The Graduating Class of 2023: Resilience, Perseverance, Tenacity

In the dynamic landscape of education today, International School Bangkok (ISB) strives to prepare students with a well-rounded, challenging, and rigorous education that propels them into the future they choose to pursue. The International Baccalaureate (IB) is one of the pathways we offer to graduation that prepares students to think critically, question, and have the courage to challenge themselves and the world around them. As we reflect on the IB results for the Class of 2023, we celebrate the achievements of our graduates. Their results demonstrate two core values that ISB instills - commitment and courage. 

The Class of 2023 undeniably faced many challenges in preparation for their IB studies. Their entire High School experience was overshadowed by COVID-19 and all the disruptions that came along with spells in virtual learning. We are only now beginning to inquire into the long-term effects of the pandemic on education, but initial research clearly indicates that the pandemic had a negative effect not just on academics but also on our youth’s mental health. At ISB, we certainly saw evidence of both of these concerns over the last couple of years, more so than in previous cohorts in terms of IB readiness. These factors highlight the courage and commitment of the Class of 2023 in terms of their IB results when one considers the fact that these students were the first cohort in three years that had to cope with the full IB curriculum and assessment model, alongside a return to pre-pandemic grade boundaries. It makes us doubly proud of our students that even with these obstacles in front of them, the IB class of 2023 was able to achieve an ISB pre-COVID Diploma average of 34 points. 

The IB Diploma Programme is well known for being a very rigorous and challenging pre-university program. While we regularly celebrate the achievements of our students, we particularly champion the class of 2023 as they demonstrated great tenacity and perseverance during the two-year program. As an inclusive school, ISB believes that all of our students have the ability to pursue the full Diploma if they wish. We encourage all students to pursue their most rigorous program study as this is their best preparation for university.  We are proud that our guiding beliefs of challenge by choice allow students with learning accommodations and from diverse language backgrounds to access and succeed in our IB Diploma program. We are proud to announce that 44% of our students from the class of 2023 received a bilingual diploma. This accomplishment speaks to our students' prowess in embracing languages and their willingness to engage with diverse perspectives, as well as to the support from parents and the dedication of our language teacher.

Adhering to ISB’s core mission of ‘enriching communities through the intellectual, humanitarian and creative thoughts and actions of our learners,’ ISB enrolled a significant number of students who were displaced due to COVID-19 and regional social unrest. These students modeled the ISB learner attributes as they joined our school mid-way through their IB Diploma Programme. They demonstrated a tremendous amount of courage and commitment in their IB studies as they adjusted to new surroundings and friendships. Our IB cohort of 2023 spanned the entire gamut of different abilities and IB readiness, and we are so proud of their collective results. Each student achieved or exceeded their personal potential, be that 24 or 43 Diploma points; we are immensely proud of this IB cohort. 

We always celebrate the academic achievements of our students and are equally excited to witness the positive impact the Class of 2023 will undoubtedly make on the global stage. Once a Panther, always a Panther!