Three-program IB School in Korea

Taejon Christian International School offers a high-quality, comprehensive education around the IB framework. IB programs work together to provide a seamless education experience for students ages 3 to 19. TCIS subscribes to the three IB programs to ensure that continuity and a progression of learning, service, and action encompass TCIS students' life from a very young age until they are ready to enter higher education. The delivery of the IB Learner Profile, along with rigorous, sequenced academic standards at all grade levels, drives student learning and development over a series of years and a variety of experiences.

In 2012, TCIS became the first Three-program IB school in South Korea, proving once again the sort of innovative educational philosophy at work in this school. It was more than eight years in the journey of building and training to arrive at that point, but the IB program fits our school well for its focus on the individual learner. It also aligns very strongly with the long history of TCIS's mission and our holistic approach to teaching balance, leadership, service, and a growth mindset. Thousands of schools around the world have adopted the IB program, to one degree or another, and TCIS remains one of the best IB international schools in Korea, with unparalleled experience in delivering the continuum across all grades.

In 2001, our Head of School visited an IB school on his professional travels in Asia and was very impressed with the format. The approach was inquiry-based, student-focused, promoted global and local community involvement, and prepared children with essential supplementary skills alongside content. As he shared his experience with the faculty and leadership on his return, the school recognized the connections between the missions of both TCIS and the International Baccalaureate. It was then that  our journey with the IB began. We began work and became authorized for the PYP in 2004, the DP in 2008, and the MYP in 2012.

In January 2012, we received our MYP authorization and became the first Three Program IB World School in Korea.

This is not the primary laurel we pride ourselves on so much as the idea that TCIS is a school of vision and innovation for education that prepares children for the future.

The three academic programs in the IB fit together as a developmentally-appropriate series for students to learn. From the youngest learners in the Primary Years Program (PYP,) through the Middle Years Program (MYP,) into the Diploma Program (DP) before matriculation, each of the programs provides a structure of learning that well prepares students to progress through each program and into university. This is one of the major strengths of the IB as a whole – that concept learning and core skills are developed in ever deeper and more complex ways as students grow.