IB Matters
Education & Explainer
About
IB Matters is a podcast (established in April 2019) which brings listeners content related to International Baccalaureate (IB) education. It is for students, parents, and teachers interested in learning more about IB and for those working in IB schools wanting access to pedagogical support for their teaching. Please listen, subscribe, and post a review to help us spread the word about the IB. Follow us on twitter @MattersIB and be sure to let us know what you would like to hear more about in future episodes. The podcast is hosted in Minnesota by the MN Association of IB World Schools (MNIB) but is intended for a global audience.
Episodes
- Creating the Culture of your IB Program with Rohit Vaswani
Send us Fan Mail When an experienced IB DP teacher like Rohit Vaswani becomes the new IB coordinator, they bring a certain set of tools to the job. They might know the nuts and bolts of the position: deadlines, exam prep, and compliance is…
- Creating Autonomous Learners with Taryn Moir
Send us Fan Mail Taryn Moir is an educational psychologist focused on bringing research-backed best practices into the classroom. In this episode she describes some of the research she has done and has studied that led to her book, ' How t…
- Supporting DP students moving on to higher education with Leah Thayer
Send us Fan Mail Leah Thayer has spent a lifetime supporting people in transition. From her work in conflict zones, developing public health supports, and now in counseling students, Leah has been there to meet the needs of the people she…
- Leading in an IB School and beyond with Gavin Kinch
Send us Fan Mail Gavin Kinch has been on an IB journey which began as a classroom teacher and has led him to be appointed the IB School Leadership Council chairperson. Along the way, he has developed a philosophy of mentoring younger teach…
- The impactful IB student with Arjun Malhotra
Send us Fan Mail The IB educational framework is designed to provide students with knowledge, skills, and attributes that will serve them throughout their lives. Our guest, Arjun Malhotra , is a high school junior (DP year 1) who has exper…
- Growing the IB in Nepal with Maksud Alam
Send us Fan Mail Maksud Alam is a dynamic young IB leader working at Swostishree Gurukul IB World School in Kathmandu, Nepal. His school is only the second in Nepal to offer the MYP and one of 7 schools in Nepal to offer the IB, so far. Th…
- Michael Dunn and what makes TOK special in the IB
Send us Fan Mail Michael Dunn, known as the man behind Theoryofknowledge.ne t is our guest on this first episode of our 5th season. Michael grew the most popular TOK website on the internet, organically, from a wish to share what he was do…
- The Journey to PYP Authorization at Smart Innovations School
Send us Fan Mail Returning guest, Rezuan Chowdhury and the head of his school's governing board, Rifat Abedin , speak about becoming one of very few PYP schools in Bangladesh. They detail the rationale from the parent's perspective and the…
- Towards IB for all with Phil Evans
Send us Fan Mail While this is, technically, a quickcast to promote speakers and vendors at the #IBGC2025 in NOLA, its really an introduction to the IB North Americas' excellent initiative designed to encourage greater IB DP and CP partici…
- Digital learning tools for IB schools - Kognity
Send us Fan Mail Continuing our series of quickcasts leading to the 2025 IB Global Conference in New Orleans, we feature Kognity , an IB partner organization. Chris Barres and Sian Steggles tell us about Kognity and their digital teaching…
- Start the discussion in your classroom - Kialo Education
Send us Fan Mail This is the third of several 'Quickcasts' to introduce listeners to vendors and presenters at the 2025 IB Global conference in New Orleans. Here, we speak with Amnah Ejaz of Kialo Education , an online discussion platform.…
- Three Steps to a more equitable Diploma Programme - Robert Kohnert
Send us Fan Mail This is the second of several 'Quickcasts' to introduce listeners to vendors and presenters at the 2025 IB Global conference in New Orleans. This episode features Robert Kohnert, a coordinator of advanced programming in Mi…
- AI Guidance for IB Schools - Eblana Learning
Send us Fan Mail This is the first of several 'Quickcasts' to introduce listeners to vendors and presenters at the 2025 IB Global conference in New Orleans. This episode features Rachel Bodily, co-founder of Eblana Learning. We did a full…
- IB Humanities - a place to build skills with Novadene Miller
Send us Fan Mail Returning guest Novadene Miller is a skilled and motivational teacher. She draws from her experience earning a doctorate in Geography to bring multiple perspectives and resources to the classroom. In this episode she share…
- Customize your school's IB training with Casey Strecker
Send us Fan Mail Do you need to get your teachers official IB training that doesn't break the bank? Did you know that schools can request specific subjects and categories of training that come straight to you? In this episode, Casey Streck…
- Focusing on Arts & Culture in an IB setting with Alex Soulsby
Send us Fan Mail The MAGIC-T model is at the center of education at the Prem International School in northern Thailand. Creative director of the school, Alex Soulsby explains how using arts and culture as a focus works so well in an IB con…
- Enhancing ATLs in an AI World with Rita Bateson
Send us Fan Mail Rita Bateson has been part of MYP evolution since the days of the 'Next Chapter'. Today, she is still engaged in the Enhanced MYP and has researched how AI is going to influence the Approaches to Learning (ATLs) in all IB…
- Engaging your students with Chaahat Dhall
Send us Fan Mail Our guest, Chaahat Dhall, from Fountainhead School in Surat, India has some great ways she engages her MYP students. From human libraries, to silent debates, to advisory circles and beyond, Chaahat shares some of the many…
- The IB Continuum Student: Jiana Shah 2.0
Send us Fan Mail Jiana Shah is back, two years after we first spoke. Then, she was a 14 year old 9th grader looking forward to the end of the MYP and the beginning of her Diploma Programme journey. Jiana began in the PYP as a kindergartner…
- Play-based Learning with Smriti Sajjanhar
Send us Fan Mail Smriti Sajjanhar from Genesis Global School shares her expertise in using Play-based Learning (PBL) with students in her PYP school. She shares great anecdotes telling how PBL has transformed the way students learn and eve…
- Optimizing the MYP Personal Project with student-lead mentorship
Send us Fan Mail We are releasing several quick casts featuring presenters at the IB Global Conference in Washington D.C. July 25-28, 2024 Use the hashtag #IBGC2024 to see what's happening on social media Session title: Optimizing the IB P…
- Personalized Learning in the MYP
Send us Fan Mail We are releasing several quick casts featuring presenters at the IB Global Conference in Washington D.C. July 25-28, 2024 Use the hashtag #IBGC2024 to see what's happening on social media Session title: Humanizing Personal…
- Increasing access for all students - Towards school-wide adoption
Send us Fan Mail We are releasing several quick casts featuring presenters at the IB Global Conference in Washington D.C. July 25-28, 2024 Use the hashtag #IBGC2024 to see what's happening on social media Towards school-wide adoption: incr…
- The Many Hats We Wear as IB Educators with Vikas Pahwa
Send us Fan Mail Vikas Pahwa returns to talk about the many roles we play in our careers as educators. From teacher, mentor, colleague and leader to parent, learner, and counselor, we wear many hats throughout our lives. Vikas shares much…
- Book clubs, blogs, and teacher connections with Judy Imamudeen
Send us Fan Mail Judy Imamudeen shares her experiences making connections with teachers around the world through her popular blog and educator book club. She also talks about the upcoming changes in the PYP and how to keep yourself healthy…
- Getting to know the PYP even better with Cindy Blackburn
Send us Fan Mail The PYP, like all IB Programmes, is a dynamic and evolving framework of best practice. Our guest, Cindy Blackburn is well placed to guide us through the ins and outs of the Primary Years Programme in her role as a leader a…
- Celebrating 5 Years of IB Matters - Thank you!
Send us Fan Mail In April of 2019, we set out to offer information about the IB for a Minnesota audience. Little did we know that it would grow to be heard in over 170 countries and become a labor of love for all things IB and a celebratio…
- The Snapshots Project - Sharing student service projects with Nate Samuelson
Send us Fan Mail in this episode we talk to Nate Samuelson from Korea International School about his project called The Snapshots Project and a course he created called ‘Design Your Impact’. Not only will your students be invited to partic…
- Effective transitions when moving to a new school with Novadene Miller
Send us Fan Mail In this episode we return to speak to Novadene Miller - this time we talk about making effective transitions when changing schools or changing roles within a school. But our conversation ranged widely from teacher skill se…
- DP students from Exeter College share their CAS experiences
Send us Fan Mail In this episode we talk to six students and their CAS coordinator from Exeter College in Devon County, England. As the third in a series of interviews with IB students around the world: first in the US (here in Minnesota)…
- Imagining IB With Artificial Intelligence: A leadership take on strengths and opportunities
Send us Fan Mail This is part one of a series of episodes exploring the role of AI in the future of education. AI is here to stay and we need some tools and a plan to make the most of this transformative technology. A ruj Khaliq from Pakis…
- DP Students from Shiv Nadar School in Gurgaon, India share their CAS experiences
Send us Fan Mail In this episode we return to talk to Vikas Pahwa from Shiv Nadar School in Gurgaon, India - but we are actually featuring some of his students who are sharing their CAS experiences. If this sounds familiar to regular liste…
- DP Students from Minnesota (USA) share their CAS experiences
Send us Fan Mail In this episode, we talk to four IB Diploma candidates about their CAS (Creativity, Activity & Service) experiences. Evan Whipple , Jynx Taylor , Lolu Ogunleye , and Audrey Mochama are all seniors at Champlin Park High Sch…
- High Quality Learning with Sonia Singh
Send us Fan Mail In this episode we return to talk to Sonia Singh , a school principal at Sreenidhi International School in Hyderabad, India about her school’s initiative to focus on high quality learning. While this may seem like an obvio…
- De-tracking Schools in Shaker Heights with John Moore
Send us Fan Mail In this episode we talk with John Moore from Shaker Heights, Ohio. The Shaker Heights City Schools have made the choice to de-track their schools in an effort to better prepare all their students for success in high school…
- A Mission for our Association with Sarah Wernimont
Send us Fan Mail In this episode we talk to our MN Assc of IB World Schools (MNIB) President, Sarah Wernimont, about the process we used this past year to develop our MNIB mission statement. You’ll hear it was a journey that I found challe…
- The Connected IB Classroom with Novadene Miller
Send us Fan Mail in this episode we return to talk to Novadene Miller . She was a guest in season 2 (episode 18) but she has now moved to a high school in Geneva and speaks about the connected IB classroom. Novadene has a PhD in physical g…
- Sustainable Project Based Learning with author Brad Sever
Send us Fan Mail In this episode we talk to author, and IB high school assistant principal, Brad Sever about his new book, ‘ Sustainable Project Based Learning ’. Brad’s experience in an IB school makes him an excellent resource to help us…
- The IB Educator Certificate with Cody Alderson
Send us Fan Mail in this episode we talk to Cody Alderson from the University of New Brunswick in Canada. Cody is the director of the IB Educator Certificate Program at UNB. Cody and I talk about the many aspects of this great partnership…
- IB School Improvement: The Program Development Plan with Jaya Sharma
Send us Fan Mail When a school makes the effort to become an IB World School through a years-long period of reflection and self evaluation, the entire school agrees to embark on a continuous journey of self improvement. In this episode, we…
- Making a Difference: Incorporating Action in your IB Teaching with Bhavna Mathew
Send us Fan Mail In this episode we return to talk with Bhavna Mathew from India about the role of action in the IB. As Bhavna says, Action is BIG! It is through action that we come closest to realizing the vision of the IB founders when t…
- ATL's in the DP with Vikas Pahwa
Send us Fan Mail In this episode of IB Matters we return to talk to Vikas Pahwa from India. Vikas is an experienced DP History teacher and great person to talk about how he implements the ATL skills in the high school. While we often think…
- How the IB Languages put the International into the IB with Afroza Kazi
Send us Fan Mail In this episode we talk to Afroza Kazi from Dhaka, Bangladesh about her role as a Diploma Programme teacher. While she specifically teaches Language B - English, we get a better understanding of what makes the IB work for…
- ATL's in the PYP with Rezuan Chowdhury
Send us Fan Mail In this episode of IB Matters we talk to Rezuan Chowdhury from Daka, Bangladesh. Rezuan, who is a returning guest, has recently moved to a new school as an assistant PYP coordinator. We follow-up our popular ATL series fro…
- The IB Student Experience with Jiana Shah
Send us Fan Mail The IB student experience is much more than the Diploma Programme student completing exams and heading to university with a strong resume of academic accomplishments. The entire IB framework begins preparing students in pr…
- ATL's Episode 8: Our panel discusses how to make the ATL's work for you and your school
Send us Fan Mail This episode is the eighth and final episode in a series of podcasts we are doing on the IB Approaches to Learning Skills (known as the ATL’s) which are at the core of all four International Baccalaureate Programmes. This…
- ATL's Episode 7: Self-management Skills with John Harvey
Send us Fan Mail This episode is the seventh in a series of 8 podcasts we are doing on the IB Approaches to Learning Skills known as the ATL’s that are at the core of all four International Baccalaureate Programmes. It is our goal to give…
- ATL's Episode 6: Social Skills with John Harvey
Send us Fan Mail This episode is the sixth in a series of 8 podcasts we are doing on the IB Approaches to Learning Skills known as the ATL’s that are at the core of all four International Baccalaureate Programmes. This episode features tea…
- ATL's Episode 5: Communication Skills with John Harvey
Send us Fan Mail This episode is the fifth in a series of 8 podcasts we are doing on the IB Approaches to Learning Skills known as the ATL’s that are at the core of all four International Baccalaureate Programmes. This episode features tea…
- ATL's Episode 4: Research Skills with John Harvey
Send us Fan Mail This episode is the fourth in a series of 8 podcasts we are doing on the IB Approaches to Learning Skills known as the ATL’s that are at the core of all four International Baccalaureate Programmes. This episode features te…