As of now I am about half-way through my first semester as an IB student. Looking back, I can say that these past couple of months have definitely been an education in more than the obvious way. Of course I'd heard a ton of rumors about how IB was hellish and you had to sacrifice your life on the altar of IB in order to take inordinately difficult classes all for a piece of paper. I'd also heard the praises teachers and administrators practically sang about this program, that it was incredibly prestigious and would open many doors in our lives. Now I know what being in IB is like and what it's all about. However, I won't know the actual merit of IB until later in the future, providing that I actually receive my diploma.
Imagine for a moment that I can juggle (I can't, but the imagination is an extraordinary thing). Imagine I'm tossing just a single ball in the air. Not that difficult is it, but careless errors can lead to failure. Add on a couple of more balls. Definitely not as easy, but not particularly difficult. That is what the pre-IB student's schedule looks like with a few Honors classes. Make up to 3 of the balls a tad heavier. That's when you add the few AP classes you can take in sophomore year. Then imagine juggling about a dozen balls, only they're all different shapes, some cubes, some rectangular pyramids, and some cones. Oh, and one ball has spikes and another is on fire. That is what it's like being in IB. It's all one elaborate juggling act. Each class considered individually is perfectly manageable, but just the sheer amount and the quick succession of these classes makes it almost impossible. You have one tough class falling down on you, and with effort you can catch it and lob it back in the air. But you can't stop for a moment to sigh in relief, because another class is about to fall and you MUST not let it escape your grasp. And you have the extra burden of CAS and the Extended Essay and whatever sports or clubs you participate in. And you're doing this on national television and you're being broadcasted all over the internet. Drop one ball and it's all over.
Sometimes I get the impression that IB is a big game of academic chicken. We all are seriously stressed out, but would rather die than surrender or give into weakness. Come on. We're all teenagers, and practically think ourselves immortal with our new self-confidence that comes with high school and a driver's license. Once you factor in the brain chemistry of young adults, you have to admit that teenagers are rash and unreliable, but would refuse to back down from a challenge.
But IB has its bright sides. For instance, I am taking very interesting classes that actually challenge me, when I've spent my entire life bored to tears in normal classes. Also, I get to write an essay about the politics and terrorism in The Dark Knight trilogy. And if it hadn't been for CAS, I doubt I would have ever entered the blogosphere. And I know it's hard for any high schooler to admit this, but hard work is very fulfilling. And accomplishing something is a very worthwhile task.
At least, that's what I comfort myself with when considering my Latin test tomorrow and three tests that I know of next week. I forgot, my first Process Paper is due next week, which means I need to get around to some EE work along with writing the actual Process Paper. Oh! and I have Primary Source Readings due this Friday. And I have a chorus concert. And I need to start working on my Prayer for Owen Meany paper. And I've got lots of math to catch up on, which I vaguely understand. And I've got to fill out the objective boxes for Psychology and read about the biochemical properties of water. And I bet I'll have to find the time to invent a cure for cancer, too. There goes my weekend.
Typical.
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