December 6, 2021

As part of the curriculum that we offer here in Matrix International School, we have been using the International Primary Curriculum (IPC) for the past few years. However, you may still be unsure about what the IPC is and how it works.

What is the IPC?

The IPC was first introduced in 2000 by Fieldwork Education after identifying that international programmes needed a curriculum that was better suited to the diverse experiences, needs and understanding of their students rather than a curriculum focused largely on British concepts. Initially starting in 14 Shell schools, the curriculum is currently used in over 1000 schools across 90 countries worldwide. 

The IPC focuses on the holistic development of learners. There are clearly defined Learning Goals for what learners are expected to know, what they should be able to do and the understanding that they will develop through learning. The Learning Goals are organised into the following 3 unique but connected sections:

Subject: Cover the knowledge, skills and understanding that children should learn in science, geography, history, international, society, technology, art, ICT (Information and Communication Technology), music and physical education (P.E.).

International: Helps learners move toward a national, international, global, and intercultural perspectives.

Personal: Underpins the individual qualities and dispositions that learners will need to thrive in an ever-changing world. They are adaptability, communication, cooperation, enquiry, morality, resilience, respect and thoughtfulness.

How does the IPC work?

Each IPC unit of work is designed around one core purpose: improving children’s learning. Our school has carefully selected a range of cross-curricular units based on globally relevant themes that excite children and teachers alike and help them to learn more about the world around them. In addition, the units allow for our students to achieve the necessary learning outcomes to prepare them for secondary education. 

Each unit will have a specific theme. Some themes we use here in Matrix are rainforests, food, electricity. For each unit, there is a clear learning process which can last between 3 to 11 weeks (depending on the content that needs to be covered). Students will learn about the theme through each subject before moving to the next subject to allow them to make better connections in their learning and to enable them to learn about the theme from different perspectives. 

Why choose the IPC?

Some of the benefits of the IPC are:

• It is flexible and can be adapted to the children’s interests and level of understanding.
• It is a structured curriculum that focuses on subject, personal and international learning goals. 
• It helps learners become globally competent, developing their understanding of the world.
• It helps engage parents with learning, and to understand the relevance of learning in the classroom and at home. 
• It encourages collaboration and reflection not just between teachers and pupils, but amongst teachers within the school and worldwide.

Mr. Andrew Hamilton, Head of Matrix International School who is from Northern Ireland has 10 years of teaching experience. His educational experience, alongside his involvement in youth work, has propelled good practices in his teaching profession. His best moments in teaching are the interactions with the students: the times when they have that ‘Eureka!’ moment, or when he supports them in overcoming their own challenges, or the times they make him smile with their words or actions.