CAS is nearly over

Time is running out as the final exams approach.  You have all received times for your final CAS interviews.  You need to make sure you have done your CAS SUMMARY before coming to the interview.  You must upload it on your portfolio under documents.  See previous posts for what to include.  There is a document on Google Classroom if you do not want to make your own version.

What do I need to do?

1. Finish off all my CAS experiences (with all the reflection/evidence) required
2. Do the CAS summary (see form on GC or make your own)
3. Attend the CAS interview - times on GC and MB

 What happens next?

As long as you can demonstrate that:

• you have worked towards the 7 learning outcomes
• have experiences that cover all 3 strands (Creativity, Activity and Service)
• have 18 months of participation,

I will notify the IB that your CAS can be marked as complete.  This means that you are eligible for the IB Diploma.  

What happens if my CAS is not complete?

If you meet all the other requirements of the IB Diploma, you are able to continue working on your CAS over the next year and resubmit for the Diploma at the next exam session.  If you have met the requirements, you will then be issued with the IB Diploma.  

What is my CAS status?

I know that you are all busy studying for mock exams and I want to wish you all the best for that.  I also want you to check your CAS portfolio.  I have just gone through and up-dated the status markers.  Here is the key to what they mean.

This means that you have only one open experience and have successfully completed all your other experiences.

 This means that you have at the most 2 open experiences but you are on track with the reflections etc.

If you have this symbol you probably have more than 2 open experiences but seem to be on the way to completing some.  You probably need to pay some attention to your CAS portfolio and the notes that I have left you.

This symbol means you are falling behind.  You have several open experiences.  You might not have enough for each of the strands and need to complement with a new experience to make sure you meet the requirements.

Keeping up-to-date with your CAS does not take a long time .- unless you leave it to the last minute.  Take 10 minutes each day to check that you are on track and you will not need to stress.

CAS interviews

Check that you know when your final interview is - link is on a previous post and Google classroom.  Complete a CAS summary and upload it to documents on your portfolio - BEFORE the interview.  You will not be able to have your interview if you have not completed the summary. No interview = no diploma.  Do your own version of the summary, or use the form on Google classroom.

See the link under pages for the kind of questions that I will ask in the interview.

Don't stop until you cross the finish line!

The Final Countdown.

As you prepare yourselves for your mock exams, please take a moment to think about your CAS portfolio.  Today, I left a note on every single portfolio.  I am sorry to say that a few people have once again got red flags. 

Red Flag Warnings

If you have a red flag now, it could mean that you will not get the IB Diploma.  Most of you are in a position that if you fix the issues by Monday 18th you can still remain eligible for the Diploma.  I return to school on Monday so if you have any questions before then you will need to email me.

One open experience

By the end of the sport break, I expect most people to have one or at the most 2 open experiences.  All the others should be closed.  In a few cases, people need to have 2 to meet the requirements of enough experience for each strand.

When does CAS end?

It depends on when you started and whether you took a break in the summer.  You must show 18 months participation.

If you started actively participating in CAS in September 2017 and continued through the summer break, you can end at the end of March.  If you started later - then you need to calculate that in.  If you didn't do any CAS in July, then you need to add a month. You need to be complete by May 1st at the latest.

You must be able to show evidence of the continuous participation.

How do I qualify for a satisfactory CAS portfolio?

As long as you can show the 18 months participation, a balance of experiences in all 3 strands and that you have worked towards the 7 learning outcomes, you will meet the requirements.

Green ticks time

Over the next few weeks, please take the time to look at you CAS portfolio and finish off as many experiences as possible.  When I open your portfolio, I should see mostly green ticks with one or possibly 2 experiences still open. 

CAS final interviews

CAS final interviews will be help between the 20 March and the 10th of April.  Please see previous posts to see what you need to have when you come to your final interview.

If for some reason you do not come to the interview or come unprepared, you will need to come in during the study week to complete your CAS.  I am sure you would all prefer not to do that!


Please check the following document for you  proposed interview time.  If there is a problem with the time, let me know as soon as possible. 

Recent Achievements 

Great work all of you who participated in the MUN - both the conference and the media team.  It sounded like a fantastic day.  Don't forget to add all the evidence and reflections to your CAS portfolio, do the CAS questions and request a review as soon as possible.  The sooner you do it the easier it is!  

If you missed it you can read all about it at https://thequirkyquibbler.com/

Preparing for the final interview

After sports break, I will start doing the final interviews for CAS.  Some of you will still be participating in experiences up to the beginning of May but others will have already done the 18 months by the end of March.  You can still do your final interview even if you have an open CAS experience.  Your portfolio will not be complete until all experiences are closed and you have done the final interview.

How do I prepare for the interview?

In some ways this is the most important interview as you need to show that you meet the requirements for CAS.  The main things that I will ask you to show me are:

• evidence of 18 months (or nearly at the time of interview) participation
• evidence and reflection for each of  the 7 learning outcomes
• evidence of creative, active and service experiences - should be a good balance of all 3
• reflection on the IB learner profile attributes.

You can do this in various ways but it must be done before the interview and added to your CAS portfolio documents before the interview.

In the past students have made posters, or visual representations of their achievements or written a text explaining their achievements. This is the basis for our discussion at the interview.

You can see some visual documents here and here or here.  Just note that some of these were done in the old CAS system with hour requirements and 8 learning outcomes but they should give you an idea.

If you have been diligent with your CAS portfolio this will be easy.  You can just past reflection for each outcome onto your document/poster.  If you want to make a big poster on paper, please do - just take a picture to upload onto your portfolio.

What kinds of questions will I ask?

This is a sample of the list from the IBO - the complete list can be found here

 What did you most enjoy about CAS?

 What have you achieved through CAS?

 What have you learned about balancing your time with your choices and commitments?

 Describe your CAS project: how you planned, who collaborated, your roles and responsibilities and the results of your collaboration. How were your expectations met or exceeded?

 What did you learn about yourself and others?

 What have you learned through working in collaboration with others?

 How did you improve and develop your planning skills?

 What could be improved about the way CAS is organized in school?

 What advice do you have for upcoming CAS students regarding making CAS enjoyable, sustained

over time and meaningful?

 Five years from now, what will you remember most about your CAS programme?

What does the IB say about the final interview?

This is the summative interview for CAS. It may well be just before the Diploma Programme finishes. In this interview the student outlines how they have achieved the learning outcomes for CAS. In addition, they discuss and evaluate their overall CAS programme and reflect on personal growth. The student’s CAS portfolio is used as reference in this interview. This third interview may provide the opportunity for discussion on development of the CAS programme for future CAS students based on this student’s personal

experience.

Creativity, activity and service guide - IBO March 2105

Congratulations to our rhino group!

They recently received certificates thanking them for their contribution to the the KZN Rhino project.

Why do I have a red flag?

If you still have a red flag it is because there is something that you need to fix.  I have done a very thorough check of the portfolios over the last week and I am pleased to say that most people have now managed to tidy up their lose ends and get a green flag.

10 minutes a week, keeps the red flag away!

If you now, please, try to dedicate 10 minutes a week to making sure that you have added some evidence and reflection to your portfolio you should find that finishing off CAS in March/April will not be a big chore.  If you do not take the time each week, you will be faced with a huge task in the time between the mock exams and the May exams.  If you really fall behind, you will find that you will need to come in to school during the study week.  No one wants to do that, so please do not put yourself in that position.

Why do I have to do all this?

Because if you don't, you will not be eligible for the IB Diploma.  

Of course there are lots of other reasons for doing CAS.  It can be fun!  it can help you with college/university/job applications. It is great experience.  You learn a lot.  You get to work with something you enjoy.  

What do I need to do to have a satisfactory CAS portfolio?

1. Have enough evidence to show that have participated in your CAS experiences for the time that you have claimed.
2. Have a balance of Creativity, Activity and Service experiences
3. Have reflection for each of your experiences - more for longer ones - at least 2 times each term.
4. Show that you have met the 7 learning outcomes
5. Have enough evidence and reflection to show that you have participated in CAS experiences for 18 months.
6. Complete 3 interviews with the CAS coordinator.

Coming up next week!

In my next blog post I will write about the final interview and how you need to prepare.  If you have a good CAS portfolio, you will find it easy to prepare.

What happens if I don't work on my CAS?

The consequences of forgetting to up-date your CAS portfolio are numerous.  In this holiday edition of the CAS blog, I will list some of the things that could afflict YOU if the little red - new changes - image doesn't appear next to your name over the next month.

1. You will not be able to show that you have participated in CAS for a continuous period of 18 months
2. You will not be able to show that you have met all the learning outcomes
3. You will find it hard to get evidence of having met the learning outcomes
4. Your supervisor will forget who you are and not be able to review your experience
5. You will get really stressed just before your mock exams because you know that you don't have enough on your CAS portfolio to qualify for the Diploma and you might as well throw in the towel
6. You will have to work like crazy just before, during and after the mocks trying to get things up-to-date, leaving you with no time to study...
7. Some of your experiences will get deleted due to lack of action and you will have to do more to make up for the loss..
8. You will find it hard to reflect on something you did 6 months ago and almost impossible to show how you met the learning outcome for that particular experience - an outcome that you do not have for any other so you will end up with one missing outcome.

All of the above are stressful and eventually lead to you not qualifying for the IB Diploma.  Do not put yourself in that position.  You have all worked so hard to get this far.  Most of you need to spend 10 - 15 minutes a week on your portfolio to keep it in shape.   A stitch in time saves nine. 

There is one more consequence that might not impact on the IB Diploma but is pretty scary.  If you do not up-date your CAS portfolio, the CAS coordinator will haunt your dreams for the next 50 years....

Enjoy the break but don't forget to CAS......