Approaches to Learning Target Setting Documents

Approaches to Learning Target Setting Documents

In order to share the Approaches to Learning goals with students, I have created student Approaches to Learning Target Setting documents, which can be seen below.

These documents are used for students to create targets based on the Approaches to Learning: communication, research, self-management, social and thinking skills. These targets will be applied to all of the subjects the students are studying, as well as the core of the programme.

Students can choose one or more of the sub sections for the approach to learning they are focusing on. Each of the sub sections for the approaches to learning come from the IB`s Approaches to Teaching and Learning website.

In order to make it clear to students that the Approaches to Learning are cross curricular, I go through the handout with students in the DP Core class, checking that their targets are relevant, challenging and achievable and then scan them and send them to every teacher. The teacher can then check their students` progress against the targets, which helps them when reporting on the approaches to learning.

These targets can be approached in a variety of ways:

• Students can focus on one approach to learning per month / term
• Students can set targets for more than one approaches to learning at a time.
• The DP Coordinator can work with the students in setting the targets, which they must then meet throughout all of their classes.
• Students can work with each subject teacher to set a different target for each class they take.

We revisit the goals in future DP Core classes, discussing each student`s progress and reflect upon any issues they have faced—this can help the DP Coordinator find common issues across the year group.

These document show all of the approaches to learning, which can deleted as appropriate depending on which one(s) you are going to get your students to focus on. The document asks students to consider how they can meet their target and how they can evidence that they have met their target. Example 1 also has a reflection section where students consider what went well, how they could improve and how their performance has changed since setting the target(s).

This document is linked to the IB’s Approaches to Teaching and Learning criteria with targets the students can choose from also taken from the IBO website on the Approaches to Teaching and Learning.

If teachers require, they are able to use this document on a subject for subject basis. I have used it in the capacity of the Coordinator to raise the students’ awareness of the Approaches to Teaching and Learning being cross curricular skills and that they should be using throughout their six subject areas and the Diploma Programme Core.