Why We’re Bringing the IB Middle Years Programme to GSB

In a city as diverse as Brooklyn, students deserve a learning experience that prepares them for more than the next test (even if that’s often what NYC dictates). At GSB, we’re proud to be in the process of implementing the International Baccalaureate (IB) Middle Years Programme (MYP), a globally recognized curriculum framework that emphasizes inquiry, real-world connection, and international mindedness. Our world is rapidly shifting, and we want our students to be ready.

Starting in the 2025–2026 school year, GSB will formally adopt the MYP in our middle school. This marks a big step forward for our community and affirms our belief that a strong, progressive education should be both local and global, rooted in academic excellence and also encourage empathy, curiosity, and active citizenship.

A Curriculum for a Global Generation

One of the most compelling reasons we’re embracing the IB is its explicit emphasis on international mindedness. In a world marked by increasing interconnectedness, and concurrent deep division and disconnectedness, our students must learn to hold multiple perspectives, think critically about global issues, and understand how local actions ripple outward.

Brooklyn, with its wide variety of cultures, languages, and identities, is the perfect backdrop for this kind of learning. The MYP embraces complexity and helps students move beyond memorization to explore global challenges such as climate change, migration, and technological innovation through an interdisciplinary lens.

When students at GSB study literature, they don’t just analyze theme and structure. They might ask: How do stories shape national identity across cultures? In science, they explore not just the laws of physics, but how scientific ethics play out in real-world debates. Through this approach, they begin to see themselves not just as students, but as global citizens with an active role to play in the world.

Stability in a Shifting Educational Landscape

Another added benefit of adopting the MYP is that it offers continuity when public education is subject to shifting political winds. Standards and mandates come and go, even extreme ones, but the IB framework remains grounded in a set of values that have stood the test of time: academic rigor, student agency, intercultural understanding, and reflective thinking.

This consistency allows our school to focus less on chasing the latest top-down directive and more on cultivating meaningful, developmentally appropriate learning. It also enables us to anchor our curriculum in an international framework used by over 5,000 schools in more than 150 countries.

For families, this can inspire confidence, particularly because an IB education doesn’t rely on any one school leader or district policy. It’s a future-facing, globally benchmarked approach that prepares students to thrive anywhere.

Learning That Matters

One aspect we love about the MYP is its focus on real-world relevance. In IB classrooms, students aren’t passive receivers of information; they are researchers, collaborators, problem-solvers. Units of study are built around key concepts and global contexts that ask students to investigate real issues and take meaningful action.

This aligns powerfully with our school’s values. We’ve always believed that school should be a place where students are engaged in things that matter, where they ask hard questions, investigate the status quo, and practice leadership.

For example, in an upcoming unit, students may explore the concept of sustainability by examining our school's consumption habits. What supplies are we over using? Are we recycling efficiently? How effective is recycling more generally? How can our school begin to compost and work with our school lunch program? Students will propose solutions and work with teachers and school leadership to implement changes. These experiences are not enrichment. Rather, they are central to how students learn and connect to real world problem solving. 

Teaching That Evolves

The MYP also holds us accountable as educators to evolve our own practice. Its emphasis on concept-driven learning, interdisciplinary connections, and meaningful assessment requires thoughtful planning and constant reflection. That’s why our teachers are following a clear professional development pathway, along with collaborative planning structures to promote shared ownership of the curriculum.

But we are not just upgrading our curriculum; we are also investing in our teachers. We are saying: We believe in your professionalism, your creativity, and your role as co-constructors of knowledge. 

Big Effort, Meaningful Outcomes

Launching the MYP is not something we are taking lightly. It has taken and will continue to take months of preparation and input, but we are ready to take the next step as a school. It builds on the strong foundation our teachers and students have already laid: a school culture that values inquiry, dialogue, and deep thinking.

Looking forward, we plan to launch the IB Primary Years Programme (PYP) in 2026-2027 to ensure coherence from early childhood through middle school. Together, the PYP and MYP will help us realize a global vision for learning that prepares our students not just for high school or college, but for life.

Melissa Bourgeois, Deputy Head of School