IPS Masterworks
Can a 14-year-old be expected to conduct a public presentation similar to a TED talk? IPS students have been doing so for over 15 years through a program called Masterworks.
Our middle school curriculum recognizes the importance of independent study. Self-selected, self-directed, and self-presented, this Masterworks independent study project is compulsory for every Grade 9 student and marks a significant academic achievement at IPS. Successful completion of the project results in students gaining 4-credits toward their high school graduating program.
Masterworks projects include big, guiding questions such as, “What is peace?” and “How to make a positive difference in the world?”
Masterworks Project Requirements
The project requires that students:
+ Produce work that surpasses their previous accomplishments
+ Conduct in-depth research
+ Communicate their understanding to academic advisors and the general public in an oral presentation that also serves as a defense of their scholarly and creative pursuits
+ Critically reflect on input they receive throughout the school year by experts and mentors who serve as external committee members.
External Advisors
Students are mentored through the process by expert advisors—leaders in their respective fields—who act as external advisors.
Working collaboratively with IPS faculty, advisory committees guide Grade 9s through the Masterworks process that puts students at the centre of their learning and that provides a foundation for academic achievement.
Interested in becoming an external advisor? Contact us!
Project Topics
In past years, students have made documentary and animated films, created original works of art, written extensive research papers, written and published a novella, and built an actual boat. These middle school activities and projects reflect the uniqueness and interests of our individual students.
We love the diversity of projects the students come up with and, while each project is unique, what is common among them is that a highly focused level of scholarship, academic inquiry, and creativity underpin original questions asked by our students about the world in which they live. This diversity is reflected in our middle school curriculum.
2018 Masterworks Presentations
| Date & Time | Presentation | Presenter | Faculty Advisor | External Advisor(s) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| June 12 9:00am | Forging of the Ages | Ryan Kerr | Bev Rapley | Chelsea Mainwaring, Iichan Cruz |
| June 12 10:00am | Fantasy on High; an Anthology of Short Stories | Eden Vela-Martinez | Charlotte Paterson |
Dianne Carruthers-Wood, Michael St. John Smith
|
| June 12 11:00am | Do these ads even work? The different ways we receive, learn and remember information from TV commercials and how they influence our decisions. | Alex Ronczewski | Jennifer Henrichsen, Scott Herrington | Bernie Hadley-Beauregard, David Martin |
| June 12 1:00pm | A Promising Future for Cancer Treatment | Fiona McInnes | Pam Matthews, Anna Fenn | Marcel Bally |
| June 13 9:00am | From Dream to Screen; The Process of Writing a Screenplay | Reid McKenzie | Bev Rapley | David Ray, Peter DeLuise |
| June 13 10:00am | The End of the Universe as We Know It | Maxim Peregoodoff | Pam Matthews, Anna Fenn | Scott Massey, Per Parker |
| June 13 11:00am | The Morality Behind Murder Law | Joel West-Sadler | Adrian van Lidth de Jeude | Michael Hancock, Geoff Cowper |
| June 13 1:00pm | Dogs with Jobs | Isobel White | Laura Meagher | Dee Elliott, Jenn McGowan, Alexandro Jurgensen |
| June 14 9:00am | Fruit of the Forbidden Tree: Power, Morality and Personal Choice | Mirella Nicoll | Adrian van Lidth de Jeude | Doug Elliott, Julie Desaliners |
| June 14 10:00am | Expressive Art Therapy | Olivia Thane | Charlotte Paterson | Cyntha Gonzalez |
| June 14 11:00am | Sports Analytics; Changing the Game | Eric Jan | Laura Meagher | Kevin Manning, Stuart McGee |
| June 14 1:00pm | Dancing through the Decades, Women’s Roles in Society reflected in Dance | Ellen Nickle | Jennifer Henrichsen | Gail Lotenberg, Kelly Kono |