International Baccalaureate (IB), the global learning programme that seeks to blur academic boundaries along with geographical ones, is set to expand its Calcutta footprint this year with two more institutions coming on board.

Calcutta International School and The Heritage School will introduce the IB diploma programme for classes XI and XII in July, joining Oaktree International School in the Geneva-based organisation’s growing list of affiliates.

Both schools say their joining the International Baccalaureate Organisation is meant to expose students to a modern curriculum with inter-disciplinary flexibility.

“There are no streams of humanities, science or commerce in the realm of IB. A student can study physics as well as history at the plus-two level. Math is compulsory for everyone (it is treated as a life skill, not a subject), albeit with varying levels of difficulty based on a student’s aptitude,” said Seema Sapru, principal of The Heritage School.

Some of the country’s top institutions like The Doon School and Mumbai’s Dhirubhai Ambani International School already follow the IB diploma programme, making it quite the rage among parents who want their wards to have a well-rounded, global education without having to send them abroad.

Heritage recently lost three students to schools offering IB, while Calcutta International School has so far reported one such transfer.

“If one student has left our school today, many more could do so from Calcutta. Why should the city lag behind? We intend to keep pace with the rest,” the director of Calcutta International School, Anuradha Das, said.

But apart from flexibility and a presence in 141 countries, what does the IB programme offer that the Indian boards don’t? It makes children think rather than just study, say teachers.

Students of institutions that follow the IB curriculum need to study six subjects from as many groups, write an Extended Essay (EE) of 4,000 words, pursue a Theory of Knowledge course (ToK) and take up a module called Creativity, Action and Service (CAS).

“The EE, TOK and CAS form the core of the curriculum and they are related to the subjects. CAS hones creativity and community service is also part of the curriculum, which can be an advantage at the time of joining college,” Das said.

For those inclined to switch immediately, here’s the deal: Jadavpur, Calcutta and Presidency universities have yet to admit undergraduate students from IB institutions.

“The IB curriculum has not yet been approved for our university. But if we receive applications, which we haven’t so far, we would need to take a call on this,” said a senior Calcutta University official involved in setting criteria for undergraduate admissions.

The “equivalent committees” of all three universities are authorised to decide whether a particular plus-two curriculum is equivalent to the state Higher Secondary and other recognised courses.

“We have an open approach. If there are no technical problems, then IB would be welcome. We will have to take up the matter at a council meeting,” said Malabika Sarkar, the vice-chancellor of Presidency University.

St. Xavier’s College has said it will “consider” applications from students of IB institutions if various Indian universities do. “We need to find out if IB is recognised by Indian universities, including Calcutta University. In that case, we will also admit those students,” said Father Felix Raj, the principal of St. Xavier’s College.

At last count, about 90 schools across the country were offering IB programmes. Mumbai tops the list with 27 schools, followed by Delhi with six. Bangalore, Kodaikanal, Dehra Dun and Pune also have IB institutions.

Heads of Calcutta schools that are about to jump into the IB bandwagon said what appealed to them most was the thrust on research-based learning rather than studying by rote. “When I told the IB authorities that our children do projects, they said we would be given a piece of software that can detect four words or more downloaded from the Internet. So those who are found out get a zero,” said principal Sapru of The Heritage School.

Cost would, of course, be a factor for many parents. Putting a child in an IB institution is several times more expensive than admitting him or her to any equivalent course. “The examination fee itself is as high as $150 a subject for every child,” a teacher said.

Parents returning to the country after stints abroad are the ones most enthusiastic about IB spreading its wings. “IB scores more than any other national or international programme because it promotes more creativity, lateral thinking and communication,” said R. Kapoor, father to a 12-year-old daughter and a 15-year-old son who studied eight years in Egypt.