Chesterton High School is one of three high schools in Northwest Indiana offering courses toward an International Baccalaureate Diploma. Twenty-one current IB students recently attended a conference organized by high school students in cooperation with the Indiana Department of Education and hosted at Butler University in Indianapolis.
High school IB students, former IB graduates, and two different college admissions panels representing four private colleges in Indiana and two public universities presented this unique one-day seminar. Students at CHS were able to choose which workshop to attend.
One college admissions officer said, “IB students who enroll at our college are rarely found flat-footed in their freshmen year. They know how to study, how to write good essays, and how to manage their time.” When asked why a high school student should take IB courses in high school, the response was, “Students should know what they want out of their high school education. Don’t take IB because of the college credits. Take it because it shows that you want to learn and be challenged.”
The keynote speaker, Ian Richardson, spoke to the group via video conferencing from Great Britain using Skype. Four of his students from around the world joined him and shared experiences of how they use video conferencing to discuss important social issues with others in the world. Two of the students were in New Delhi, India; one was in Canada; and another was speaking from England. Chesterton students and others from Indiana were invited to ‘Tweet’ questions. Students were also invited to step up to the microphone and webcam and ask questions.
Chesterton IB juniors attending the conference are Kaley Brown, Sam Carpenter, Kayla Jones, Eddie Kaczmarek, Brett Lara, Emily Percifield, Jessica Ratel-Khan, Natalie Richardson, Katie Smith and Dana Wickenden; and seniors Spencer Gordon, Alexandra Hanson, Jennifer Kay, Logan Krantz, Matrika Laster, Alexis Malay, Kalvin Ravn, Micheala Sosby, Tim Trowbridge, Hannah Van Drie and Alisha Whittaker.