Our secondary education system has been under continuous criticism as being too bookish, and not training young people to think out of the box and not preparing them both for university or working life. Out of the 189 secondary schools in Mauritius, only two ? Northfields International High School and Le Bocage International School (LBIS) ? offer an alternative programme for the last two years of secondary, which leads to the International Baccalaureate (IB). The only hitch is that it is very expensive and out of reach for many parents. The entry fee to LBIS is Rs 40 000 and the monthly school fees amount to Rs 10 000 while at Northfields, the fees are quite similar.

This is the price to pay if a parent wishes to offer a different system of education to his children. Is it worth it? David Muddle, the headmaster, is positive about that. ?We give a much more liberal education with rigour and breadth. Our students are very well prepared and are not spoon-fed like they would be in more traditional systems.?

If in Mauritius, the programme is not very popular, mainly due to its high cost, the IB is the most widely recognized pre-university educational programme. It is taught in more than 2,000 schools in 125 countries around the world. Students who obtain an IB not only get a certificate but, as the school?s original mission statement puts it, LBIS is committed to ?providing, in English, a high quality international secondary education that challenges students to realize their full potential in a caring and supportive environment?.

To put it in other words, emphasis is laid on high academic standards, international mindedness and developing learning skills to transform students into ?active learners?. According to Marie-Claire Luchmun, IB Coordinator, one of the major aims is to develop what is called critical thinking.

?Another strength?, says David Muddle, is that ?we stress very much on the involvement of our students in outdoor educational schemes?. ?We try to generate good communicators and try to get them to understand how they learn?, he adds. ?The child is not judged in comparison with others but on its own capacities?, asserts, for his part, the High School Principal Shekar Dewoo.

Northfields first participation in IB

David Muddle underlines the commitment of the school to take care of the academic, social and personal development of each and every pupil. And with a pass rate of 85%, ?without selection?, LBIS qualifies as one of the secondary education institutions with the highest outcome.

Founded in 2001, Northfields International High School, which has a head count of about 225 students will have pupils participating in the IB exams for the first time next September. This High School also puts emphasis on a very busy sporting, cultural and drama programme.

The curriculum of those two schools differs a lot from what the programme and syllabus that our system leader to teh Cambridge Highe School Certificate offers. The IB programme consists of six subjects, an extended essay of up to 4,000 words, participation in the Theory of Knowledge and a requirement of at least 50 hours in the area of Creative, Action, Service (CAS).

In addition to these, the extended essay stimulates independent creative research work and involves teacher-guided independent research, which leads to the production of a written thesis. The topic may be any that the student feels is researchable. Each student is paired with a supervisor who provides insight and orientation for his/her work.

But at LBIS, there is a preparation to IB. Before starting on this programme, pupils take part in the International General Certificate of Secondary Education, an equivalent of the School Certificate. And this year, the school has scored an exceptional 90% pass.