A few years back, a groundswell of Brooklyn parents in District 13 wanted to ditch gifted and talented classes, concerned about sorting and segregating children starting in kindergarten.

Then-Superintendent Kamar Samuels, now chancellor of New York City schools, wanted to find an alternative that offered rigorous academics for all students in a school rather than a select few. He settled on the and encouraged schools in District 13, which spans from Brooklyn Heights to Bedford-Stuyvesant, to pursue the yearslong authorization process, using a grant to support the shift.

The IB approach embraces inquiry-based, transdisciplinary learning that allows students to go deep into a specific topic across classes, connecting global issues to their own experiences. Educators are trained to facilitate these connections and foster ways for students to become independent thinkers and leaders.

鈥淚t means something for a teacher to be an IB teacher. It means you鈥檝e gone through a process,鈥� , when introducing the initiative, 鈥渁nd you鈥檙e really pushing the envelope as you think about all your students.鈥�

The district now has five elementary schools and two middle schools in the program, representing New York City鈥檚 first IB 鈥減athway鈥� designed to serve children from 3-K through eighth grade. (The district also hopes that students continue on to the handful of public IB high schools in the city, including those in neighboring districts.)

The IB model might soon gain in popularity as schools grapple with the state鈥檚 graduation requirement overhaul, as the Portrait of a Graduate framework replaces Regents exams for diplomas starting in the 2027-28 school year. The approach closely aligns with the state鈥檚 students must demonstrate (such as being creative innovators, effective communicators, and global citizens). And as schools await the state鈥檚 guidance on how to assess students under the new framework, IB schools already have a well-developed system of project-based assessments.

The schools also boast strong post-secondary outcomes: 71% of IB students in the U.S. enrolled in college compared to the average of 56%, .

On a recent Monday at P.S. 56, in Clinton Hill, second graders hummed as they worked on a project for a unit on self-expression. The kids were creating shapes to use for fabric construction, incorporating math, writing, and social-emotional learning as they jotted down the way the colors they used made them feel.

In a fifth grade room down the hall, students 鈥� also doing a unit on self-expression 鈥� tackled a poem about technology, as they discussed the effect technology is having on education. Another fifth grade class read a poem about bullying, and students were asked to write their own poem about a problem they wanted to change.

Jayda, a fifth grader, wrote about concerns with the increase in immigration enforcement across the nation. She recently participated in an anti-ICE protest that Lucy, another fifth grader, organized. They and their peers talked about how they struggled with writing when they were younger but have since blossomed as writers, especially as they鈥檝e been able to work on more creative writing.

鈥淣ow it鈥檚 my passion,鈥� fifth grader Noah said. 鈥淚 couldn鈥檛 imagine life without it.鈥�

Tracey Scronic, the instruction lead and coordinator for District 13鈥檚 IB schools, sees the shift to the IB model as an 鈥渆quity tool鈥� to ensure all of a school鈥檚 students are exposed to enrichment. She said it 鈥渄e-prioritizes traditional testing鈥檚 emphasis on regurgitation of information.鈥�

Leaning on IB to tackle enrollment declines

The IB program at P.S. 56 has helped prop up enrollment, its principal, Eric Grande, said.

Just before Grande became principal of P.S. 56 a decade ago, the Clinton Hill elementary school tried to bolster enrollment, then hovering below 200 students, by adding a gifted and talented program. Grande added a 鈥渨orld language鈥� program, focusing on Spanish, hoping that would attract more families. But the school didn鈥檛 feel cohesive.

鈥淓ven though we had a relatively small school, there was almost like schools within the school,鈥� Grande said. 鈥淵ou had your world language Spanish program, your gifted and talented program, you had your special education classes and your gen ed classes, and it just started to feel a little bit off.鈥�

Students within the school, which is more racially diverse than most New York City elementary schools, were not integrated within the different programs, he said. (Last year, about 36% of its students were Black, 36% were white, 17% were Latino, and 1% were Asian American; roughly 47% of children came from low-income families.)

Grande began looking for a model to bring everyone 鈥� and all of their different programs 鈥� together, appeasing families who wanted a foreign language and those who wanted a project-based approach to teaching. IB offered the 鈥減erfect synergy of all things that we were doing.鈥�

The school is now in its second year as an authorized IB school following three years as a candidate school. Enrollment has increased, with about 230 students last year.

And while Grande said his school has never been too focused on test prep, he was proud to see a shift in state test scores since his teachers transitioned to the IB framework, from about 35% proficiency on reading in 2019, the year before the pandemic, to more than 60% last year.

The move to IB can be challenging

The buy-in from teachers on IB takes some time, said Scronic. They needed training to shift practices and must do more in-depth planning around the new units. They also needed to figure out how to meld the IB framework with the mandated literacy curriculum for their district, EL Education.

鈥淚t is a bit more cognitively intense for the teachers,鈥� Scronic said. But after a while, she said teachers feel like they鈥檙e being respected again for their craft and facilitating connections between the curriculum and students鈥� own lives. 鈥淚 feel like the passion that a brand-new teacher brings to the profession then kind of gets squashed sometimes, IB has brought that back.鈥�

Becoming an authorized IB school is not easy. Schools have to pay the Switzerland-based nonprofit that oversees the IB program about $9,000 a year to start the training and candidacy process. It鈥檚 about $10,000 each year once a school is authorized to support the implementation and maintenance of IB programs, . District 13 used a grant to cover the costs for the initial training for the schools, though the schools have had to foot the bill for new teachers.

Though Scronic leads District 13鈥檚 IB initiative, she鈥檚 started holding monthly Zoom meetings for about 40 IB elementary and middle schools in the city, a grassroots effort to provide support and create a community to share best practices and resources.

Samuels continued to promote IB schools when he left his Brooklyn district to become superintendent of Manhattan鈥檚 District 3. He encouraged schools in Harlem to adopt the IB model as a way to tackle declining enrollment in a part of the district facing heavy competition from charter schools. (District 3 used a grant to cover the costs as well.)

But Samuels acknowledged the challenges in pursuing IB authorization.

鈥淚 do believe in a lot of the work of IB, but it really takes a big investment,鈥� 鈥淚t takes principals being onboard. It takes teachers being onboard and willing to go and get a lot of background and content knowledge, and to be able to personalize for young people and the kids in your school.鈥�

A middle school IB program helps students find their 鈥榲oice鈥�

Sanai Gary, an eighth grader at Bedford-Stuyvesant鈥檚 Restoration Academy 鈥� which is in its first full year as an authorized IB school after its yearslong candidacy 鈥� said the IB approach has helped her deepen her learning.

鈥淚 like how the topics transmit over to other classes. I feel like it helps me learn better,鈥� said Sanai. 鈥淚t gives me more time to focus on it.鈥�

Last year, she and her peers became clean water advocates after diving into a unit on global sustainability.

It started after they read a novel in English class, 鈥�,鈥� about the struggle in South Sudan for clean water. In their Individuals and Societies class (akin to social studies), a student brought up questions about t, that got the students wondering about the water quality in their own school. So, in science class, they tested their school鈥檚 water fountains and created makeshift filtration devices.

Concerned about the color and clarity of their school鈥檚 water, back in English class, the students mounted a letter-writing campaign to city officials demanding changes.

Restoration Academy has struggled with enrollment and has long served marginalized students. The middle school currently has roughly 80 middle schoolers; about 80% are Black and Latino, and more than 90% are from low-income families. Pre-pandemic, about 20% of its students were considered proficient in reading. Since transitioning to IB, the scores have improved, rising to about 30% last year.

But more importantly, Principal Adele Simon said, students are increasingly linking what鈥檚 happening around the world to their own lives and finding their voices to advocate for change based on what they鈥檙e learning in school.

鈥淚t鈥檚 the connection between what they鈥檙e reading,鈥� Simon said, 鈥渁nd not just reading it for the purpose of reading it, but reading it for the purpose of, 鈥極kay, what am I going to do with this? 鈥� Who鈥檚 in power and who is not in power? And how can I make sure that the people in power represent me and my community?鈥�

Their school is getting new water fountains with filtration devices this spring.

Chalkbeat is a nonprofit news site covering educational change in public schools. This story was originally published by Chalkbeat. Sign up for their newsletters at .

The International Baccalaureate, a renowned educational program found in more than 160 countries, has survived in the United States for more than half a century, pliable enough to accommodate multiple presidential administrations, including the current one, with its 鈥淎merica First鈥� agenda.

Known for academic rigor and prizing comprehension over memorization, it鈥檚 holding steady even as right-wing forces continue to dissect curricula, curbing schools鈥� ability to address gender, sexuality and systemic racism among other topics. 

And it鈥檚 still adding new schools here 鈥� nearly 300 in the past 10 years bringing the U.S. total to 1,955 鈥� though the vast majority came before 2020. 

The nonprofit IB has fared less well elsewhere: The for the program from state schools starting next year and abruptly yanked it from the country entirely this summer after its government labeled the International Baccalaureate a 鈥渃riminal organization.鈥�   

Still, IB administrators insist the program, which seeks to cultivate 鈥渋nternationally minded citizens who appreciate different cultures and perspectives,鈥� has wide appeal, even with its demands of teachers and students. 

Schools undergo an extensive authentication and training process to offer the program 鈥� this typically takes two years 鈥� and are assessed every half decade to ensure the quality of their IB offerings.

鈥淲hat makes the IB so special is that it creates the space for students to find their voices, to learn how to research around the problems they are passionate about and want to solve 鈥� and to be able to cite their beliefs in grounded research and sources,鈥� said Robert Kelty, head of outreach, development and government relations for the IB in North America. 

In the United States, support for the program runs across party lines, he said, adding that no matter how politically divided the nation has become, most people share the goal of providing a quality education for all kids.

The program might have a fresh ambassador in New York City after newly elected mayor Zohran Mamdani recently named Kamar Samuels, , as chancellor for the nation鈥檚 largest school system. The program can be found in 48 NYC schools. 

鈥淭hat鈥檚 why we are celebrated from Florida to Texas and from Oregon to New York,鈥� Kelty said. 鈥淲e create the space for students to learn how to learn and effectively communicate and feel like they can make a positive difference in the world.鈥�

IB thrives inside its first U.S. home, the elite United Nations International School in Manhattan where teachers use open-ended questions to help students arrive at their own conclusions about complex topics. 

Established in 1947 and perched on the East River, this $48,000-a-year private school has been offering IB since , serving the children of some of the world鈥檚 most influential thought leaders and policymakers: Roughly half the student body has at least one parent working at the U.N., an affiliation that also reduces the cost of attendance.

Those in Nila Chatterjee鈥檚 Global Politics class spent nearly an hour recently dissecting the war in Ukraine, examining the world鈥檚 response to the ongoing conflict and its impact on neighboring countries.

鈥淲hy is this a crisis for European states?鈥� Chatterjee asked inside a small, white-walled and sparsely decorated classroom that more closely resembled those found on college campuses.

A hand rose gently into the air before a student mentioned economic fallout, a point his teacher acknowledged and expanded upon. 

鈥淔or the rest of the world, it鈥檚 destabilizing,鈥� she confirmed. 鈥淭hey are losing access to Russia, Ukrainian grain and other exports. It鈥檚 disruptive for world trade.鈥�

Chatterjee, who previously taught at the university level, later asked the class whether it considered the possibility of a catastrophic escalation. 

Renee Sharapov, 16, was the first to respond. 

鈥淚f Russia feels so threatened, might it resort to nuclear war, increasing the death toll by millions?鈥� asked the 11th grader. 

Sharapov, who hopes to one day major in economics with a minor in international relations, said after class that she enjoyed the evolution of Chatterjee’s course, which started out lecture-based. Those early weeks, she said, afforded her the background knowledge she needed to further understand the war as seen and experienced from multiple viewpoints.  

鈥淲e are not looking at issues from one side,鈥� Sharapov said. 鈥淲e are making arguments from every single perspective. As a political student, you have to be able to take into account what each side is arguing to be able to grasp the situation.鈥�

Seven miles north at Harlem Village Academies High, students use Zadie Smith鈥檚 book as a model for their own short stories. 

Like the award-winning author, whose novel examines the unlikely friendship between two World War II veterans, they began each tale from an unusual starting point and had to explain why they chose that particular opening: One student started with a fight that fractured a family, another with a vivid dream. 

The public charter school serves more than 200 students at the high school level, most of whom qualify for free or reduced-price lunch. Despite this economic challenge, every graduate was accepted to a four-year college at the end of the last school year, according to David Quinn, director of its IB program. 

Matriculation didn鈥檛 mark their first time on a college campus: Students had already visited some of the most prestigious universities in the country 鈥� twice. 

Ninth, 10th and 11th graders conduct brief campus tours at a number of regional colleges, including Princeton and Vassar. This comes in addition to week-long or weeks-long school-funded summer courses at Georgetown, Duke and the University of Southern California, among many others.   

And while every child goes home with a laptop, Harlem Village Academies High is a 鈥渘otebook school鈥� with students filling black-and-white marbled composition books with tidy prose. Digital devices are largely banned during the school day. 

Emmanuel James, 17 and from the Bronx, has only been exposed to the IB model since the fall, the start of his junior year. He said it鈥檚 far superior to what he experienced before. 

鈥淚t鈥檚 as if they let go of your hand, in a way,鈥� James said. 鈥淭hey allow you to work a lot more independently compared to a different classroom setting.鈥�

He said his favorite IB class is Theory of Knowledge, which forces students to interrogate how they know what they know. Friend and classmate Samantha Flecha, 16, and also from the Bronx, agreed.

鈥淭hey tend to answer questions with more questions,鈥� she said, describing her teachers鈥� techniques. 鈥淭he whole point is to challenge what we know. And that is why I like the class: It helps me look at the way I perceive everything way differently. As a teenager, you don鈥檛 really think about how everything comes to be.鈥�

English teacher Katelyn Conroy said IB鈥檚 approach is ideal for helping students talk about controversial concepts. She said her students are passionate in their beliefs but that the program’s antiseptic approach gives them the language they need to express their thoughts. 

鈥淭hey talk a lot about ICE raids and immigration, and also about what Trump has promised and has not done,鈥� the teacher said. 

And while some discussions have become heated, their skills help them speak productively. 

鈥淭hey have been practicing discussions since they were freshman,鈥� Conroy said. 鈥淭hey are able to listen to other people鈥檚 opinions and disagree.鈥� 

Karalei Nunn, CEO of the 15-year-old charter school just north of Austin, Texas, said IB was a natural choice for the parents who banded together to create the school.

She said it’s well suited to withstand the in recent years. New guidelines around social studies, for example, signed into law in 2021, whitewash history, critics say, greatly downplaying racism. But Nunn is unconcerned. 

鈥淲e read the law to the letter,鈥� Nunn said. 鈥淲e do not go beyond what that letter is. And we believe you can adhere to the letter of the law and still provide good, sound teaching, facts.鈥�

And while parents are welcome to raise objections to course material, they rarely do. She could recall only two cases, one involving a Harry Potter book and another about a book with a rainbow on its cover.  

鈥淲e have had a few over the years who step up and say, 鈥楾hat鈥檚 not what I want my kid reading,鈥欌�� she said. 鈥淎nd we honor that and provide substitutes.鈥�

Michael Kyles Jr., principal at Hammond High Magnet School in Hammond, Louisiana, said his school system staves off controversy by inviting incoming and current parents to visit campus on IB literature night, which is held four times a year. During that event, the parents of freshman and sophomore students talk to juniors and seniors about their studies. 

But even with this disclosure, parents sometimes take issue with certain texts. One, Kyles recalled, objected to the profanity in the acclaimed book,  

鈥淲e heard their concerns,鈥� Kyles said. 鈥淲e met with them, explained the process, that this was what we chose.鈥�

Daniel Falcone, who teaches freshman and sophomore humanities and IB Global Politics for juniors and seniors at the United Nations school, said part of the reason IB has generally sidestepped culture war critics is because it allows teachers to focus on big picture concepts. 

Using the example of modern-day politics, it鈥檚 not about Democrats versus Republicans, he said, but about influence. 

鈥淲e talk about who has power, how it is used and the evidence behind it,鈥� he said, adding careful study and critical thinking helps students prepare for the next step in their learning process. 鈥淵ou have to earn your right to debate and contest ideas. It’s dispassionate scholarship that allows you to go further in academics.鈥�