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Middle Years Programme

The Middle Years Programme in the Lower Seniors

Students study the first four years of the MYP while in the Lower Seniors, preparing them for the final year of the MYP when they move to the Upper Seniors and engage in more specialised activities in preparation for the Diploma Programme.

We strongly believe our International Baccalaureate Middle Years Programme (MYP) provides the education students aged between 11 and 16 need at this stage of their life.

Through the rigorous study of eight traditional subject areas and six global contexts, as well as participation in extra-curricular activities and community service activities, it helps students to:

  • Ask challenging questions

  • Learn how to learn

  • Establish a strong sense of their own identity and culture

  • Develop their ability to communicate with and understand people from other countries and cultures

Importantly, the MYP also builds upon the knowledge, skills and attitudes acquired through our Primary Years Programme; and it prepares students for the academic challenges of our Diploma Programme.

“One of the things that makes our curriculum unique is that it is rooted in real-world contexts. The MYP emphasises teaching students how to learn: equipping them with skills and habits that will help them develop into successful lifelong learners.”

– Angela Johnson, Middle Years Programme Co-ordinator

Subject Areas

Eight core subjects

The academic programme is overseen by the dedicated MYP Coordinator who, with the Heads of Faculty, regularly review what is taught and how it is assessed, encouraging students to contribute their interests and ideas.

Students are encouraged to make interdisciplinary links between these subjects during regular lessons and special Interdisciplinary Units (IDUs). They are involved every year in community service activities, culminating in the Community Project.

The 8 core subject areas studied:

The 6 Global Contexts

Expanding knowledge

As part of the MYP, our teachers deliver the curriculum through six global contexts. These help students approach subjects holistically and encourage them to see the links and crossover between different subjects.

The 6 Global Contexts are:

MYP Personal Project

In the final year of the MYP, all our MYP students undertake personal projects to explore, in depth, a topic of interest. They establish their learning goals; they devise ways in which they will pursue them that draw not only on the MYP curriculum, but on their initiative as independent learners; and they determine how to demonstrate what they've learned through a significant piece of independent work.

In the past, Personal Projects have included students making a short film, writing a book of poetry, starting up a small business, building a computer, organising a charity fundraiser, and hosting a football tournament to improve community relations.

Southbank International School

Enquiries :020 3890 1969