{"id":9837,"date":"2021-10-20T23:56:34","date_gmt":"2021-10-20T18:26:34","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.univariety.com\/blog\/?p=9837"},"modified":"2022-01-13T13:32:17","modified_gmt":"2022-01-13T08:02:17","slug":"international-curriculum-indian-education-system","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.univariety.com\/blog\/international-curriculum-indian-education-system\/","title":{"rendered":"IB? IGCSE? A Deep-dive into the Popularity of International Curriculum in India"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><span style=\"color: #000000;\">Which school board do you belong to? CBSE? ICSE? State Board? Less than a decade ago, these were the only options available to Indian students and parents. Fast forward to the present day, there is a growing buzz about the international curriculum, especially <a title=\"All You Need to Know About IB\" href=\"https:\/\/www.univariety.com\/blog\/guide-to-international-baccalaureate-curriculum-board-everything-you-need-to-know\/\">IB (International Baccalaureate<\/a>) and <a title=\"All You Need to Know About IGCSE\" href=\"https:\/\/www.univariety.com\/blog\/guide-to-cambridge-curriculum-board-for-your-child\/\">IGCSE (International General Certificate of Secondary Education)<\/a> a.k.a. Cambridge board.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #000000;\">In the last ten years, there has been a 150% increase in the number of IB schools and a 110% increase in schools affiliated to IGCSE. In comparison, ICSE has grown by 33% and CBSE only by 7%. It is quite clear that the popularity of schools affiliated with the international curricula is on the rise.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #000000;\">The question is why? What is so special about this international curriculum? Or what was lacking in the existing national curriculum that is being fulfilled by international curricula like IB and IGCSE? Let\u2019s do a deep dive!<\/span><\/p>\n<h2><span style=\"color: #000000;\"><strong>Getting to Know the Popular International Curriculum Better<\/strong><\/span><\/h2>\n<h3><span style=\"color: #000000;\"><strong>International Baccalaureate (IB)<\/strong><\/span><\/h3>\n<p><span style=\"color: #000000;\">This international curriculum was founded in 1968 in Geneva, Switzerland by a group of innovative educators. The objective behind this endeavour was to create a curriculum that equips a student with skills, values, and knowledge to build a more peaceful future.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #000000;\">Since most national curricula across the globe were designed to develop student&#8217;s academic talents and had a country-specific approach, IB was a renegade in the field. In the IB curriculum, the educational ecosystem tries to develop a broader perspective on students. It teaches them to see the world and learn not through the coloured lenses of the country, state, or region they belong to or language they speak \u2013 It focuses on making them a \u2018Global Citizen\u2019.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #000000;\">IB schools offer four programs as part of a continuum.<\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><span style=\"color: #000000;\">Primary years for ages 3-12<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"color: #000000;\">Middle years for ages 11-16<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"color: #000000;\">Diploma program for ages 16-19<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"color: #000000;\">Career Related program for ages 16-19<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span style=\"color: #000000;\">IB schools diploma are recognized and accepted by both international and national colleges and universities across the globe. IB is offered in 150 countries, across 5000 IB world schools \u2013 185 of them are in India.<\/span><\/p>\n<h2><span style=\"color: #000000;\"><strong>International General Certificate of Secondary Education (IGCSE)<\/strong><\/span><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"color: #000000;\">This international curriculum is colloquially known as the Cambridge Board as it is developed by and is a registered trademark of the University of Cambridge. It is considered equivalent to UK-GCSE i.e. the local examination board of the UK, also conducted by the University of Cambridge.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #000000;\">IGCSE is one of the most widely accepted international curricula in the world because it was designed by involving leading schools from across the globe. This curriculum puts a great emphasis on developing language acquisition, creative thinking, and problem-solving skills in students. It offers 70 subjects, including 30 languages that students can take up in any number of combinations.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #000000;\">IGSCE\u00a0 international curriculum is available in more than 140 countries across the globe in 4500 schools. There are about 400 IGCSE affiliated schools in India.<\/span><\/p>\n<h2><span style=\"color: #000000;\"><strong>The Advantages of Studying in an International Curriculum Affiliated School<\/strong><\/span><\/h2>\n<h3><span style=\"color: #000000;\"><strong>Learning Outside the <span style=\"text-decoration: line-through;\">Box<\/span> Textbook!<\/strong><\/span><\/h3>\n<p><span style=\"color: #000000;\">There is a bit in the Netflix special of comedian Kanan Gill about the practice of \u2018learning by heart\u2019 in the <a title=\"Does Indian Education Need A Revamp?\" href=\"https:\/\/www.univariety.com\/blog\/does-indian-education-need-a-revamp\/\">Indian educational system<\/a>. He jokes that the ultimate aim of it is to replace a student\u2019s heart with a textbook.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #000000;\">This practice of rote learning or learning by memorization has been the greatest criticism of the Indian schooling system for so long. Because it shifts the focus from \u2018gaining knowledge\u2019 to just \u2018information gathering\u2019. In the primary school stage, it may have some merit where children need to know a lot of information. But as they grow up, it ends up restricting their creativity and critical thinking capacity. They may know a lot of information but they won\u2019t know how to apply it.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #000000;\">International curriculum put emphasis on not just learning required information but also on its practical application. IGCSE doesn\u2019t prescribe a set of textbooks like we have the NCERT with CBSE. Rather they give recommended reading lists. This way students can explore and refer to a whole range of books.<\/span><\/p>\n<h3><span style=\"color: #000000;\"><strong>No Stream-based Subject Selection<\/strong><\/span><\/h3>\n<p><span style=\"color: #000000;\">In CBSE, after class 10<sup>th<\/sup>, students have to pick up one of the three streams \u2013 Science, Arts\/Humanities, and Commerce. Each stream has a list of compulsory and elective subjects. But students can\u2019t get the flexibility to choose a subject outside their streams. For instance, a student who takes up science can\u2019t take up economics or political science. And a student from the arts stream can\u2019t take up physics. This is true for ICSE and the state board curriculum too.<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><a href=\"https:\/\/products.univariety.com\/product\/stream-selector-test\/\"><span style=\"font-size: 20px;\"><strong><span style=\"color: #000000;\">Confused about what stream your child should select after grade 10th? Try Our Stream Selector Test.<\/span><\/strong><\/span><\/a><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #000000;\">But in an International curriculum, such restrictions aren\u2019t there. In IB, students are required to select subjects from a set of six different groups. Choosing one from each group is compulsory, but there are they can choose the rest of the required credits from any number of the subject combinations. In IGCSE, students are given an option to choose from 70 subjects \u2013 the minimum subject combination can be 5 but the maximum is 14. This opens up a whole range of possibilities for students.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #000000;\">You must be wondering \u2013 Won&#8217;t this freedom confuse students further and divert them from focusing on a particular area of study? Won\u2019t it affect their career paths as they go for higher education, into colleges and universities?<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #000000;\">The answer is NO! There is a gradual shift in higher education too where more and more interdisciplinary fields of study are emerging. And they require students to have a diverse set of skills and knowledge over different areas of studies. There is also growing popularity of <a title=\"What is Liberal Arts and Why It is Worth the Hype\" href=\"https:\/\/www.univariety.com\/blog\/liberal-arts-education-worth-it\/\">Liberal Arts<\/a> in colleges where students are encouraged to take up diverse subjects as their majors and minors.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #000000;\">Rather than obstructing their ways, international curricula build the foundation for more effective higher education.<\/span><\/p>\n<h3><span style=\"color: #000000;\"><strong>Preparing Students for Colleges and Universities<\/strong><\/span><\/h3>\n<p><span style=\"color: #000000;\">Does studying in a school affiliated with an international curriculum better your child\u2019s chances of seeking admission into a college? Not necessarily.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #000000;\">Does studying in a school affiliated with an international curriculum better your child\u2019s chances of adjusting to college life? Absolutely!<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #000000;\">And from college here we don\u2019t just mean an engineering or medical college but the entire higher education ecosystem.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #000000;\">International curriculum like IB and IGCSE are designed with a practical, knowledge application-based approach. From the flexibility of choosing subjects to technology-enabled teaching and learning styles to the focus given on developing researching and critical thinking \u2013 all of it prepares a student for better college life.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #000000;\">International curricula are also widely accepted across the globe. So if your child wants to study abroad, an IB or IGCSE diploma can offer an edge during <a title=\"Create a Stellar Profile for College Admission\" href=\"https:\/\/www.univariety.com\/blog\/want-college-admission-in-du-or-any-other-a-stellar-profile-is-your-answer\/\">college admission<\/a> too.<\/span><\/p>\n<h2><span style=\"color: #000000;\"><strong>Wrapping it Up!<\/strong><\/span><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"color: #000000;\">For the longest time, the name of the school mattered more to parents than the curriculum they are offering while seeking admissions in school for their children. Thanks to this rising wave of international curriculum, parents are getting to ask the right questions before school admission \u2013 what is the school offering? What is their teaching styles? Is their teaching approach matching their child\u2019s learning style?<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #000000;\">At the very least, the popularity of the international curriculum has geared the transformation in national curricula. The <a title=\"What does NEP 2020 Mean For Schools &amp; Universities?\" href=\"https:\/\/www.univariety.com\/blog\/what-does-nep-2020-mean-for-schools-universities\/\">National Education Policy (NEP)<\/a> is certainly planning some radical change in school education. How far its effects are felt and if it will be as effective as the international curriculum remains to be seen.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #000000;\">Till then, if you want to know what curriculum you should choose for your child, you should check out our Curriculum Evaluator.<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><a href=\"https:\/\/products.univariety.com\/product\/curriculum-evaluator\/\"><span style=\"font-size: 20px; color: #000000;\"><strong>Test Your Child\u2019s Right School Fit with our Curriculum Evaluator!<\/strong><\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Which school board do you belong to? CBSE? ICSE? State Board? Less than a decade ago, these were the only options available to Indian students and parents. Fast forward to the present day, there is a growing buzz about the international curriculum, especially IB (International Baccalaureate) and IGCSE (International General Certificate of Secondary Education) a.k.a.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":8394,"featured_media":9838,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"amp_status":""},"categories":[332],"tags":[365,325,171,536,501],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v15.7 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>International Curriculum and The Indian Educational Ecosystem<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"How did the international curriculum become one of the most sought after curriculums in the country? 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