Senior Years

The Senior School program begins with the grade 10 transition year that concludes with students choosing from one of our two Diploma programs from years 11 and 12.

Click on each program for more details

Grade 10 Program

Grade 10 is specifically designed to support students effectively transition into Grades 11 and 12.  The Aoba approach to teaching has two key intersecting methods. The Aoba Inquiry Cycle (AIC) and Structured Team Learning (STL) are aligned with the philosophies and expected practices of the International Baccalaureate curriculum and Aoba’s internationally accredited Global Leadership Diploma. Research shows our approach has a very positive effect on student attitudes to learning that improve individual academic achievement.

There are three foundational frameworks underpinning the Grade 10 programme. The first is the student advisory programme that provides regular expert coaching by teachers to support students in their social emotional well being, university and career options, and strategies for learning.  The advisor teacher is responsible for a small group of 10 or less students that enables them to strengthen the partnership between the school, student and parent. This group consists of multiple grade students, so we also can expect the interaction between junior and senior students in the conversation which is sometimes much more efficient than the one with adults.

Second is the Aoba transdisciplinary learning units. Focussed on developing the high level research and critical thinking skills needed  to succeed in senior school  these units expect the students to take a central role in the decision making and application of research projects. Guided extensively by teachers, the student teams identify their passions and plan their future pathways.

Third is the subject discipline programme. In this programme all students work with expert subject teachers to acquire a strong understanding of the discipline’s general knowledge and content base. This program is designed to support students to make wise subject choices in Grade 11 and 12. Overall, the three Grade 10 programmes enable the students and families to make informed decisions about the most suitable IB or GLD programme on offer at A-JIS in Grades 11 and 12.