CAS CREATIVITY ACTION SERVICE

IB Diploma Programme Hexagon

EXPERIENTIAL LEARNING HAS THE POTENTIAL TO CHANGE YOUR LIFE! besides… „…if you believe in something, you must not just think or talk or write, but must ACT.” Peterson (2003) WHY CAS?

Nature of CAS Creativity: arts, and other experiences that involve creative thinking. Action: physical exertion contributing to a healthy lifestyle Service: an unpaid and voluntary exchange that has a learning benefit for the student.

Arts, and other experiences that involve creative thinking like the design and carrying out of service projects. Examples: - Speech and debate - Model United Nations - Writing for school magazine - Designing a CAS website - New Horizons in Film Education - Comenius Project products - Theatre performance - Art club - Photography club - Painting - Choir - Rock band- Creativity

Physical exertion contributing to a healthy lifestyle: Individual sports Team sports Participation in expeditions Examples: - Sports teams - Dance club - Outdoor club - Workout room - Personal fitness programme - Horse riding Extension: Improving yours skills or passing it to others Action

Involves interaction, such as building links with individuals or groups in the community. The community may be the school, the local district or it may exist on national and international levels. Essential that service activities have learning benefits for the student It is not only doing things FOR others but also doing things WITH others. Student must have real responsibilities Must be unpaid and voluntary, not for family Must not be mundane, repetitive activities The rights, dignity and autonomy of all those involved are respected Culpepper Service

Examples: - Volunteering at an animal shelter, orphanage, children’s home, local hospital - Habitat for Humanity – building houses for the disadvanteged - Comenius proejct „Health” – organising events, doing research etc. - Assisting the elderly, the handicapped, the immigrants - Assisting victims of natural disasters - Teaching a language to peers or children - Peer tutoring/Coaching younger children - Designing or constructing message boards - Creating and managing a CAS website - Establishing or coaching a team - Student Council service projects - Raising funds for worthy causes - Environment Protection Club - Human Rights Club Service

Painting murals at a local hospital – creativity, service Public speech – creativity, service Community garbage clean-up – action, service Working with younger students on a play – creativity, action, service Recycling- creativity (planning of the programme), action, service Comenius project „Health”– creativity, service One activity may cover more than one category, in fact, these are often the best projects. Examples of combined activites

What is the Purpose of CAS? Reflective thinkers – know their strengths and limitations and can set themselves goals for personal growth Willing to accept new challenges and new roles Aware of themselves as members of communities with responsibilities towards each other and the environment Active participants in sustained, collaborative projects Balanced – enjoy a range of activities involving whole person To develop students who are:

Experiential Learning

You must plan your activity and state goals that you hope to achieve and outcomes you hope to meet All students should be involved in some CAS activities that they have initiated themselves. Students should „own” their CAS programme and be autonomous. Simple, mundane, one time tasks will not count - tasks must extend the student not merely be “more of the same” (more practice, more competition), you’re either to achieve an even higher level of a given skill or undertake new roles Activities should vary in length and in the amount of commitment required from the student, but none should be trivial. Reflection must be real and meaningful Experiential learning

Increased their awareness of their own strengths and areas for growth Undertaken new challenges Planned and initiated activities Worked collaboratively with others Shown perseverance and commitment in their activities Engaged with issues of global importance Considered the ethical implications of their actions Developed new skills As a result of their CAS experience, there must be evidence that a student has: Learning Outcomes All eight outcomes must be present for a student to complete the CAS requirement.

…by participating in: How will you successfully complete CAS? Real Purposeful New Varied Outside-your-comfort-zone Challenging …activities, with significant outcomes …by planning, reviewing progress, reporting. …by reflecting on outcomes and personal learning.

CAS enables students to enhance their personal and interpersonal development through experiential learning. CAS provides an important counterbalance to the academic pressures of the rest of the Diploma Programme. CAS should be challenging and enjoyable and a personal journey of self-discovery. CAS helps realise student’s potential and develop a caring and compassionate attitude, respectful of other people emotions and feelings. CAS raises social, intercultural and environmental awareness and helps active citizenship How does CAS benefit me?

 At the end of their CAS program, students should have completed approximately 150 hours with a reasonable balance between creativity, action and service. This means roughly 4 hours per week.  CAS must take place throughout the two years (min. 18 months) with a balanced, regular commitment in the three areas.  One long-term project involving teamwork that integrates two or more of creativity, action, service and is of significant duration is required. When and how much?

Just as important as hours, if not more so, is the attitude with which you approach your CAS activities, and the variety of activities since CAS emphasizes more on sharing your talents and working together. Therefore: Do a mixture of activities in some try to limit yourself to about 20 hours while in other activities commit yourself for a longer period of time Attitude Ideally, at least two-thirds of your CAS requirement should be fulfilled by the start of DP2

Any class, activity, or project that is already part of the IB Diploma Programme Any work or activity where the student is rewarded financially or with a grade Simple, tedious, repetitive work (i.e. photocopying, shelving books, family duties) Any activity where there is no responsible adult present to supervise/evaluate the activity A passive pursuit (i.e. visiting a museum, attending a sporting event or concert, etc.) except when you follow up with a presentation/article of your own Religious worship but work done by a religious group in the wider community is That’s not CAS!!!

public or private individual or shared objective or subjective written or oral Written Reflection Book Electronic Journaling Blogs Website Articles for the school magazine Video/PowerPoint Presentations Electronic Picture Scrapbook Illustrated displays Oral presentations to peers, parents or outsiders Reflection

Think about each stage of activity:  before  during  after Ask questions:  How do I feel?  What have I perceived?  What do I think about the activity?  What does this activity mean to me?  What is the value of the activity?  What have I learnt about myself and others?  How have I changed? Developing reflection

More reflective questions  What you hoped to accomplish?  How successful were you in achieving your goals?  What were difficulties & how did you overcome them?  What abilities, attitudes & values have you developed?  How did this activity/project benefit others?  What might you do differently next time to improve?  Can you apply what you learned elsewhere?

CAS responsibilities Students are required to: Self ‑ review at the beginning of their CAS experience and set personal goals for what they hope to achieve through their CAS programme Plan, do and reflect: plan activities, carry them out and reflect on what they have learned Undertake regular reviews and a final review with their CAS coordinator Take part in a range of activities, including at least one project, some of which they have initiated themselves Keep records of their activities and achievements, including a list of the principal activities undertaken Show evidence of achievement of the eight CAS learning outcomes

CAS Planning Worksheet Proposed ActivityWhat is the timeline?What are my goals? CAS Student Name: Student Signature:Date: Parent Signature:Date:

CAS: activity/project self-evaluation form

Learning OutcomeAchieved (√) Nature of Evidence Increased your awareness of your own strengths and areas for growth Undertaken new challenges Planned and initiated activities Worked collaboratively with others Shown perseverance and commitment in their activities Engaged with issues of global importance Considered the ethical implications of their actions Developed new skills Learning Outcomes Form: Year 1/2 Name of CAS Coordinator: CAS Coordinator’s Signature: Date:

Date(s)ActivitySignature of supervisor with contact information No of Hours (approximate) CAS CAS Log Student Signature: Date: Parent Signature: Date:

Important CAS Terminology CAS Coordinator Handles the overall functioning of the CAS component for the IB Diploma Programme. CAS Advisor Provides personal advice and support to individual students. Your home room tutors are CAS advisors. Supervisor Adult present when a student is completing their CAS activity. Completes a review of the student’s involvement in the CAS activity after it has been completed.

Questions? Consult:  Creativity, action service guide in the library  CAS student handbook  CAS coordinator:  CAS advisor: your home tutor  IB Diploma Coordinator