Learning Skills Assessment

We are excited to announce that commencing in September 2017, a new method of assessing learning skills in academic and arts programs was launched. Replacing the old effort rating system, which required teachers to judge students’ efforts on a scale of one to five, this new system seeks to better identify students’ specific learning strengths. Additionally, this new approach better aligns with goals published in both Brentwood’s Academic Plan and the BC Ministry of Education’s new Core Competencies by evaluating students’ frequencies of engagement and personal responsibilities in the classroom, while fostering self-awareness and self-assessment. There are four precise skills that will be evaluated across all academic and arts courses and then each department will create subject-specific criteria for assessing the learning skills. Teachers will evaluate if a student displays these skills rarely, occasionally, often or habitually. This evaluation will be communicated to families three times per year in the formal report cards that are distributed in November, March, and June alongside teachers’ comments and grades. The four learning skills are: 1. Manages time, assignments, and materials 2. Focuses in class 3. Takes responsibility 4. Contributes positively In the past, effort rating averages were used to determine Colours’ recipients. Athletics will no longer use an effort rating system to award Colours because the current marking rubric already encompasses similar criteria. Academics and Arts will use the evaluation of learning skills when awarding Colours to students, in addition to their academic standing. Cheryl Murtland, Deputy Head (Academics) & Robyn Amiel (Head of Social Studies)