigation, the sub-committee will decide whether to dismiss the suspicion of academic misconduct, uphold it, or ask for further investigations to be made. If the sub-committee is unable to reach a decision, then the case will be referred to the Final Award Committee.
  27. (21.7) If the sub-committee decides that a case of academic misconduct has been established, a penalty will be applied in the subject(s) concerned. The penalty will, in the judgment of the sub-committee, be commensurate with the severity of the misconduct. If a case of academic misconduct is considered by the Final Award Committee to be very serious, the Final Award Committee may decide not to issue a grade for a student in the subject(s) concerned and additionally prohibit the student from being registered in any future examination sessions.
  28. (21.8) If no grade is issued for a subject that contributes to a student’s IB Diploma, no IB Diploma will be awarded to the student. DP Course Results will be awarded for other subjects in which no academic misconduct has occurred. Except in cases of serious or repeat misconduct, the student will be permitted to register for future examination sessions, which may include the session that follows six months later, if the relevant registration deadlines are met. In the case of an IB Diploma Student, if the session in which the academic misconduct has been established is the student’s third examination session towards achieving the award of the IB Diploma, no further IB examination sessions will be permitted.
  29. i. (21.9) If the student has already been found in breach of regulations in any previous session, this will normally lead to disqualification from participation in any future examination session.
  30. (21.10) If there is substantive evidence, the IB Organization is entitled to conduct an investigation into academic misconduct after a student’s results have been issued. If academic misconduct is subsequently established by the Final Award Committee, or its sub-committee, the student’s grade for the subject(s) concerned may be withdrawn from the student which will also result in the withdrawal of their IB Diploma where applicable.

• Philosophy  

   We believe that assessment should inform instruction.  Ongoing assessments are integral to guiding students and teachers through the learning process. The practice of assessment is one of shared responsibilities. It is critical that each stakeholder understand his or her role in the process. 

  The Purpose of Assessments at Mount Vernon High School in conjunction with the IB Program is to: 

  • Provide feedback for students and parents regarding individual student knowledge, relative to the demands of the instructional program. 
  • Inform and drive best practices in planning and instruction. 
  • Provide multiple opportunities for success throughout the learning process – before, during, and following teacher instruction and student-directed learning experiences. The frequency of assessments (and types thereof) is left to the discretion of each educator. 
  • Determine student preparation for further education, career preparedness and contribution to the global community. 

    

  What Will be Assessed: 

  •  Student’s ability to recall, understand, apply, analyze, evaluate, and create/synthesize the knowledge and concepts acquired in an accelerated educational setting. 

  Types of Assessments:  

  Formative Assessment: Evaluation aimed at identifying the learning needs of students and helping to inform the instruction itself.  

  Formative assessments measure learning along the way; produce evidence of learning; provide timely feedback to students and teachers.   Results on formative assessments serve students and teachers by providing critical information on the concepts students have and have not grasped. 

  Summative Assessment: Evaluation of student achievement through a culminating activity generally at the end of a unit or course of study. 

  • Summative assessments allow students to show what they have learned.  Assessments can include presentations, tests, projects, reflections, experiments, simulated learning experiences, and exit interviews. 
  • Assessments are aligned with the New York State Regents, IB/AP requirements, and New York State Common Core Learning Standards 
  • Final assessments include, but are not limited to, school-based final examinations and New York State Regents Exams. 
  •  Standardized assessments not calculated in students’ final grades include the Advanced Placement examinations administered by the College Board as well as International Baccalaureate examinations. 
  • Students who are enrolled in an IB/AP class attached to a New York State Regents examination are mandated to take both the IB/AP assessments and take the New York State Regents Examination.  

  Marking/Assessment Instruments: 

  Students will be graded in accordance with MVCSD District Policies, NYS Regents Regulations, and IB Guidelines. 

  • Students will be assessed using the system provided by the school grading policy (Schoology) and will be albe to see their grades daily.   
  • Parents will be able to access and monitor students' grades via Schoology and other protocols put in place by the school and teachers.  

• Mount Vernon High School values the process of language learning as a means of creating a climate of cultural awareness and international-mindedness.
• We provide support for all language learners and their families, including those in which the primary language of instruction is not their mother-tongue.
• Mount Vernon High School provides the opportunity for all students to learn at least one language in addition to their mother tongue 
• We provide support for students to be successful in language acquisition. 
• We recognize that, since language is central to learning, all teachers are language teachers the appreciation, understanding and analysis of literature 
•  Encourage students to explore language to understand differing perspectives of people from other countries.

•   Enable students to learn and use language effectively, appropriately, accurately, and confidently.
•   Develop student mastery of oral and written communication 
•   Enable students to develop and use language skills in a variety of contexts and purposes 
•   Promote cultures 
•   Develop student awareness of the role of language in other areas of the curriculum and its connection/relation to other ways of knowing 
• Provide an opportunity for enjoyment, creativity, and intellectual development through the knowledge of language, literature, and non-textual media

• Identify students with limited English proficiency and place in appropriate English as a Second Language and/or bilingual education programs in accordance with New York State Regulations (CR Part 117 and CR Part 154) and Federal Requirements (NCLB Title I and Title III).
• Provide access to appropriate instructional programs, across academic settings, that are grounded in an evidentiary base of scientific research in alignment with New York State Standards and that consider and/or include:
  •   English language proficiency/literacy skills
  •   Effective English as a New Language (ENL) methodologies
  •   Native language proficiency/literacy skills as required
  •   Effective bilingual instructional strategies, as appropriate
  •   Effective academic interventions and support services
  •   Instructional materials that are culturally responsive and that support and facilitate language development
  •   Inclusion in District specialized programs (e.g. vocational, etc.)
• Monitor progress of English Language Learners utilizing appropriate assessment instruments, as required by New York State regulations and as outlined in the District’s Three-Year Academic Plan, including:
  •   Yearly progress towards learning English (NYSESLAT)
  •   Literacy development in English
  •   Academic progress in the content areas
  •   Timely and appropriate transition to monolingual programs
  •   Data collection that is timely and appropriate for program decision-making
  •   Communicate with parents/guardians and community members to promote understanding, support, and involvement by:
  •   Disseminating information in multiple languages
  •   Providing translators, whenever feasible, to facilitate face-to-face communication between families and the school

• Inclusive assessment arrangements must have prior approval from the IB Assessment Centre. Mount Vernon High School’s IB DP Coordinator will submit an application for special testing arrangements. The IB Coordinator will submit to IB the appropriate accommodations form, along with the supporting documentation, requesting assessment modifications when needed.  

• Promote an inclusive, safe environment that meets the needs of each student 

1. Maintain compliance with the federal and local laws regarding Special Education 
2. Ensure that the special needs of students are supported appropriately within the IB program 
    
   Differentiated Support 
   Mount Vernon High School faculty employ inclusive teaching techniques and design learning experiences that allow all students, including those who have special educational needs, to meet the rigorous standards of the IB Diploma Program. Students are provided with opportunities to achieve these goals by participating in carefully constructed differentiated teaching strategies designed to maximize students’ potential and also allow the student to demonstrate learning in different ways.  
    
   Students enrolled in the IB Program work towards achieving the assessment objectives as described in each of the subject guides. Although the objectives of each subject guide cannot be changed, special accommodations and program modifications will be made for students who show a documented need for them. Additionally, if a student is in need of testing accommodations, they can be made if the student meets the criteria as stated by the International Baccalaureate Organization. 
    Assessment Accommodations 
    In accordance with IB policy, Mount Vernon High School “believes that all students should be allowed to demonstrate their ability under assessment conditions that are as fair as possible.”  (IBO, May 2009).  
    Students may receive testing accommodations if they are multi-lingual learners,  have an IEP, 504 Plan, or if they are declassified but retain their testing accommodations per district, CSE and parent agreement. Teachers use these testing accommodations throughout the course so students are well prepared for the format and expectations of their exit exams. Testing accommodations may include but are not limited to:  

• extended time 
• separate location 
• revised response format 
• the use of assistive technology.