Reporting Student Achievement Policy

Policy

This policy outlines school obligations for student reporting across Foundation to Level 10 (F–10) (including English as an Additional Language (EAL) students) to parents/carers and the department. This covers semester reporting as one part of the reporting process.

Summary

Schools are required to formally report student achievement and progress to parents/carers at least twice per school year for each student enrolled at the school.
Opportunities must be provided for parents/carers and students to discuss student reports with teachers and/or school leaders.
The report can be in print or digital form. It must be accessible and easy for parents/carers to understand.
Schools must report directly against the Victorian Curriculum F–10 Version 2.0 achievement standards.
Both student achievement and progress must be included in the report. This means that for each curriculum area taught, the report must include:
- a teacher judgement(s) (a score assigned against the achievement standards, for example, Level 3.5)
- an indication of progress since the curriculum area was last reported on
- a 5-point scale
- specific requirements for reporting progress in specialist settings can be found at Reporting for students with disability and/or additional needs.
As outlined in the Records Management policy, student reports must be kept for identified time periods.
Schools must upload teacher judgments of student achievement data via CASES21(opens in a new window) for every student enrolled at the school across each curriculum area taught, twice yearly – by 30 June and 31 December respectively.

Details

The reporting process strengthens the partnership between school and home in supporting student learning. It includes the ongoing and timely feedback given to students about their achievement and progress. Semester student reports are a summary of achievement and progress against the curriculum at a point in time and provide parents/carers with objective and accurate information.

The requirements for student reporting in Victorian government schools are defined with reference to:

the Guidelines to the Minimum Standards and Requirements for School Registration (opens in a new window) issued by the Victorian Registration and Qualifications Authority (VRQA)
the F–10 Revised Curriculum Planning and Reporting Guidelines (opens in a new window) issued by the Victorian Curriculum and Assessment Authority (VCAA)
departmental policies
Australian Education Regulations 2023.

Reporting to parents/carers

Schools are required to formally report student achievement, progress and provide a 5-point scale. For all curriculum areas (learning areas and capabilities) taught during the reporting period, reports must:

provide a teacher judgement against the achievement standards, assigned as a score, that accurately reflects where each student is along the relevant learning continuum
show student progress since the last report on each curriculum area
use one of the following 5-point scales to report on student achievement and/or progress:
- an age-expected 5-point scale, indicating the expected achievement based on a student’s age, must be used for English, Mathematics and Science, and can be used for all other curriculum areas except EAL
- an age-expected scale must not be used for the EAL curriculum area and may not be appropriate to use for students with disability and additional needs. In these cases, the department provides 2 alternative 5-point scales for schools to use:
  - the progress scale is recommended for the EAL curriculum area. For more information refer to: Reporting EAL proficiency and progress
  - the learning objectives met scale is recommended for students with disability and additional needs (the progress scale can also be used, depending on a school’s preference). For more information refer to: Reporting for students with disability and/or additional needs.

The department provides model reports for primary, secondary and specialist school contexts. These meet the department’s reporting policy requirements. They use accessible reporting formats and clearly show what is required and what is recommended. They support a consistent statewide approach to reporting. Schools must ensure their semester student reports reflect and are consistent with the provided model reports.

Interpreting services are available for communicating with parents/carers who require assistance in understanding their child’s achievement and progress. Refer to Interpreting and Translation Services.

The Guidance and Resources tabs provide further information and support around reporting student achievement and progress.

Definitions

CASES21

The software component of the Computerised Administrative System Environment for Schools

English as an additional language (EAL) student

A student for whom English is an additional language (EAL) is a student who:

comes from a language background other than English
speaks a language other than English as their main language at home
may or may not attract EAL index funding

Related policies

School Concerts

Years 3 - 6

Foundation - Year 2