IB Exams Cancelled In Response to COVID-19
The International Baccalaureate Organization (IBO) announced on March 23 that the International Baccalaureate (IB) examinations in May will not be held in response to the global impact of COVID-19, or Coronavirus. This follows a similar decision previously made by the College Board to default to at-home Advanced Placement (AP) exams.
As large gatherings of people are ill advised for safety concerns, schools internationally have undergone closures and students have been impacted by the spread and magnitude of COVID-19. The IBO stated on their website that “It is critical for us to ensure that the options we provide for our IB community, students and teachers are fair and compassionate during these difficult circumstances.” The IBO furthers that the cancellations were determined to be “the most responsible and ethical way forward.”
“As a mathematician, I can absolutely appreciate the need for us to have the general population stay at home in order to flatten the exponential growth curve and give medical professionals and scientists time to respond to this crisis. I believe that the cancellation of seated exams was the right decision for IB to make, and I’m glad that they made it relatively quickly and communicated it to the public,” BVH IB Coordinator Jared Phelps said.
Students taking IB courses prepare all year to take the IB exam. In addition, IB Diploma Candidates prepare over the course of two years to take exams in core subjects; the scores on these exams determine whether or not they receive the IB Diploma at the end of their senior year. IB Diploma Candidates must earn a total of 24 points based on the scores they recieve on the May exams, scored one to seven, as well as other assessments such as the Extended Essay and Theory of Knowledge presentations. However, the bulk of the points comes from the exams. At Bonita Vista High (BVH), the IB Diploma Candidate class of 2020 planned to take most if not all six exams this year.
“Initially [when the decision was announced to cancel exams] I was rather agitated. I had a sensation of deprivation having worked hard throughout my IB career,” IB Diploma Candidate and senior Isaac Aaron Broudy said.
The IBO officially made the announcement of the cancellations on March 23, but a letter not released to the public circulated the Internet on March 22 with the IBO’s decision to cancel the May exams. The international IB community was unsure about the credibility of the letter and looked for further confirmation.
“The screenshot [of the letter] seemed fairly official and said they’d state publicly on Monday [March 23],” Phelps said the day the letter was leaked. “I’d say that by the end of the day [March 23], we’ll have a sense of whether or not that was to be trusted.”
Along with the official update on the IBO website announcing IB exams would be cancelled, the IBO also gave insight into how they plan to score students and evaluate diploma eligibility without their exam scores.
“The achievement will be based around the students’ coursework and the established assessment expertise, rigor and quality control already built into the programmes,” the IBO website states, “We will be using vast historical assessment data to ensure that we follow a rigorous process of due diligence in what is a truly unprecedent situation. Using the information above the IB will be able to provide official documentation of the students diploma or certification.”
The majority of BVH IB students are concerned about the description of how work will be scored. Many believe the description is too vague, leaving uncertainty, and others worry about their ability to earn college credit.
“I feel there were alternative methods which could have been employed. For example, online testing, a similar approach to the College Board, could have been used,” Broudy said. “However, my understanding of the IBO’s capabilities to execute these methods, internationally, are limited. They claim to have done a thorough assessment before announcing their plans, so I trust they have made the right choice.”
Speaking as a former IB Diploma Candidate, Phelps added that while he empathizes with the students who will not have the opportunity to take the exams this year, he also hopes the students understand that the IB program is not just about the end of the year exams.
“I’m sure in retrospect that I’d have been devastated to find that the exams had been cancelled. For as much as tests are generally not ‘fun’ – it’s part of a culminating experience,” Phelps said. “I’d also provide the perspective that IB was never about the tests. IB at Bonita (under my watch anyway) has always been about the community and about the people you’re working on growing into being, and not taking exams doesn’t change that at all.”
I am a senior at Bonita Vista High and a fourth year staff member on the Crusader. I am now co-Editor in Chief, and previously was News Editor, Features...
Timothy Tucker • Apr 26, 2020 at 1:21 am
In the wake of the cancellations of the IB examinations, it is hard to not feel robbed of a culmination of two years’ work, a sentiment well-covered in this article. With many students sitting at home feeling torn between the loss of their last year in school and the seriousness of the global pandemic, one feeling that is yet to be expressed is disappointment and disdain in those who continue to show a lack of respect for social orders and physical distancing. While this article accurately captures the initial feelings of many regarding the pandemic as a whole, clearly we have moved on from the implications of testing cancellations and look forward to the future. It is highly disappointing and disheartening to hear of particular members of our own IB community, members who even hold high positions in this very publication, show a lack of respect for social distancing and a corresponding lack of respect for the health care workers who continue to fight on the front lines of our war with COVID. I can only hope that certain members of our community, who will remain nameless, will come to take this pandemic seriously and realize that the social situation that they currently find themselves in will not differ greatly from the same one they will come to know in the coming months.
Farah Garcia • Apr 22, 2020 at 9:00 pm
Dear Valentina Du Pond, Edito & Chief ,
I am writing to express the surprise that your article brought to me coming from someone who is part of the IB program.
In “IB Exams Cancelled In Response to COVID-19”, written in April 8,2020 it explains the decision that the IBO made to cancel the IB May exams due to the pandemic. Although this brought great shock to think that after being in the program of two years and no longer being able to finish strong with the test, it also shows the care of our health that the program has for us students. It is a very big decision to make but I also don’t feel discourage from it at all , the IB program doesn’t just reflect on the May exams but as well the personal growth that students gain to be able to think outside the box . For example , we got to learn about the IB learner profile that can be carried into our college and life beyond. Through the process it not only challenged us academically but socially, emotionally and physically and I think that’s what students should focus on and not these exams.
I greatly appreciate the writing of this article as it informed me more on how this process of IB testing came to be but as well the thoughts of former classmates and teachers . I would’ve really liked to hear more of our peers and see what they think about this decision and if this cancellation really affects us for college .
Sincerly,
Farah Garcia
Erika • Apr 16, 2020 at 9:28 pm
Wow! I agree with the student concerns expressed here that alternative measures likely could have been taken, such as an online assessment, and that the evaluation criterion provided is very vague. I hope the students in the IB program are still able to earn college credit. That head start was incredibly helpful for my college career, and I wish these hardworking students the same advantage.
Janelle Salgado • Apr 16, 2020 at 2:21 am
I think it is disheartening for those that were near the end of the program. Although it is the life skills that you learned through IB that you will take with you forever. You are able to criticize and weigh methodologies. I know we have an education system that only counts if you have the certification but my true concern is for those that didn’t have the opportunities to even make it to IB. I am an elementary school teacher at LBUSD and adult educator through CSULB’s High School Equivalency program where I teach migrant farm workers pursuing to obtain their GED. My worry is not for the seniors in high school but for the younger generation whose escape was school and aren’t recieving any sort of education at home due to lack of internet, or parent knowledge.
I do agree that there should be an ulterior way of testing online, however does everyone have a computer or internet at home? Will they be able to concentrate with everyone being at home?
We are going through a pandemic. We have learned what to do when there is an earthquake but not when there is a viral attack impacting the whole world. I am hopeful there will be a solution that will benefit all.
I am no way saying that the IB students should not be upset of what is occurring. Your truth is yours and if I was class of 2020 of course I would feel cheated out of the high school experience.
Joebert Rosal • Apr 15, 2020 at 10:48 pm
I think the decision to cancel in-person exams was the right decision given the scale of the current epidemic. IB exams are mostly short-answer / free-response while AP exams that have large multiple-choice sections.
As a former IB diploma candidate myself (C/O ’14) I’m sure that many of the graduating seniors may feel disheartened or discouraged that their hard effort may have “gone to waste” by not being able to take the exams. But I believe the process of what you gain through IB is much more than the exams. The perspective and discipline you gain along the way that goes much further than your IB scores will ever matter! For that, I want to wish the graduating IB seniors congrats on the good work and good luck for those that are probably still studying for their AP exams!