Elementy edukacji regionalnej w programie Matury Międzynarodowej

Elements of regional education in the International Baccalaureate programme

Summary: The article looks at the problems associated with the introduction of regional education elements into an international high school programme (International Baccalaureate - IB). The first part of the article is an attempt to present the character of regional education in Polish school curricula. It is not a separate subject but a sort of interdisciplinary education path. Information about different regions is a part of history, biology, geography and Polish language classes. The article attempts to prove the need for introducing regional issues into school programmes despite the fact that the programme of interest is rather global in nature. Arguments supporting the need for regional education are presented in Table 1. Such arguments include the role of regional education in patriotic upbringing, cultural development, and personal identity development of pupils. Furthermore, the introduction of regional education in schools is mandated by Polish law (Ustawa o systemie oświaty 1991). The final paragraph of the first part of the paper contains a list of principal aims, objectives, and contents of regional education programs recommended by Polish law. In the following part, an attempt is made to point out the possible ways of incorporating the previously mentioned assumptions into the International Baccalaureate system. The second part of the paper is a general description of the International Baccalaureate curriculum. The structure of the system is presented as a diamond (fig. 1) with six subject groups and three elements in the centre. Geography is a social science and is one of subjects in Group 3 concerned with the study of individuals and societies (Geography Syllabus 2003). Finally - in the last part - an analysis of the syllabi of the most popular International Baccalaureate subjects leads to the conclusion that Geography is the best place to include regional issues in the Diploma Programme. The main areas of convergence of Polish regional education and International Baccalaureate Geography are the following: 1. IB Geography requires field research. At the same time, the best way to teach about a region is to teach the subject in the field (Angiel 2001); 2. Both the IB and regional education promote a "from local to global" way of thinking. It means that bigger issues are discovered by studying local issues; 3. The IB and regional education both aim to form proper attitudes among the youth. Both programmes expect pupils to become actively engaged in local initiatives by joining charities or ecological organisations; 4. One of the objectives of regional education is the promotion of the given region to the outside world. The International Baccalaureate Diploma is recognized by most universities in the world. Thus, its graduates have a very good opportunity to spread positive information about the given region all over the world. Of course, this assumes that their schools has supplied them with this kind of knowledge. The conclusion is that, in spite of the different approaches taken by regional education programmes and the International Baccalaureate system, it is possible and even desirable to incorporate regional information in the IB curriculum. The ultimate goal of students learning to "think globally and act locally" is that they themselves as well as their communities benefit from this type of intellectual/social attitude.

Słowa kluczowe: edukacja regionalna, Matura Międzynarodowa, szkoła średnia, program nauczania, ścieżka międzyprzedmiotowa

Słowa kluczowe (w języku angielskim): regional education, International Baccalaureate, upper secondary school, teaching programme, interdisciplinary path

Prace Geograficzne, 2009, z. 121, s. 159-167.

Instytut Geografii i Gospodarki Przestrzennej UJ

ISSN 1644-3586

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