Keeping true to its promise of delivering quality programs and innovations with students’ best interest in mind, ISM is the first and only school in Myanmar authorized by Advanced Placement (AP) to offer the rigorous AP Capstone Diploma Program. The foundational course in the AP Capstone is the AP Seminar.
This course “engages students in cross-curricular conversations that explore the complexities of academic and real-world topics and issues by analyzing divergent perspectives. Students learn to investigate a problem or issue, analyze arguments, compare different perspectives, synthesize information from multiple sources, and work alone and in a group to communicate their ideas.”
After successfully completing the AP Seminar, students take the second course in the AP Capstone – the AP Research. AP Research “allows students to deeply explore an academic topic, problem, issue, or idea of individual interest. Students design, plan, and implement a yearlong investigation to address a research question. The course culminates in an academic paper of 4000-5000 words and a presentation with oral defense.”
Students who earn scores of 3 or higher in AP Seminar and AP Research will receive the AP Seminar and Research Certificate. On the other hand, students who earn scores of 3 or higher in AP Seminar, AP Research, and on four other AP courses will earn the AP Capstone Diploma. Both awards are increasingly recognized and valued by universities and colleges.
Participating in the AP Capstone experience would not only help students stand out to colleges in the application process and possibly earn college credit. Much more important than these is the development of key academic skills (e.g. communication, critical thinking, and collaboration) that help students become successful in college and the life beyond.
“AP Seminar.” AP Central, 25 Sept. 2020, https://apcentral.collegeboard.org/courses/ap-seminar/course.
“AP Research.” AP Central, 25 Sept. 2020, https://apcentral.collegeboard.org/courses/ap-research/course.
