The Open Door Web Site : The International Baccalaureate at the Ecole Active Bilingue Jeannine Manuel, Paris - an International School offering International Education

The Ecole Active Bilingue Jeannine Manuel (EABJM) is one of the few schools in France to offer international students the opportunity to enrol in the International Baccalaureate Diploma programme. The EABJM is a truly international school with students and teachers representing over 65 countries. It is a marvellous mix of cultures and traditions that share the common goal to live and work together in harmony and understanding.

The International Baccalaureate classes are particularly diverse in cultural origins, with around 30 different nationalities represented by 120 students following the two-year diploma programme. International students can enter the school at all levels, from kindergarten to 12^th grade. Those students with little or no previous instruction in the French language are placed in adaptation classes for one year, where they follow a French immersion curriculum which, at the same time, allows English speaking students to continue a mother-tongue curriculum.

The International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme can be represented by the following hexagon

IB hexagon

An IB diploma student takes a subject from each of the six groups. Three subjects are presented at Higher Level (HL) and three subjects at Standard Level (SL). In addition to these six subjects, every diploma student follows a Theory of Knowledge course, completes a 4000 word Extended Essay and participates in activities involving creation, action and service (CAS).

The beauty of the IB diploma programme is its ability to allow a student to design his or her own curriculum. Mother-tongue languages can be offered in group 1 and the EABJM works with external mother-tongue language teachers. Examples of LA1 languages offered in recent years are Russian, Swedish, Korean, Japanese, Icelandic, Spanish, German, Portuguese and Finnish. The EABJM also works with external teachers for languages A2 and B.

Subjects currently offered in the IB Diploma at the Ecole Active Bilingue Jeannine Manuel are

Group 1	French HL and SL, English HL and SL
Group 2	French LA2 HL and SL, French B HL and SL, English LA2 HL and SL, Spanish LB HL and SL
Note: For those students wishing to follow any other language at A1, A2 or B levels, the EABJM will help to find an external teacher and work in conjunction with this tutor.
Group 3	History SL, History of Europe HL, Information Technology in a Global Society (ITGS) SL (for these three subjects the language of tuition is English) Economics HL and SL (the language of tuition is French)
Group 4	(All subjects taught in English) Biology HL and SL, Chemistry HL and SL, Physics HL and SL
Group 5	Mathematics HL and SL, Mathematical Studies SL
Group 6	Visual Arts HL and SL

Note that a group 6 subject can also be another language or another subject from groups 3 and 4.

An essential part of the diploma programme, Theory of Knowledge (TOK) is taught in French at the EABJM by a philosophy specialist. (Students who follow French LB should note that this is not as daunting at is may seem! There have been many students in the past who have achieved excellent grades in TOK even though they started the diploma course with a minimum knowledge of the French language! The EABJM has accumulated years of expertise in language tuition and in helping students achieve success in subjects where the tuition language is not their mother-tongue.)

Many of the Ecole Active Bilingue Jeannine Manuel teachers have contributed to the Open Door Web Site (ODWS) pages. All of them are highly experienced IB teachers.

Paul Billiet teaches both Biology HL and SL. A IB examiner in biology, Paul Billiet was an IBO deputy chief examiner and is presently the principal moderator for biology internal assessment. Paul Billiet has contributed to all of the biology sections of the ODWS, including all of the IB Biology pages. He is the co-author of ‘Further Investigations in Biology’ (Billiet, Casalis, Gaurenne, James. IBID Press. Australia 1999).

David Hoult teachers Physics HL and SL and has contributed all the IB Physics pages, as well as the Electronics section on the ODWS Technology web.

Alan Damon teaches Biology SL and ITGS SL and has contributed to the biology and technology sections. Alan Damon is the co-author of Heinemann Baccalaureate: Biology Higher Level (Alan Damon, Randy McGonegal, Patricia Tosto, William Ward) which will be published in December 2007.

Nicholas Bunch teaches HL History and has contributed to the Study Guide section of the ODWS web site

Lin Noan teaches Mathematical Studies SL and has contributed to the Physical Science section of the ODWS. She is currently developing a Math Studies section of the web site. Lin Noan is an IB examiner in Mathematics.

Shirley Burchill, Head of the International Baccalaureate at the EABJM, is the webmaster of the Open Door Web Site.

The EABJM Paris is a day school and is unable to accept students who are not living with their families or legal guardians. For those students who are interested in the EABJM IB Diploma Programme and are thinking of moving to France on their own, the Ecole Active Bilingue Jeannine Manuel Lille Metropole also offers the IB Diploma Programme and has a boarding facility.