Harlingen CISD: Las Escuelas Primarias Austin Y Houston Son Oficialmente Nombradas Colegios Del Bachillerato Internacional.

Press release from the Harlingen Consolidated Independent School District:

December 8, 2020

Austin and Sam Houston Elementary Schools began their application phase to become International Baccalaureate (IB) schools in 2018. On December 2, 2020, the two HCISD schools officially met all program requirements and were authorized as schools. of the IB.

“IB schools educate students who know how to think critically, collaborate, know the value of teamwork, have the ability to analyze and be independent thinkers,” said HCISD Superintendent of Schools, Dr. Art Cavazos, “I am very proud to be able to put IB schools on the list of options for our parents, and I congratulate all the teachers and staff who made this monumental achievement possible. "

Typically, the process of being named an IB school takes about three years, but after two years of preparation in the candidate phase of the program, Austin and Sam Houston Elementary were awarded the appointment. After final verification visits and approval of their authorization requests, the schools received positive reports and recognition for their work.

“These last two years of the authorization process have been a great learning experience,” said Claudia Padron, fifth grade bilingual teacher at Austin Elementary. “Everyone made it a personal goal to reach the highest point. We have worked harder than ever during this time. Every administrator, teacher and staff member has done everything possible to provide our children with the best learning experience through the lens of IB World Schools. ”

The transformation process in an IB school has allowed for innovative teaching and learning experiences.

“Much of the learning that takes place in my classroom is a perfect combination of what is included in our district's curriculum, student questions, and local and global factors,” Padrón said. “In other words, our students are making connections to the world around them. We will continue to strive and work hard to provide our students with the best educational IB learning experience and become a model IB school. ”

The IB Primary Years Program offers a multilingual approach and a rigorous curriculum that focuses on developing active, caring, and responsible students for their own learning who demonstrate respect for themselves and others.

“At first, we didn't know what the outcome would be with all the changes we had to make in our teaching, but the changes have brought positive results to our school, students, and community,” said Sam Houston Elementary Pre-K teacher Jocelyn Solis. “We used an interesting, relevant, challenging transdisciplinary teaching and allowed the students to construct their own meaning. Our students have become critical thinkers who care and reflect on their own learning. We have all been very dedicated to providing that rigorous, high-quality education for our students. It has not been easy, but we have succeeded ”.

The International Baccalaureate Organization works diligently to ensure that licensed IB schools follow the program as required. They will continue to visit both IB schools on a regular basis.

“The School Board and I congratulate Sam Houston and Austin Elementary Schools on this historic announcement,” said HCISD School Board President Eladio Jaimez. "IB will help our students become global thinkers, contribute to our community and help build a better world."

This press release was produced by the Harlingen Consolidated Independent School District . The views expressed are the author's own.