Which curriculum is better? IBDP or A Levels?
If you live and work internationally, spend any time talking to parents of school-age children and a common topic will pop up: which curriculum is better? The debate dominates school car parks, coffee shops, and parental chatter.
For many the choice is a pragmatic one. Parents will stick to the curriculum they themselves were taught — British parents tend to prefer IGCSE’s and A-levels, American parents US curricula, Canadian parents, well, you get it. Or, it will simply be that a given school is closer, has spaces, or offers sports, facilities or activities which appeal.
Some parents do make a deliberate philosophical choice though.
For many this choice will be about orientation and access to university. For others, it will be about approach, content, and the extent to which the curriculum is internationally aligned. Often it’s a mix of both.
Enter the International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme (IBDP or IB Diploma) vs A-levels debate.
Given the freedom to choose then, which is better?
THE CURRICULUM LANDSCAPE
According to ISC Research, the most popular curricula in international schools are British. For example, in 2020, 17% of international schools offered A Levels, 15% the IB Diploma, and Advanced Placement 7%.
In schools offering IB, the Diploma Programme was available in circa 2,000 schools. The Primary Years Programme (PYP) in a little over 1,100, with the Middle Years Programme approaching 1,000 schools.
In terms of language of instruction, again in 2020, just less than 70% of schools were English-medium, with the bulk of the remainder being bilingual (added to which are French, German and Swiss international schools and a small variety of others).
WHAT’S THE DIFFERENCE?
The sharp end of any curriculum debate is about which programme gives the ‘best’ access to university.
That isn’t to say that parents don’t agonise over choices when their children are much younger, rather that the choice of pre-university qualification is seen to have the most bearing on a child’s future.
The A-level vs IBDP decision also comes at a natural transition point (between middle and high/senior school) and is likely to involve the child themselves — which, with teenagers, invariably raises the level of debate.
In brief, practical distinctions derive from the IB Diploma being a single full-time course of study for 16–18 year olds (with guided option combinations) leading to an overarching qualification. In contrast, A-levels are single subject qualifications which can be taken by people of any age and in combination with any other qualifications (usually other A Levels), or with none.
These differences make comparison awkward. However, in brief:
Student first
As any experienced educator will tell you, both programmes have advantages, both have disadvantages. What matters most is that they suit different students.
By design the IBDP offers a broad enquiry-based curriculum. This breadth suits all-round students who do not wish to drop from around 10 GCSEs to just four A-level subjects.
It also benefits students who have not yet settled on a university pathway, maintaining their options through to school graduation.
A notable disadvantage of the IBDP, however, is that all six subjects must be completed, meaning that one weaker subject can drag down an entire score.
All-rounders flourish, specialists can struggle.
In contrast, A-levels privilege depth over breadth.
Indeed, with perhaps only three or four subjects studied, A-level often overlaps with first year undergraduate content, especially in the case of US freshman courses (against which advanced credit is often given). For engineers, medics, economists and the like, this narrow focus is often considered better preparation for field-specific degree study.
Central to which programme is ‘better’ then is how your child might respond to these different approaches. Are they likely to follow a linear school-to-degree subject path, or a more general route? Would they prefer breadth or depth?
Promotion of international mindedness
Critically, schools interpret what it means to be ‘international’ in different ways.
In some schools, the word international carries meaning and is translated into action. For others, it reflects that the school teaches a non-local curriculum, though perhaps to an almost entirely local populace.
Or, it may be little more than a marketing tool.
So, when you are choosing which schools to send your children to, you will need to question your own values and your own interpretation of ‘international’.
For example, international mindedness and global citizenship are enshrined within the IBDP. A-levels can (and do) promote international values, they are just not quite ‘baked into’ the curriculum in the same way. A few examples:
The range of possible texts for IBDP English Literature covers 55 languages and is highly international, there is also a requirement that some literature is studied in translation. A-levels, even international variants, are much more focused on literature in English, with translated texts given a subsidiary role.
IBDP students are required to study a foreign language, A-level students are not.
The IBDP history syllabus is structured around world history, requiring a broader sweep of study than A-level.
IBDP Theory of Knowledge addresses cultural biases in understanding, including Western versus Eastern approcahes. An A-level ‘Global Perspectives’ course is available, but, aside from in a few schools, it is not a compulsory requirement.
IBDP examinations can be sat in English, French, and Spanish; other than modern foreign language subjects, A-levels are assessed in English only.
In other words, international mindedness, global citizenship, and themes of global awareness are part of the IBDP in a far more integral way than in A-levels.
A robust A-level programme augmented with enrichment activities can, of course, capture much of the IBDP spirit, but this doesn’t always extend to a full commitment to international education.
Academic rigor & university acceptance
In terms of acceptability and recognition by universities, research by the UK’s Qualifications and Curriculum Authority (QCA) suggests that A-level and IBDP examinations are comparable in the demands they place on the candidate at the level of the individual subject. There are, according to the QCA, subject specific differences either in breadth or depth, though these are mostly compensated by parallel differences in depth or breadth elsewhere within each subject.
In terms of candidate performance, the same QCA research affirmed that an E at A-level was similar to 4 points in the IBDP, with A/A* comparable to 7 points. According to the UCAS tariff, 45 IBDP points is the equivalent of 5 grade A* at A-level, 40 points is the equivalent of 4 grade A* at A-level, and 35 points is equivalent to 2 grade A* at A-level and 1 grade A.
In broad terms then, both A-levels and the IBDP give full access to university.
However, the emphasis the IBDP places on inquiry-based research and independent study is increasingly considered good preparation for the academic and organisational rigours of university life.
Does this give IBDP students the edge? Perhaps.
The Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA) analysed the onward educational performance of 1.2m pupils who sat A-levels and 48,740 pupils who took the IBDP between 2007 and 2013. The IBDP faired distinctly better: Of the IBDP students who went on to university, 45.7% won a place at a top 20 university, compared with 32.9% for A-level students; IBDP students were more likely to earn a first class degree (22.9% against 19.4%); and IBDP pupils were also more likely to go on to postgraduate study (31.2% against 27.2%). [ii]
And, among students who go straight into work after their first degree, IBDP students earn more too — a median of £21,000 in the year after graduating, compared with £20,000 for A-level students. [ii]
The reasons why universities might (marginally) prefer IBDP are inferred by looking at another study: A 2017 survey of university admissions officers asking for their opinions on which 21st century skills A-levels and the IBDP best develop. [iii]
The results are unequivocal: on all measures the IBDP scored higher:
But then the IBO would report that wouldn’t they? And there is also this:
So, which is better?
The IBDP and A-levels are both good qualifications; both develop well-rounded and well-educated young adults — at least they have the potential to.
The IBDP is an excellent programme of study for a certain type of child: the genuine all-rounder who values the broad demands of the IB curriculum. A-levels are strong qualifications for those who wish to specialise and can be enhanced by the EPQ (Extended Project Qualification) and a vibrant activities programme.
Critically, both give access to the world’s best universities. IBDP achieves this through its breadth and through the development of broad skills, A-level achieves it through subject depth (often overlapping with undergraduate material).
Outside of these practical distinctions, the fundamental difference is that IBDP represents a commitment to a particular form of international education in a way that A-levels do not. As explored above, this is manifested in a number of ways: the study of, and examination through, multiple languages, the breadth and scope of syllabus coverage, and the integrated nature of international mindedness.
The answer to the IBDP versus A-level discussion lies, then, not in analysis of differences and similarities between the programmes, but rather in consideration of your child’s needs and your own position on — and commitment to — international education.
Ultimately, whilst debates are likely to rage in school car parks, coffee shops and internet forums for a long time yet, the choice is yours (and your child’s) and it’s a highly personal one.
A-levels or the IB Diploma, which is better?
The answer is neither. Or rather, it’s whichever best suits YOUR child.
WARWICK UNIVERSITY: PGCE iQTS
The University of Warwick is delighted to be one of a select few providers offering this exciting new programme for August 2023.
As you’d expect, the course is rigorous and robust. For an overview of the requirements, there is an outline (and individual eligibility checker) HERE.
The introduction of PGCE iQTS also means a few changes for Warwick’s highly successful PGCEi programme. The admissions and placement criteria have been simplified; head HERE for further information.
A useful comparison of the PGCE iQTS and PGCEi courses can be downloaded HERE.
If you have staff interested in either programme, please feel free to share this article. Or, alternatively, questions can be e-mailed to: pedagogue@warwick.ac.uk
Dr. Denry Machin is an educational consultant specialising in teacher training and new school start-ups. His latest book ‘International Schooling: The Teacher’s Guide’ can be accessed here.
ENDNOTES
[i] Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA). 2016. International Baccalaureate students studying at UK higher education institutions: How do they perform in comparison with A level students? Bethesda, MD, USA. International Baccalaureate Organisation. The paper also includes important mythological details, notably highlighting that the data compares IBDP students in international schools with (demographically matched) A-level students in UK schools.
[iii] Clark, R., (2018) IB or not to IB, The Spectator.
[iii] International Baccalaureate Organisation (2017). A study of the post-secondary outcomes of International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme alumni in leading universities in Asia-Pacific, International Baccalaureate Organisation
