Regular schools VS IB schools in Dubai

International Baccalaureate (IB) vs Advanced Placement (AP); a popular debate as students want to know the best choice for promising and focused career growth. They aim to build a remarkable high school resume, including an extraordinary academic record. So, if you want to select the suitable coursework for your academic goals, check out the difference between the two:

● Structure

Almost all IB schools in Dubai provide a detailed curriculum with multicultural studies progressing up to the final diploma. While the AP curriculum includes multiple subjects, students can earn credits in subjects by sitting for a final exam.

● Curriculum

The IB curriculum involves strict classroom learning and extracurricular requirements. It emphasizes polishing innovation, critical thinking, writing, and reading skills. On the other hand, AP courses focus on core knowledge training in a particular content area.

● Program Goals

The programs have entirely different goals. IB is more focused on writing and developing vital thinking skills. It also needs the extended essay, a long, college-style research paper, to be submitted. In contrast, AP schools emphasize teaching students certain content and testing their knowledge through exams.

● Subjects

In IB schools, students are allowed to pick one course from six different subject groups, of which about three should be high level or HL. While in AB schools, students can select from almost 38 available courses in 7 different subject areas.

● Testing

IB schools assess students according to their classroom involvement, subject presentations, projects, and written elements like essays and final exams. In comparison, the AP schools judge students based on their final exams, including multiple-choice and free-response questions.

Some schools in Barsha offer AP, while others offer IB. The best is to explore both the options well and then select the school.