In today’s world of social media and instant gratification, there’s a growing pressure on teachers to make learning “fun” and “entertaining.” While the intent may be to engage students, this mindset can undermine the very essence of education. As high school teachers, our role is not to be circus clowns juggling concepts for laughs and applause but to inspire and educate young minds in meaningful, stimulating, and world-relevant ways.
We’re teachers, not clowns. We teach, we inspire, and we present interesting learning opportunities.
The idea that every lesson must be entertaining confuses education with amusement. True learning happens when students are challenged, intrigued, and encouraged to think critically—not when they’re passively entertained. Stimulating lessons spark curiosity, connect students to real-world applications, and encourage them to grapple with complex ideas. This approach builds resilience and a genuine love for learning, traits that will serve them far beyond high school.
Teaching in a stimulating way doesn’t mean being dry or boring. It means connecting material to students’ lives and futures. It’s about showing them how Newton’s laws shape the world around them, how Shakespeare’s themes resonate today, or how historical events echo in current societal structures. Engaging students with thought-provoking questions, hands-on activities, and meaningful discussions makes lessons compelling without resorting to gimmicks or theatrics.
As educators, we are mentors and inspirers, not entertainers. Our job is to prepare students for the challenges of the world, not to cater to short attention spans. By fostering an environment where intellectual curiosity thrives, we empower students to find joy in learning itself—a joy far deeper than fleeting fun.
Let’s refocus on what truly matters in education: inspiring students to think, question, and grow. That’s the legacy we leave—not laughter from a fleeting joke, but the spark of a mind ignited.
Good teaching starts with a well-qualified teacher, naturally. But qualifications alone aren’t enough. For me, great teaching also depends on a healthy dose of self-confidence, which comes from knowing your subject inside and out and having planned lessons that are engaging, relevant, and well-structured. When you’ve put the work into preparation, confidence follows—and that confidence can make all the difference in the classroom.
Confidence comes from careful planning and preparation as much as from self-belief.
Another essential? Students who show up. Regular attendance is the bedrock of progress, and while life happens—visas, weddings, funerals, even pandemics—students who are there for (almost) every lesson give themselves the best chance to succeed.
In terms of tools, I don’t need a flashy setup. A whiteboard, projector, and laptop are all I ask for. These basics let me bring the lesson to life with PowerPoint slides, the occasional YouTube video, and of course, whatever ends up scribbled (er… written carefully and neatly) on the white board during class discussions.
One thing I emphasize with my students is the importance of creating personalized class notes. I’m a firm believer in hardback notebooks, rulers, highlighters, boxes, lines, and diagrams. There’s something uniquely effective about the tactile process of writing and organizing notes by hand—it helps students make the material their own.
To keep the learning process on track, I use multiple-choice tests to quickly gauge how well students have grasped the content or a concept. These aren’t for grades—they’re to answer one question: Can we move on, or do I need to reteach something?
Finally, a good textbook is invaluable. Students can use it to reinforce what we learn in class or catch up if life interrupts their learning. Real life has a way of doing that, and having a reliable resource at home makes all the difference in staying on course.
So, for me, good teaching is about balance: confidence, preparation, flexibility, and keeping things practical and straightforward. It’s not about perfection—it’s about making sure the students learn. It doesn’t happen because of luck or wishing or hoping. Good teaching comes from hard work.
As an IB Psychology teacher, I’ve had the chance to take a closer look at the new IB Diploma Psychology course that’s set to launch in February 2025 (with first assessments in 2027), and I have to say, I’m feeling positive about the changes. It feels like the course has been reimagined in a way that prioritizes real learning, i.e. understanding, over rote memorization, and as someone who’s passionate about helping students truly understand psychology, this is a welcome shift.
Grounded in Research-Based Content
One of the biggest strengths of the new course is how it keeps the focus on research-based content. Students will still engage with the key theories and studies that define psychology, but now these are presented within a conceptual framework. It’s less about cramming isolated facts and more about making connections—something that’s been missing in traditional approaches to teaching psychology.
The structure—organized around concepts, content, and contexts—gives both teachers and students a clear path forward. It encourages us to look at psychological principles as part of a bigger picture rather than as standalone pieces of trivia. For me, that’s a huge improvement because it reflects how psychology works in the real world.
Real-world Learning Through Contexts and Practicals
What really stands out is the integration of class practicals into each context. These aren’t just busywork—they’re carefully designed activities that mirror the methods psychologists actually use. Whether it’s an experiment, an observation, or qualitative research, students get a chance to engage directly with the approaches they’re learning about.
As a teacher, I find this particularly exciting because it gives students a chance to see the how and why behind the studies we discuss. It’s a great way to bring the subject to life and to show them that psychology isn’t just about theories—it’s about investigation, critical thinking, and drawing evidence-based conclusions.
Internal Assessment with Real Purpose
The way the Internal Assessment (IA) has been revamped is another highlight. Instead of feeling like an isolated task, the IA now builds directly on the class practicals. Students will create a research proposal based on one of the four methods they’ve worked with in class, which means they’ll be using what they’ve learned in a meaningful way.
This kind of scaffolding is so important because it gives students confidence in their abilities. They’ve already had hands-on experience with the methods, so when it comes time to tackle the IA, they’re not starting from scratch. For me, this makes the IA feel less like an assessment and more like a natural progression of their learning.
A Step Away from Rote Learning
One of the things I appreciate most about the changes is the clear effort to move away from rote learning. Instead of focusing on memorizing a long list of studies or key terms, the new course encourages students to engage with the basic concepts of psychology and see how they apply in different contexts. It’s a shift that feels both practical and necessary, especially in a subject like psychology where understanding is so much more valuable than simple recall.
What It Means for Us as Teachers
For those of us teaching the course, there’s definitely some work to do in getting familiar with the new structure and approach. The Diploma Programme Psychology: Third Curriculum Review Report and the guide will be key resources, and I’d recommend spending time with them early. But the changes feel manageable, and more importantly, they feel worthwhile.
This new course strikes a balance between structure and flexibility, research and application, concepts and content. It’s grounded in what psychology is really about, and it gives students tools they can use far beyond the classroom. As a teacher, I’m genuinely looking forward to helping my students navigate this updated course and seeing how it transforms their understanding of the subject. If the goal was to make IB Psychology more engaging, relevant, and practical, I think they’ve done a pretty good job.
As most IB Diploma Psychology teachers will know, a new Subject Guide will be published in mid-February, 2025. ‘The Collection’ is a set of books / teaching materials created to meet teachers’ every need for this new course:
IB Diploma Psychology – Subject outlines
IB Diploma Psychology – The Textbook
IB Diploma Psychology – The complete set of Powerpoint presentations
IB Diploma Psychology – Ten mock examinations with model answers
IB Diploma Psychology – 70 multiple choice tests
IB Diploma Psychology – The extended essay
IB Diploma Psychology – The glossary of psychology vocabulary
IB Diploma Psychology – The 150 essential research studies
IB Diploma Psychology – Success at high school and college
A new Subject Guide means a lot of very time-consuming work for DP teachers on top of their already-full schedules. Tom Coster has created The Collection to save DP Psychology teachers’ time (and summer vacations).
The Textbook – covers the entire syllabus and also has sections on the Examinations and the Internal Assessment. Available in print or eBook format from Amazon.
The complete set of powerpoint presentations – covering every aspect of the new syllabus including the assessments. These presentations are closely aligned with The Textbook. These are straightforward .ppt files so they can be edited by teachers using Windows or Apple computers.
Homework revision questions – a complete set of homework writing tasks that students can work on independently through the 2 year course or teachers can set these as regular homework writing activities – perfect for exam revision.
The Internal Assessment – a book (print or eBook, from Amazon) that describes in detail the IA requirements, gives advice from an experienced moderator’s perspective, and presents 16 high-quality examples of the Internal Assessment activity.
It’s all here. Everything, and I mean EVERYTHING, the IBDP teacher needs to start teaching the new Subject Guide.
Ten mock examinations with model answers – a book (print or eBook, from Amazon) with TEN complete examinations (Papers 1 and 2 for the SL & HL students and Paper 3 for the HLs). AND there are model/high-scoring answers for all questions in all 10 examinations
70 multiple choice tests – multiple choice tests (30 questions in each) assessing knowledge and understanding of every aspect of the new course. MCQ tests mean whole topics can be assessed quickly and thoroughly answering the question, ‘have the students learnt the previous topic and so can we move on to the next topic now?’
Subject Outlines Whenever a new course is created, teachers must submit a new Subject Outline to their DP Coordinator detailing the hours for each topic, how TOK, CAS and International mindedness will be integrated… Tom Coster has created two FREE (downloadable) Curse Outlines with different approaches to teaching the course. Download them both, read them, choose the one that’s right for you and your students, edit it to suit you and your school – and submit to your DPC – job done!
The Extended Essay – the Extended Essay Syllabus has also been updated for Septemebr 2025, and this book tells it all – requirements, assessment criteria, how to manage the research and writing process. The book includes 100 possible research questions each with a suggested essay outline. And there’s an example of a complete and high-scoring essay.
The glossary of psychology vocabulary – the new syllabus requires students to be fluent in ‘psychology’, which means to know and be able to use psychology-specific vocabulary. This book contains about 1000 psychology terms, designed in subjects/topics so that as student’s learn the Biological approach, they can also learn the Biological approach’s vocabulary.
150 essential research studies – outlines of the 150 most essential research studies in psychology, with each outline including a brief critical thinking section. Psychological knowledge is based on scientific research. Students should know and refer to research when discussing theories and claims about behavior.
How to succeed at high school and college – a detailed and practical, step-by-step guide on how to excel in high school and college. From attending every lesson to creating and curating a comprehensive set of class notes to preparing for and writing exams… this is THE book that we all wish we had when we started high school. No-nonsense, simple, clear advice.
Click on the links to find these books on Amazon and use Amazon’s Look Inside feature to see more about each book.
Tom Coster - Psychology 