It would be difficult to argue against the aims of the IB Learner Profile right now.

Focusing on holistic learners and valuing attributes outside of grades, in a topsy turvy world where an A grade can change to a D and a 7 to a 5 at the drop of a hat, perhaps has more importance than ever.

But how do we bring the 10 often recited words that make up the Learner Profile to life? 

What is the International Baccalaureate?

What is the IB Learner Profile? 

Why the IB’s principles matter more than ever 

Bringing the Learner Profile to life

By the end of my first term of IB teaching, I was pretty confident that my classes could parrot back the words ‘communication’, ‘caring’, ‘principled’ and so on, and even, with a push, recognise them in the literature we were studying. Lady Macbeth? Clearly a ‘risk-taker’…

But could they see the relevance of the attributes in their own lives and how could we ensure that the requirement for all IB schools to incorporate the learner profile into all aspects of school life was met?

A few years ago, my school moved from a pure IB curriculum (MYP followed by the Diploma), to introducing IGCSE for Year 10 and 11. 

There were a number of reasons for the change, but one big concern was how we would continue to hold on to our ethos of being an IB school, whilst simultaneously delivering our ‘hybrid’ curriculum.

Ensuring that the Learner Profile was woven into the fabric of teaching and learning and became ingrained in the culture of the school was really important. In essence, this is one of the ways you can articulate who you are as an IB school.

I decided to focus on this as a key area to develop over the year and, working closely with the ATL coordinator, we came up with a pastoral and academic programme that aimed to bring the disparate curriculum in the Secondary school together.

In our case, we wanted to ensure that everyone was familiar with the 10 attributes, so we looked at the calendar and started making links with key school events or global days of celebration. 

We mapped out the year into blocks of three or four weeks where we decided to cover an attribute in an assembly and then follow up with a house challenge or set of activities connected to the initial input. 

As an example, ‘Principled’ was introduced in an assembly that linked to the UN Global Goals for Sustainable Development and the idea of democracy and protest. 

Ending with a call to arms for students to develop their own ‘taking a stand speeches’, each house went on to passionately deliver their orations on ‘soap boxes’, with the winning house decided by the fact that every single person listening to the speeches had been drawn to their rousing stance on gender equality.

Tips for embedding the Learner Profile into your curriculum

So how could you embed the Learner Profile into the culture of your school? 

1 Refresh staff

Start the year exploring activities based on the Learner Profile with staff. Even experienced IB teachers might benefit from a refresher and a chance to discuss with other colleagues. 

Activities could involve looking at each attribute and coming up with dispositions that you might connect with someone who is ‘balanced’ or ‘reflective’.  You could also ask groups to think about literary characters or even real people who embody these traits.

Asking staff to reflect on where they themselves demonstrate the Learner Profile could be done with quizzes or ‘selfies’ that could even lead to a light-hearted staff room display.

2 Align your values

Use the Learner Profile attributes to tie in with your own school values. Can you use common language to link to the vision of your school or think about where and how students can demonstrate these values?

If you are a through school, consider how the Learner Profile could help to tie your vision and values together throughout the PYP, MYP and DP.

3 Interpret things visually

Visual representations and displays can be effective in keeping the Learner Profile prominent throughout the year. 

Consider a common format for classroom displays or set up a ‘display challenge’ where students are tasked with representing one of the attributes visually in prominent places around the school.

4 Focus your calendar

Consider dividing the school year into different focus points for the Learner Profile where you can celebrate or explore an attribute in assemblies, pastoral approaches or by linking to key dates in your calendar. Communication and World Book Day are always a good pairing.

A time for change

The Learner Profile could feel expendable at a time when many students have missed out on months of face to face teaching and might still experience disruption to courses as we move into more uncertain times.

However, for teachers, the ability to celebrate our students as more than just a grade or an exam statistic and the opportunity to develop the students in our care as global citizens who value themselves and others in ways that are integral to creating a better world, has surely never been so valuable.

Emily Hardwicke is assistant head, MYP coordinator and head of English at an international school in Switzerland