Plouffe Middle Schoolers Get World Renowned Curriculum

The Brockton Post
BROCKTON--The Joseph F. Plouffe Academy in Brockton has been authorized as an International Baccalaureate Middle Years Program school, making it the first middle school in eastern Massachusetts and only the second in the state to offer the internationally-recognized global curriculum.
"This program is an internationally recognized curriculum that focuses on global understanding.," said Superintendent of Schools Basan Nembirkow in a prepared statement. "Our students will be living their whole lives in the 21st century, and they will be competing with the best and brightest from around the world," he said.
Plouffe Academy--formerly Gilmore Academy--opened in September 2005 as the district's first middle school, which provided opportunities for students enrolled in talented and gifted, bilingual, general education and special education program.
It will reopen this September as the Plouffe Academy at the former Plouffe Elementary School, a 750-student school building constructed in 1999.
School officials said the new location will allow Brockton Public Schools to expand the International Baccalaureate Middle Years Program to a greater number of students, roughly 200 more than at its former location.
John R. Jerome, executive director of teaching and learning for grades six to eight said the program is rigorous academically and opens students minds in ways they never have before.
"(The curriculum) unmasks talents students don't know they have," Jerome said.
The Middle Years Program provides instruction in eight core subjects and meets all state curriculum guidelines.
Plouffe Academy Principal Michelle Nessralla said the progam asks students to think of themselves in a global way.
"This program is about ‘How do my actions affect others? What is my place in the world? And how can I make the world a better place," Nessralla said.
Other highlights of Middle Years is its emphasis on intercultural awareness, communication, creativity, community service, and independent thinking. Elective choices include band, chorus, theater arts, architecture, robotics, forensic science, government, digital photography, yearbook, science fiction, inventions and creative writing.
The authorization and application process for the program took three years and involved all constituencies within the school: students, teachers, administrators, staff, parents and central administrators.
The Brockton Public Schools also offer the International Baccalaureate Diploma Program to juniors and seniors at Brockton High School. Through this challenging two-year curriculum, students earn a qualification that is widely recognized by the world's leading universities and which can translate into college credit.
The International Baccalaureate Organization, or IBO is a non-profit educational foundation based in Geneva, Switzerland.
The IBO offers a Primary Years Program for elementary children, a Middle Years Program for students ages 11-16 and a Diploma Program for juniors and seniors in high school. The IBO has authorized more than 1,300 schools in 110 countries.