Defining Features of the Areas of Interaction

Approaches to Learning

(ATL)

1. organizational skills
2. positive attitudes towards work
3. working effectively in groups
4. strengthening oral and written communication skills
5. becoming effective researchers (asking good questions, accessing information, judging its values)
6. self-assessment
7. problem-solving and thinking skills

Community & Service

(CS)

1. understanding what a community is
2. knowing one’s role in the community
3. understanding how one person can make a difference
4. using one’s talents for the good of the community
5. reflecting on the value of one’s service to the community through journals, group discussion, and/or presentation of community service projects

Homo Faber

(HF)

1. identifying why we create or change products
2. predicting possible future developments
3. becoming inventors, creators, developers
4. celebrating human endeavor and achievement
5. evaluating the positive and negative effects of human invention on individuals, society, and/or the world

Environment

1. identifying the environments of which one is a part
2. understanding how individuals impact the environment
3. evaluating how individuals are affected by the environment

Health and Social Education

(H&S)

1. understanding one’s self (identity, self-esteem, decision-making, physical development, self-control, career decisions
2. looking after one’s self (hygiene, mental and physical health)
3. understanding one’s relationships with others (friendships, communication, peer pressure, family responsibilities)
4. understanding one’s place in society (freedom and responsibility, crime and law, prejudice and stereotyping)

Source:  Areas of Interaction Guide, International Baccalaureate Program, August, 2002