Surviving Report Cards in the IB PYP School

approaches to learning skills assessment ib pyp ib pyp portfolio inquiry based learning student agency

Love them or hate them, report cards are a much-needed communication for all involved. The IB PYP report card gives you a road map of the standards your student is working on together with those abstract elements that are essential parts of the whole child. If you're new to the PYP report card, it can look a little overwhelming, bordering on an essay in some schools! (I am not kidding!) However the format, the report card provides an opportunity to look closely at each child’s journey of their learning and, most importantly, from a whole child perspective. If you're looking for some guidance and a free set of report card comments, read on.

The Whole Child Approach

Every child meets or exceeds expectations on a different day at a different time, or quite possibly a different year. The expectation we have to emphasise with learning standards is that it's a journey, not a race.

The expectation we have to emphasise with learning standards is that it’s a journey, not a race.

Assessment Practices

I have an in-depth series of articles about the cogs and wheels of assessment in the PYP. You can link to those below:

Agency in Assessment P.D Presentation available for purchase

Reporting Evidence of Progess

Our reports are based on the most common forms of PYP assessment practices. These include monitoring and recording evidence of progress with both the abstract and the tangible. Consider the triangulation above: only 1/3 of the triangle focuses on the product from learning or the data ( grades, percentages etc.), the other 2/3 focus on the process of learning - this includes what we see and hear as the children put those Approaches to Learning Skills and Learner Profile attributes into practice on their journey towards conceptual understanding. It is of utmost importance that we include the children within the process of assessment. This is after all, a partnership in their learning. You can read more about those inclusive assessment strategies I have used in blog articles above. Abstract:

The IB Learner Profile, ATL Skills, Attitudes, Concepts
Homeroom and specialist teacher feedback
PYP ATL Skills for early years.
Students' reflections & feedback

Tangible:

Units of inquiry and subject-specific assessments
The IB Scope & Sequence or a customized Scope & Sequence aligning with national/local standards

Collecting evidence of student learning

Let's not forget the value of our inquiry boards and learning walls. These are living, breathing documentation of real-time learning. Use this to your advantage when it comes to reflecting with the children and finding evidence to support your report writing.

Our inquiry boards are living, breathing documentation of real-time learning.

With the fact that every school has a responsibility to maintain evidence of students’ learning, the PYP Portfolio acts a source for collecting, recording and storing the evidence. We can use this to support the comments within our report cards. This is a working document. It is particularly important that the children, right from the very beginning, understand the purpose and value of their portfolio. We want them to understand that this is an on-going, working document that is specifically used to document their learning, progress, accomplishments and challenges. It is more than simply a task to be completed at the end of every unit. Equally important, is the children’s understanding that they are very much a part the building of this document. Their choice and voice is tantamount to the fidelity of the content. We, as the report writers, can use the portfolio to refer to as we have this collection of on-going evidence of learning across the year. This article about the Student Portfolio brings more information as to its function and the many formats.

Article: The IB PYP Student Portfolio

I have a collection of fun and useful portfolio cover sheets for all ages. Take a look at the links below:

A collection of concept-based tools for tuning in, reflection and portfolio cover sheets.

Collect evidence of student performance against targeted standards and benchmarks before beginning instruction (Pre-assessment)
Design tasks around specific standards and skills/concept-based benchmarks
Provide children with age-appropriate criteria for success prior to the assessment
Design assessment tools and tasks that will provide the best evidence of the intended learning taking into account diverse learning styles and needs
Use ongoing assessment practices throughout each unit
Make time for student/teacher/peer feedback!

Evaluating evidence of student learning

Create a habit of on-going reflection in daily/weekly routines (read more about this routine here.)
Provide additional opportunities to demonstrate learning after feedback has been given
Provide opportunities for self-assessment in all summative assessment tasks where possible
Work that is intended as an opportunity to practice learning may be assessed but not evaluated
Apply common rubrics for targeted standards and benchmarks and employ an internal standardization process
Criteria by way of sentence stems, checklists, rubrics etc. should be transparent and user friendly

Add depth to students' reflection with guided prompts.

Getting Down to Writing: Recording and Reporting

The report card is a story. It tells the tale of the adventure of each student's learning with a whole child approach. As you use the pointers in this article, remember the unique individuals you are working with. Share your feedback, tell them the story and ask for their input. :)

Record and report by success criteria - success criteria can be collaboratively created by teachers and students.
Determine final level of achievement based on criteria using the most consistent evidence of overall learning throughout the term

I hope you are able to use this collection of over 100 report card comments I compiled over the years. You will find positive comments for each of the Learner Profile attributes and the ATL SKILLS.

CLICK HERE OR THE IMAGE, ADD YOUR EMAIL AND I'LL SEND THEM TO YOU.

Get your FREE report card comments.

Good luck and happy report writing!

P.S. If you are looking for additional support with any aspects within the inquiry-based classroom, I have multiple solutions by way of my online course, Essentials for Inquiry and professional development workshops for your school team. Just reach out to me here and we can chat!