2021

IB MISSION STATEMENT

The International Baccalaureate aims to develop inquiring, knowledgeable and caring young people who help to create a better and more peaceful world through intercultural understanding and respect. To this end the organization works with schools, governments and international organizations to develop challenging programmes of international education and rigorous assessment. These programmes encourage students across the world to become active, compassionate and lifelong learners who understand that other people, with their differences, can also be right.

SCHOOL MISSION STATEMENT

Druga gimnazija Sarajevo teaches and encourages students to learn, nurture their talents and apply them to various challenges of today. It introduces young people to a rich world of friendship, tolerance and intercultural understanding, while guiding them to think critically, be just and socially responsible.

IB LEARNER PROFILE

IB learners strive to be:

Inquirers They develop their natural curiosity. They acquire the skills necessary to conduct inquiry and research and show independence in learning. They actively enjoy learning and this love of learning will be sustained throughout their lives.

Knowledgeable They explore concepts, ideas and issues that have local and global significance. In so doing, they acquire in-depth knowledge and develop understanding across a broad and balanced range of disciplines.

Thinkers They exercise initiative in applying thinking skills critically and creatively to recognize and approach complex problems, and make reasoned, ethical decisions.

Communicators They understand and express ideas and information confidently and creatively in more than one language and in a variety of modes of communication. They work effectively and willingly in collaboration with others.

Principled They act with integrity and honesty, with a strong sense of fairness, justice and respect for the dignity of the individual, groups and communities. They take responsibility for their own actions and the consequences that accompany them.

Open-minded They understand and appreciate their own cultures and personal histories, and are open to the perspectives, values and traditions of other individuals and communities. They are accustomed to seeking and evaluating a range of points of view, and are willing to grow from the experience.

Caring They show empathy, compassion and respect towards the needs and feelings of others. They have a personal commitment to service, and act to make a positive difference to the lives of others and to the environment.

Risk-takers They approach unfamiliar situations and uncertainty with courage and forethought, and have the independence of spirit to explore new roles, ideas and strategies. They are brave and articulate in defending their beliefs.

Balanced They understand the importance of intellectual, physical and emotional balance to achieve personal well-being for themselves and others.

Reflective They give thoughtful consideration to their own learning and experience. They are able to assess and understand their strengths and limitations in order to support their learning and personal development.

IB STANDARDS AND PRACTICES

The IB Programme standards and practices documents the practices required by schools to support learning diversity and they are:

A:9. The school supports access for students to the IB programme(s) and philosophy.

B1:5. The school develops and implements policies and procedures that support the programmes.

B2:8. The school provides support for its students with learning and/or special educational needs and support for their teachers.

C1:6. Collaborative planning and reflection incorporates differentiation for students’ learning needs and styles.

C1:8. Collaborative planning and reflection recognizes that all teachers are responsible for language development of students

C3:4. Teaching and learning promotes the understanding and practice of academic honesty.

C3:7. Teaching and learning addresses the diversity of student language needs, including those for students learning in a language(s) other than mother tongue.

C3:10. Teaching and learning differentiates instruction to meet students’ learning needs and styles.

C3:16. Teaching and learning develops the IB learner profile attributes.

AIM AND PURPOSE OF THE DOCUMENT

In all IB programmes, teaching is designed to remove barriers to learning. Teaching is inclusive and values diversity. It affirms students' identities, and aims to create learning opportunities that enable every student to develop and pursue appropriate personal goals. (What is an IB education? 2013:6)

The aim of this document is to define inclusion and diversity in both available IB programmes at Druga gimnazija Sarajevo, to create welcoming environment for each student, to ensure that the learning support requirements are identified early and provided for, to identify staff roles and responsibilities and to specify procedures and arrangements in order to help students reach their full potential.

The purpose is to support school in structuring and developing practices of inclusive education within IB standards and practices.

It is intended for the head of school, program coordinators, counselor, teachers and students. This document is public and available for all.  

WHAT IS INCLUSION

"Inclusion is an ongoing process that aims to increase access and engagement in learning for all students by identifying and removing barriers. Inclusion is an organizational paradigm that involves change. It is a continual process of increasing learning and participation for all students. It addresses learning support requirements and questions the broader objectives of education, the nature of pedagogy, curriculum and assessment. It is an educational approach to which all schools should aspire. Inclusion is facilitated in a culture of collaboration, mutual respect, support and problem-solving involving the whole school community." Inclusion is all about removing barriers to learning and considering these barriers from multiple perspectives. "Barriers to learning may be found in the way schools are organized and resourced, their cultures and policies, the approaches to teaching and learning, the physical aspects of buildings and the ways in which individuals within the school community interact on a daily basis." Learning diversity and inclusion in IB programmes, IB, 2016:1)

LOCAL COMMUNITY, LEGISLATIVES AND ARRANGEMENTS

Druga gimnazija Sarajevo is located in the Center Municipality of Sarajevo, which is the capital city of Bosnia and Herzegovina. The Ministry for education, science and youth of Sarajevo Canton has the authority for all education legislatures, policies and arrangements. The national curriculum is in need of great reform which is in the process currently. Inclusive policy in Bosnia and Herzegovina allows students to attend either special schools for students with disabilities or public schools. This decision is mainly brought by parents. The situation in special schools is not supportive enough due to outdated curricula (e.g. there are two levels/programs: base and advanced level for all students who attend special schools and students attending base level cannot continue their education further in high school). Depending on the level of students’ functionality, there is a possibility for a student to have access to an assistant by their side in order to help them overcome difficulties in learning (though in practice there is a deficit of teaching assistants due to complicated administrative procedures). Also, more students are included in primary schools then in secondary schools. 

SCHOOL ORGANIZATION AND RESOURCES

Druga gimnazija Sarajevo was built in 1905 and has a long history of different academic achievements in mathematics, informatics and sports as well. Students can apply to study either national or international programmes (International Baccalaureate). It’s students are known for extracurricular activities in which they show compassion, empathy, creativity, communication and collaboration skills and extraordinary talents. Only students with high academic achievement and ambition enroll and they are recognized as very successful later on in their careers. Therefore, it is hard for students with different learning or physical challenges to even consider applying to Druga gimnazija Sarajevo.

The building itself is still unadapted until this day (there is no elevator or a ramp for wheelchair), but the school has a plan and a budget for adaptation.

Druga gimnazija Sarajevo has a school counselor that covers both IB programs (Middle Years and Diploma Programme) and is a part of the team (the team also includes coordinator, homeroom teacher and a subject teacher if needed) that is responsible for recognizing, identifying and planning arrangements for students that come across different types of challenges or barriers. If a school cannot provide sufficient support for a student, the team uses outsourcing, it means that the school collaborates with specialists outside the school. The specialists provide valid documentation with steps that will help the team and the student to reach the highest level of academic achievement and personal development. This documentation is part of the student file and it is held in a counselors’ office under confidentiality (only accessible by request to the team or head of school).

WHO ARE THE STUDENTS

As previously stated, students that choose to attend Druga gimnazija Sarajevo are high achievers and ambitious individuals and this is why it is difficult for students that might have challenges to even apply. Another difficulty that students with challenges face is the Admission policy for high schools which is regulated by the Ministry for education, science and youth of Sarajevo Canton (applicants are ranked based only on academic achievement in elementary school) and the number of students enrolled is limited for each specific school.

Students that do enroll Druga gimnazija Sarajevo usually have difficulties that could be challenge/barrier for our students:

• Language barriers - most students come from Bosnian and Herzegovinian or other countries’ educational systems where the curriculum is not taught in English. These students show lack of English language knowledge and therefore have difficulties in learning and understanding subjects
• emotional and psychological difficulties - encountering stress, emotional disorders, psychosomatic illnesses, eating disorders,
• chronic illness - diabetes, allergies, epilepsy, spinal deformities,
• writing/reading difficulty (dyslexia, dysgraphia)
• speech impairment (stuttering, pronunciation)
• vision or hearing impairment,
• talented/gifted students,
• athletes,
• lack of prior knowledge in certain subject,
• different social/economic background,
• difficulty in adaptation to a new surroundings.

PRACTICES (procedures, arrangements)

The school has standard procedures before creating individualized approaches and plans for students with specific difficulty. There are two different types of situations that school encounters:

TYPE 1

1. Parents/legal guardians are obliged to inform the school if the child has medical history from before or if changes in their child's health occur during the school year.
2. Medical documents need to be submitted in the student file.
3. The application form has a health condition statement included that parents/legal guardians are obliged to fulfil and sign. This document holds information such as chronic illness, impairments, allergies, surgeries that had an impact on the health of the student etc.

TYPE 2

1. Teaching staff recognizes and identifies the issue that the student has, then notifies homeroom teachers, coordinators and schools’ counselors about it.
2. The coordinator/counselor/homeroom teacher are obliged to inform the students’ parents/legal guardians about the problem and following procedures in order to give support to a student. This procedure includes a written record that states that parents/legal guardians are informed about their child’s status and which steps to take in order to overcome the challenge/barrier/difficulty. For example, the student that encounters challenges with learning language or math and shows lower academic performance is offered additional language/math support classes in school. 

In both types of situations the schools’ responsibility is to inform the parents/legal guardians about the progress of the student. When it comes to difficulties with certain subjects, the teachers’ responsibility is to inform students’ homeroom teacher, programme coordinator and counselor about the progress. The school counselor manages emotional and psychological support for students, as well as collaboration between all stakeholders. The school counselor keeps track of students' overall health (physical and mental) and progress. If the school counselor is not sufficient to meet the needs for expertise, the school is using outsourcing and collaborates with medical staff (specialists, psychotherapists etc.). The parents/legal guardians are given contact information of the experts outside of school.

Any medical documentation or written records about students’ progress are held in the counselor's office and the access to the file has the head of school, coordinator, school counselor, homeroom teacher and student’s parents/legal guardians only by request and discretion.

School counselor is the official that manages the passing of the information at transition points such as switching programs or schools.

COLLABORATION AND RESPONSIBILITIES

 The best way to create a motivating and trusting environment for students to overcome the barrier is the collaboration between all important stakeholders in this process. This includes parents, teachers, coordinators, experts and counselor. Having a constant and an open communication is the key part of success as well as dedication, consistency, persistence and involvement of all subjects that are included.  Continuously keeping track and record of students’ progress or setbacks and passing the information to whom it might be of an interest is essential part of collaboration.

The School is responsible to:

• Provide instruction and training to teachers and staff to support differentiation and individual learning requirements
• Raise teacher and staff awareness of individual learning needs of students and provide resources to implement individual learning plans.

Programme coordinator is responsible for:

• Work collaboratively with teaching staff to support students with learning difficulties
• Be involved in creating individualized learning plans
• At enrollment, advise parents of rigorous programme requirements to ensure appropriate placement
• Communicate school document Inclusion policy

Teachers responsibilities are:

• To implement schools policies
• To teach in a manner that respects the dignity and rights of all students without prejudice of the race, colour, nationality, place of origin, religious beliefs, sex, sexual orientation or physical characteristics
• To identify educational needs, to implement instructions of individualized plan, to evaluate and to keep a record of a students’ progress
• To report any concerns to homeroom teacher, coordinator or a school counselor

Parents responsibilities:

• Be aware of the schools policies
• Play an active role in child’s education
• Provide school with supporting documentation of the child (medical documentation, experts opinion)
• Collaborate with coordinator, teaching staff or school counselor for advice and support

School counselor is responsible for:

• Conduct class observations
• Monitoring implementation of a plan for individualized learning
• Support and advise teachers and parents during implementation of individualized learning plans
• Counselling - individual or group counseling for students
• Workshops and education for students to raise awareness (choosing suitable topics)
• Maintaining confidentiality of student files and records
• Collaborate with Programme Coordinators and teaching staff in order to keep track of students progress

WHAT DO WE ALREADY DO FOR OUR STUDENTS

Taking into account all circumstances previously stated, Druga gimnazija Sarajevo makes sure that all students have access to quality education according to their abilities and needs.

School year 2020/2021

DGS policy revision team