<p>Just to weigh in with a positive take on IB, and some perspective on junior year:</p>
<p>OP: I feel your pain! My D, a senior now, has been in IB since 6th grade. Junior year was BY FAR her worst year in terms of stress, and the worst of the worst was from January to April. In addition to the normal heavy workload (which she was used to managing by then), SATs and IB testing were looming, and there was the ever-present "Colleges look mostly at junior-year grades" pressure. She was struggling to stay involved in her life-long extracurricular, again to look good to the colleges. And meanwhile, it was my full-time job to try to keep her glued together until June. For 4 or 5 months, there was no joy in our lives, only unrelenting pressure. We were both thinking that maybe it was time to abandon the IB ship so that our heads wouldn't explode -- not a great frame of mind to be making important decisions about her future.</p>
<p>We are both so glad that she stayed. By May, the testing was behind her and we realized how much of the stress was due to that alone. She is having an easier senior year in terms of workload, and much of the grade pressure is off as well. Maybe most important, college is now on the visible horizon -- the goal of all this struggle. She is a much happier kid than she was at this time last year.</p>
<p>IB has not been an unmixed blessing, for sure. The biggest challenge for my D (not organized by nature) has been learning to pace herself. With IB, you do have to stay on top of things, especially those multitudes of long-term projects. We have had our share of all-nighters and meltdowns, and "I hate IB!!!!", especially last year.</p>
<p>But now that the storm has passed, we are seeing more clearly what a wonderful experience it has been. She has gotten a very high-quality education (at a public school in our case); she's been doing college-level work for more than a year now, and will be able to challenge for some of her college credits. She has spent her middle- and high-school years with peers who value academic achievement. She thinks, speaks, and writes broadly, deeply, and well -- as IB teaches. She's learned a level of self-discipline which AP or Honors would not have required of her, and she takes great pride that she will finish something that was really difficult for her. And she's now reaping the rewards in terms of college admissions and scholarships. </p>
<p>I don't know if your D should stay; only you and she can decide that. I just wanted to let you know that you're now deep into the worst part, and it may be that when the fog lifts a little, things will look different. Either way, good luck!</p>