Baccalaureate to feature at school

By REBECCA WALSH education reporter

New Zealand students will soon have the option of working towards an international qualification from form one at a new college in the South Island.

Christchurch Baccalaureate College will open in January 2002 and is the first school in the country to offer the International Baccalaureate middle years programme from forms one to five.

Fees are $8000 a year. Students do not have to wear uniforms and would have their own laptops.

College executive director Kate Averill said the independent, coeducational school was being set up to offer students a globally recognised qualification.

"It really sets high levels. Students can soar within it."

Ms Averill had reservations about the new National Certificate of Educational Achievement to replace School Certificate and Bursary in 2002, particularly for those students who wanted to extend themselves, and she questioned whether it would be recognised internationally.

The IB programme integrated subjects and offered students a range of approaches to learning, creativity and critical thinking, she said.

Ninety per cent of Baccalaureate students went on to tertiary study.

Year 11 students (form five) would graduate with two qualifications - the IB Middle Years Diploma and credit toward the new National Certificate of Educational Achievement.

But in 2003 the school would specialise in the International Baccalaureate Diploma for senior students.

A handful of schools around the country already offer the IB diploma at sixth and seventh form, including Kristin School in Albany.

Ms Averill said all students would take courses in sciences, humanities, arts and literature. They would also study a second language.

From 2002, Auckland Grammar School students will be able to study for Cambridge University A level examinations. The school will continue to offer the local curriculum and examinations.