I. Machinandiarena – IB MYP Coordinator Have you ever been walking through a forest or city, virtual or imaginary, where everything around seems new? The whole context seems alien to us, so how do we go about exploring it? Familiar situations are those in which we learn and operate by repeating actions undertaken under similar conditions. Students learn in a class environment by repeating skills and abilities until they acquire them, and will develop those to a certain extent, which might be the product of own ability. Memory combined with the appropriate skills help building students’ own toolbox of knowledge and skills that help them write a story, an essay or solve a math or a science problem. Instead, unfamiliar situations are those which offer students an opportunity to apply and transfer learned knowledge and skills in order to solve new problems or find new solutions to old problems. The idea behind getting children used to unfamiliar situations is that the real world is full of surprises and presents new challenges every day. By training students to feel confident about what they know and can do, they build knowledge, skills and abilities that boost their confidence about being able to transfer knowledge and skills to resolve those new challenges. As we do not live in a perfect world, there are pros and cons to both situations. The advantages of familiar situations are that they lead the student mostly to repeat processes and habits in order to gain knowledge and develop skills while the critical thinking does not find many opportunities to be enhanced. Instead, the unfamiliar situations trigger the critical thinking skills to think outside the box and find solutions to new challenges. Furthermore, the unfamiliar situations might make the learner feel uncomfortable in that particular setting. This is the purpose of incorporating unfamiliar situations into tests and exams in order to allow students building their own confidence and remaining calm to succeed with them. This is why IB graduates are preferred to any other graduates by universities not only in North America but also around the world. In this manner, the MYP equips students with the needed tools to succeed in their future studies and life.
Wheatley School Montessori and International Baccalaureate school