IB Support Programme for Bilingual & Multilingual Students

This programme recognises that EAP (English for Academic Purposes) / Bilingual & Multilingual students are likely to require a significant degree of support with academic language skills and higher order thinking skills to succeed in the full IB Diploma. 

In addition, students joining WIS from different school systems are often unused to the demands of the Post-16 IB Curriculum.   To meet this need, the IB Support Program (IBSP) aims to provide on-going language support at this crucial, final phase of schooling. The IBSP has an IB approved support methodology that was first piloted at WIS 2007-2009 and has had excellent results for all students enrolled since then. It became a model for support across IB World Schools that is widely recognised and followed. 

We recommend that students who have received IGCSE support in the past, or are new to WIS, join IBSP for at least two hours per week, depending on the degree of their linguistic needs. Lessons are usually scheduled during students’ non-contact/study time. Students will receive guidance in this area from their Heads of Year, Tutors and subject teachers who might also refer them to IBSP sessions for specific advice.  Since IBSP lessons take place in students’ free lessons, this also ensures that students are making the best use of this study time. Parents are also able to refer students to IBSP.

The IB Support Programme offers the following:

• • A rigorous CALP (Cognitive Academic Language Proficiency) skills programme that is based directly on content covered in the mainstream subject classroom. 

  • Opportunities for students to identify and target specific areas of difficulty for immediate transfer and improvement.

  • Students are skilled to be more independent and self-directed and to take charge of their own learning using a menu of ATL (Approaches to Learning Skills) and CALP Skills ( Cognitive Academic Language Proficiency Skills).

  • There is a focus on time management to create well-being and a work-life balance towards IB deadlines, tests and examinations. 

  • A special emphasis is placed on developing students’ awareness of inter-disciplinary connections and honing their critical thinking skills to reflect the true spirit of the IB Diploma Programme.

  • Relevant skills support for language-intensive areas like English Lang Lit & Literature, Theory of Knowledge (TOK), individual oral presentations and extended writing assignments across IB subjects.

  • Students doing the Bilingual Diploma (Two Language A Subjects) are strongly encouraged to avail of the IBSP programme.
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IBSP lessons are conducted in small groups run by experienced language specialists with a deep understanding of the demands of the IB Diploma. A range of high-level academic language resources, linked to the mainstream curriculum, are available to students during these lessons. The programme also supports social-emotional resilience necessary for Post-16 education.