The International Baccalaureate’s Primary Years Programme (PYP) is designed to ensure that learning is engaging, relevant, challenging and significant. The transdisciplinary nature of the programme offers students a broad, balanced, conceptual learning experience, and helps them to understand the relevance between, across and beyond subjects, and to connect their learning to the real world.

An inquiry approach is fundamental to the PYP and recognises students as being actively involved in their own learning. Inquiry provides an authentic way for students to relate to, explore and understand the world around them.

Concept-based learning is central to the PYP philosophy, allowing students to integrate new knowledge with their existing knowledge and apply these understandings in a variety of new contexts. It helps learners to recognise patterns and see the connections between subject areas.

To ensure that children acquire a broad base of knowledge, the Units of Inquiry are developed under the following ‘organising themes’ and students participate in four to six ‘Units of Inquiry‘ per year.

  • Who We Are
  • Where We Are in Place and Time
  • How the World Works
  • How We Organise Ourselves
  • How We Express Ourselves
  • Sharing the Planet

The subject areas of Language, Mathematics, Science, Social Studies, Physical Education, Health and the Arts are taught through the Units of Inquiry, through a transdisciplinary approach. In the last year of the PYP, students participate in the PYP Exhibition, showcasing their growth and engagement with the PYP.

Candidate Status:
VISS Tilal is a candidate school* for the International Baccalaureate (IB) Primary Years Programme and is pursuing authorization as an IB World School. IB World Schools share a common philosophy—a commitment to improve the teaching and learning of a diverse and inclusive community of students by delivering challenging, high quality programmes of international education that share a powerful vision**.
* Only schools authorized by the International Baccalaureate can offer any of its four academic programmes: The Primary Years Programme (PYP), the Middle Years Programme (MYP), the Diploma Programme or the IB Career-related Certificate (IBCC). Candidate status gives no guarantee that authorization will be granted.
For further information about the IB and its programmes, visit www.ibo.org
** Mission Statement from the IB
The International Baccalaureate aims to develop inquiring, knowledgeable and caring young people who help to create a better and more peaceful world through intercultural understanding and respect. To this end the organization works with schools, governments and international organizations to develop challenging programmes of international education and rigorous assessment. These programmes encourage students across the world to become active, compassionate and lifelong learners who understand that other people, with their differences, can also be right.