As the only Stark County school to maintain an International Baccalaureate (IB) program, GlenOak provides many unique learning opportunities for students.
The IB course curriculum emphasizes the importance of hands-on learning and engagement with the community; these ideas are put into practice in IB Global Politics’ internal assessment: the Political Engagement Project (PEP).
An internal assessment (IA) is a core part of any IB class. It is generally a project that is then translated into an essay. The IA is graded by school teachers, but ultimately contributes to the students’ final IB grade along with the exams that seniors take in May. These assessments determine whether or not the student will receive a college credit for their work in the course.
In IB Global Politics, the IA is the PEP. For this project, students choose any political issue that interests them, develop a research question on it, study their topic, participate in an engagement activity, and finally, use 200 words to answer their original question with newfound knowledge.
“The PEP allows students to not only research a political issue, but it also enables them to engage with their community,” IB Global Politics teacher Ryan Foltz said.
This engagement can be completed by shadowing professionals, interviewing stakeholders or volunteering in relation to the chosen issue.
“Engaging with any issue shows students multiple perspectives, which prompts critical thinking more than just a textbook or case study could,” Foltz said. “It’s really important for students to learn from multiple perspectives and sources.”
The PEP forces students to immerse themselves in new ideas and realities, which is exactly what senior student Jasmin Akhrid did.
From Moroccan descent herself, Akhrid decided to spend her yearly trip to Morocco making a difference with the research question “To what extent has poverty in Morocco improved in the last decade?”
“I did a lot to fund infrastructure in impoverished areas,” Akhrid said. “My father and I spent money to improve roads…like fixing large potholes that are hard to get through without damaging your car, especially when their cars are less functional than the ones we have in America.”
This was not where her engagement ended, though.
“I worked with NGOs [non-governmental organizations] that work to help those in low-income areas with food insecurity,” Akhrid said. “I passed out food, and also just got to help out and talk to people.”
In addition to the previously mentioned engagement activities, Akhrid also emphasized philanthropy during her time in Morocco.
“The currency switch [from USD to MAD] kind of makes me rich in Morocco, so I gave a lot of money to certain organizations,” Akhrid said. “In my area, there were a lot of little kids, so I would take them to the store, let them pick what they wanted, and then pay for their food.”
Interacting with her family’s community so closely not only gave Akhrid a sense of fulfillment, but also helped her connect to her culture.
“Being with that community makes me feel very connected to where I’m from, especially when I can’t always be there since I live so far away,” Akhrid said. “They’re very sweet. They’re very open. Obviously, they’re very grateful. They tried to give me money back, and I had to refuse. They’re very nice people to be around.”
Her experiences in Morocco also helped her to gain a more diverse perspective on both Moroccan poverty and poverty in general.
“After doing my engagement and really being up close with those in need, and then also doing the research on why it happens, it became more clear in my mind how deep the issue truly is,” Akrid said.
Akhrid is just one of many senior IB students who completed their PEP this past fall. From volunteering in Morocco to shadowing in courtrooms and even organizing food drives, every IB Global Politics student gets an opportunity at a unique, tailored experience to diversify their worldview, ideas and opinions with the Political Engagement Project.
