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DP exam analysis. Good PracticeGood practice the department put into place which helped gain good results:Focus on resources, revision, timing, ATLs, use of IBO materials, use of supporting materials created by the department.English A: Language and Literature.Resources: On entering the department, there were zero resources to either use or inform good practice, so a priority was building a bank of teaching materials that could be saved on the shared drive. Timing: First time around, it is hard to imagine the extent of the disruption caused by the cancellation of lessons due to Tamagawa activities – particularly from September to December. Having a predominantly SL class exacerbated the problem. It was imperative to minimize certain elements of the course (particularly Part 2) in order to provide the students with enough time to revise and to give them time during class to work on assessments.Revision: The students were given plenty of opportunities to practice past papers.Japanese A: Literature.Handouts of structures for writing commentary and essays: For writing practice for Paper 1 and 2, students could refer to them repeatedly as they need.Use of simplified charts: To sort out and review the points and plot of each literary works.Sharing ideas: Before and after writing practice for Paper 1 and 2, students could have chances to share their ideas on important points with their classmates.Review classes: Immediately before the Final Exam, students had opportunities to check the points and analyse tendency of the past exams.English B. Explanation of the rubrics and practical examples given for all tasks Consistent use of past papers; extra papers given for those willing to practise more.Assessment tasks based on past papers and internal assessments throughout the course.Individual Oral photos and captions selected individually with students’ interests in mindSample oral individual commentaries and templates given to students Interactive oral tasks selected to prepare student for the Oral Individual CommentarySelection of achievable texts, of increasing difficulty, to improve students’ reading comprehension skillsEncourage students to replicate exam conditions when preparing for exams at home, especially for time management.Japanese B.When I share new topic, I tried to relate country that students live before.I used many rearias in all unit.For paper 1 we share and discuss answering strategies in class.EconomicsAdditional revision time resulting from spending less time on Unit 3, Macroeconomics. More of a reliance on flipped-learning, using Welker videos.History Resources that focused on the conceptual basis of the historical events that we covered, for example, political, economic causes, and using class Q&A and written work to pinpoint students` lack of understanding, in order to improve student performance. These desired student outcomes were consistently shared with the class, and were directly linked to the exam markscheme so that students could clearly see how class activities supported various aspects of the markscheme, e.g `critical analysis`.Also, various exam techniques were used like making short essay plans at the beginning of the exam in order to break down the demands of the question. Further to this, we also did a lot of work on language use and acquisition, from building class glossaries and using historians` articles to mirror good examples of discursive historical writing. The intention of these tasks was to move students away from purely narrative descriptive answers and towards more developed and sophisticated language.Moreover, many class resources were made available to students via `Schoology`.Environmental Systems and SocietiesHard to say. Students that completed homework to a high standard and took responsibility for their learning performed well.BiologyI held extra content and revision sessions for students. This included a four hour session on a day where lessons had been cancelled so all students could ‘recover’ after Sports Day. I also used TOK lessons towards the end of term to complete Tamagawa assessments, revise and deliver any remaining content. Each week the students were given topic specific exam style questions from Question Bank as homework. These were peer assessed the following week in class. This enabled students to apply the content they had learnt in class and gain practice of exam style questions, data analysis questions especially. It also familiarised students with how different content could be assessed in their final exams. This year we finished a little earlier than last year meaning we had a week or more to revise for the final exams. This extra time also allowed us to practice a few more papers in controlled conditions. The students said they found this useful and at the time I was pleased with the progress they were all making. Students were much better prepared than last year, at least in terms of what happened in class. Schoology also proved a useful tool. Not only were students able to email questions over the holiday about their internal assessments and other matters but they were also able to access all the resources we had used in class as well as articles and videos which explored DP topics in more depth (I am not sure many if any students made use of these articles however). Students were very well prepared for the internal assessment. Each was given a booklet informing them clearly and concisely how to structure their report and what information to include and leave out. Students were also given the whole summer holiday to write up their report and were each given plenty of individualised feedback on how it could be improved. This seemed to benefit SL students the most as this is where they achieved their highest marks, 5 and 4 respectively. ChemistryHard to say. Students that completed homework to a high standard and took responsibility for their learning performed well.Mathematical StudiesIn addition to what has been done in past years, for the revision period we used InThinking materials for review of concepts before tackling questions and past exams. During the mocks, students performed really well in Paper 1, so post mocks the emphasis was on Paper 2 strategies and timing. Unfortunately this would have to be my biggest regret regarding this cohort. If I had spent a little more time on Paper 1 timing after the mocks I think Risako, Sana and Aoi would have gained a few more points.Mathematics SL and HL Testing of multiple units to become more familiar with the pace of the exams.Use of past papers to practice exams style questions. 4-6 weeks revision time before the Nov. examsVisual ArtsStudents seemed to appreciate the chance to pursue their own interests and ideas in projects rather than tighter, more controlled teacher led. Have started to change this slightly with current cohort – some projects are controlled for media kind – 2D, 3D, lens based to meet requirements, then later become more fully student choice of media/style based on their interests and plans. Sharing resources and samples from IB and past classes will continue and in some cases be increased. Student(s) who reached / exceeded his or her potential.Please analyse each student who you believe didn`t reach his / her potential. Copy the table for each one.Student name: Consider reasons why he/she did so well, include the performance / work rate of the student and the good practice put into place by the department. Sana KomatsuEnglish A: Language and Literature.She worked hardShe is brightShe responding particularly well to writing frames, doing past papers, and reading and grading model answers,Japanese A: LiteratureShe developed her skill of analysing literary works through preparation for presentation in the class. She did not hesitate to present her ideas not only at the presentations for her classmates but also at the group discussions and to receive any positive and negative comments.She seriously worked for writing practice before the Final Exam. She always pay a special attention to finish writing her commentaries and essays. This time management seemed help her at the actual exam.I felt that she dramatically improved her presenting skills of ideas in Y12.History She particularly showed drive and commitment in improving her grades, and was the most proactive student of the group in seeking and acting upon feedback, both written and verbal. She did this consistently across both grades 11 and 12. Attained a 5 in paper 3, which was very pleasing. Mathematical StudiesSana showed great improvement throughout the course. At the beginning she was regularly scoring half marks or less, but in the second year her grades showed great improvement. I have difficulty highlighting exactly why. She self-reported that she found the workload manageable and found results achievable. I’m happy with her performance, but acknowledge there was room for improvement on Paper 1.Yukio OtaJapanese A: LiteratureTo write the application documents for universities, I discussed with him a lot. Through this, he deepened his understanding of world with dizzying speed. At the same time, students practiced writing Paper 1 and 2, and his writing instantly became better.Perhaps he had not considered Japanese so important, but through thinking deeply about conceptual issues and using the writing structures correctly, he must flower into his potential.ChemistryWorked hard on past papers and asked questions when he did not understand the markscheme. Sought feedback on his IA. Completed homework and submitted completed drafts. Yukio worked hard to improve his performance on Paper 1 after the Mock exam.So TakeuchiJapanese BQuestion was good for him for paper 2. In the class we discussed which topic and text type you are good at or not good at. He had a good attitude in Japanese class. So asked a lot of questions in class. He was motivated to do well. Mathematical StudiesSo exceeded my expectations. His work rate was inconsistent and when he enjoyed something he worked hard but when he did not he did not. His IA was poor so he threw away easy points- however it is worth noting that it was not as poor as I though it to be. He benefited somewhat from the revision as his mock exam result for the Paper 2 was a 2 while his result in the IBDP exam was a 4.Ryota TakeuchiJapanese BPaper1 was perfect. His reading skill is improving. He knew answer strategies. He felt comfortable in the class—only 2 students.One to one feedback that was detailed and took a lot of time. Feedback was done in class time. Other student worked on Feedback or another activity when not having feedback. Peer assessment of writing skills.Both written and spoken feedback was given. Comments were written next to the criteria with an explanation of the results. He become more independent, and his skills improved through writing notes in Japanese.Risako HommaEconomicsI had predicted her a 4 during summer, but lowered it to a 3 in the fall, as she seemed to loose energy toward the end of the course. She was serious throughout the course, however, and put in a good effort. I think she accessed a lot of past exams, both from myself and on her own.Mathematical StudiesRisako had consistent results throughout the course. She demonstrated a dedication to understanding what she was doing and tried to improve on this. She had some difficulty managing her time with her IA which affected her grade a little.Aoi OgawaEconomicsStayed consistent throughout the course. Put in a good effort.History This was a very surprising result considering that she had shown scant interest in the subject from an early stage, and I would question why she chose History in the first place, especially at HL. As she never sought guidance or support from me I can only surmise that she used Schoology, re-read class resources and/or revised with peers.Both of them attained a `5` in paper 3 which was very pleasing.Ryoma ToyokawaEconomicsEnded the course well. Last 2 months of good effort. Showed improvement but I had feared it was too late. IA score also helped.Sophia YamamotoEconomicsIA score.Yuho KondoEnvironmental Systems and SocietiesWorked hard on past papers and asked questions when she did not understand the markscheme. Sought feedback on her IA. Completed homework and submitted completed drafts.Hina OhtaEnvironmental Systems and SocietiesWorked hard on past papers and asked questions when she did not understand the markscheme. Sought feedback on her IA. Completed homework and submitted completed drafts.George SatoChemistryWorked hard on past papers and asked questions when he did not understand the markscheme. Sought feedback on his IA. Completed homework and submitted completed drafts. George worked hard to focus on Paper 2 after the mock exams.Mathematics HLHe worked diligently throughout the course and would have studied hard for the finals. The mock exam really helped he realize what was required in the finals. He successfully used the summer vacation and improved his academic ability. Rika SakamotoHer academic ability began to grow since latter-half of 11th grade. She learned how to ask more targeted questions according to her needs Student(s) who didn`t reach his or her potential.Please analyse each student who you believe didn`t reach his / her potential. Copy the table for each one.Student name:What do you believe the reasons for this are? Were any of the reasons out of your control?Could you have done anything as a department?What strategies can you put into place to avoid this in the future?Ryota Takeuchi English A: Language and Literature.Well documented disengagement. Is this necessary for further discussion?ChemistryDid not submit complete drafts, did not complete homework, did not act on feedback, did not ask questions in class, did not understand key terms, poor time managementI would not have selected him to do Chemistry HL based on his MYP Sciences performanceDepartmental detentions?Focus on goal setting and time managementEnvironmental Systems and SocietiesDid not submit complete drafts, did not complete homework, did not act on feedback, did not ask questions in class, did not understand key terms, poor time managementDepartmental detentions?Focus on goal setting and time managementMathematics SLMain reason was lack of motivation. (There was indication before the DP began, actually.) It is not limited to mathematics. I talked about this with Ryota and his mother and he changed a little. (do his homework or assessments )Mai KamegayaEnglish A: Language and Literature.For better or worse, Mai chose to follow a HL science route. The consequence as far as her English studies were concerned, is that she didn’t dedicate the necessary energy into her studies so as to get the grade 6 that her abilities merited. Personally, I feel I did all I could in this respect.ChemistryDid not understand key terms, poor time managementI would not have selected her to do Chemistry HL based on her MYP Sciences performanceNot sure. Mai struggled with Chemistry and Physics so maybe a more concerted effort could have been made?Focus on goal setting and time managementEnvironmental Systems and SocietiesDid not submit complete drafts, did not understand key terms, poor time managementDepartmental detentions?Focus on goal setting and time managementNanami UchiyamaJapanese A: LiteratureHer total score was 6, but I think that she could acquire more. She is good at collecting a lot of precedent studies and research literary works with them. Therefore, her writing assignment was appreciated well. However, sometimes she drowns in the data and looses her way. Perhaps she could not keep her points clear when she wrote Paper 1 and 2. She demonstrated this weakness, and we checked together, but it seemed that the similar situation unfortunately happened again in the Final Exam.EconomicsDidn’t concentrate enough on the exam. Was more concerned with making connections outside of exam curriculum, perhaps at the expense of her grade. I think she got the grade that reflected her effort, which could have been better.History She could have got a `5` overall, (she did gain a `5` in paper 1) as she displayed a good acumen for the study of history, however I believe that social issues (e.g peer group) curbed her ability to gain a higher grade as when she isolated herself more in the class she performed better than when she joined a particular peer group.Environmental Systems and SocietiesPoor English skills, did not act on feedback, did not understand key termsFocus on goal settingYuho KondoJapanese A: LiteratureHer total score was 6, but again I think that she could acquire more. When she practiced writing immediately before the Final Exam, her writing was excellent. However, her score of Paper 1 was only 10 out of 20. Even though there are three other HL students, who had the same score, in the class, this was the lowest in the class. Maybe this is caused by the poem in Paper 1. This year, the poem is very difficult. It’s description is quite fragmental, and it is not easy to find any plot. In practice for writing, she mainly chose poem, so she must panic when she saw this poem. Next time, I will advise students to challenge both poem and prose.Visual ArtsYuho had a lot of good ideas and intentions that never made it to creation in projects. Some of her exhibition work was repetitive, and safe, rather than pushing herself to try and complete some of the ideas that she had. She probably could have improved her comparative study and process pages with a deeper understanding and concept of art, creation, intentions and the reasons and circumstances of artists and the creative process. Some of her study was very surface and could have gone deeper – she was capable of understanding and doing more. Ryo WayamaEnglish BIf he had be more awake and attentive in class, and not so erratic, Ryo could have performed better.Reo tried his best at the exam, but was asleep most of the course.Environmental Systems and SocietiesDid not submit complete drafts, did not complete homework, poor English skills, did not act on feedback, did not ask questions in class, did not contribute to class discussion, did not understand key terms, poor time managementDepartmental detentions?Focus on goal setting and time managementMathematical StudiesI may have been generous giving Ryo a 3. He did not take a calculator and then wrote his university application on his exam. He achieved 11 mark out of 90 for that exam. We could make sure that GDCs are provided at the exam room I guess. We could also penalise students who use their exam time poorly I guess? I found Ryo’s approaches to learning exhausting as a teacher. I often started the lesson before he was prepared, and he only owned a calculator for the last 6 months despite it being a requirement since Year 9.Kisa NagafujiEconomicsBad test-taker? Choked? Only 1 mark off of a 4, so may ask for a remark? Seemed to put in a good effort over the course. Surprising.BiologySee summary at the end of this box.Ryoma ToyokawaHistoryI believe he had the potential to gain a `5` overall, (he did gain a `5` in paper 1) though he had a very unpredictable attitude towards his studies, as he could appear disengaged and engaged in equal measure, for example his issues with his EE, that fed into his work in History. Ultimately, he was content to coast through the course. I believe that I did all that I could, and would argue that his disinterest and sometime lack of drive was symptomatic of a wider malaise, whereby he didn`t seem to put much of an onus on achieving a high grade. I would like to see some sort of DP report card that leads to an individual study time or some kind of other consequence. This may have worked for Ryo and So as well.Environmental Systems and SocietiesDid not submit complete drafts, did not complete homework, poor English skills, did not act on feedback, did not understand key terms, poor time managementDepartmental detentions?Focus on goal setting and time managementDaisuke AmanoEnvironmental Systems and SocietiesDid not submit complete drafts, did not complete homework, poor English skills, did not understand key terms, poor time managementDepartmental detentions?Focus on goal setting and time managementChemistryDid not complete homework, poor English skills, did not understand key terms, poor time managementI would not have selected him to do Chemistry HL based upon his MYP Sciences performanceDepartmental detentions?Focus on goal setting and time managementMathematics HLHe changed the course Math SL to HL at the beginning of 12th grade because of the application guidelines for the university. He forgot what he learned with the most unit. He can’t go ahead if he does not agree. This is a really good thing but he should have studied earnestly since earlier.Reo HirayamaEnvironmental Systems and SocietiesDid not submit complete drafts, did not complete homework, poor English skills, did not act on feedback, did not use English in class, did not ask questions in class, did not contribute to class discussion, did not understand key terms, poor time managementDepartmental detentions?Focus on goal setting and time management, encourage more English use (not sure how?)Mathematical StudiesReo is similarly two marks of a three. For Reo, I needed at times to go a bit slower than much of the course allowed. He struggled and I regularly revisited materials for him but sometimes it was just too much. The vocabulary load combined with the mathematical requirements of Maths Studies was beyond him. That being said, all students received language support in the maths classroom, but Reo was and has been so far behind the other students since I arrived when he was in Year 9 that I cannot imagine how he could catch up. I could have ran study halls for him to improve his homework completion rate, but short of one-on-one tutoring, I’m not sure that anything I could have done would have got him those extra two points. His IA was ok but an extra two points would have been available if he submitted a draft I think.Risako Homma Environmental Systems and SocietiesDid not complete homework, poor English skills, did not understand key terms, poor time managementDepartmental detentions?Focus on goal setting and time managementAoi OgawaEnvironmental Systems and SocietiesPoor English skills, did not use English in class, did not ask questions in class, did not contribute to class discussion, did not understand key termsNot sureEncourage more English use (not sure how?)Mathematical StudiesAoi performed really well in the mocks. I suspect she used the paper to study with and found it on the internet. I think I would like to talk about how everyone else is making their mocks, as I think this may have happened in the past. Beyond this, ensuring a more balanced review schedule that addresses Paper 1 timing after the mocks would have improved Aoi’s performance. Rika SakamotoEnvironmental Systems and SocietiesDid not complete homework, poor English skills, did not use English in class, did not contribute to class discussion, did not understand key terms, poor time managementDepartmental detentions?Focus on goal setting and time management, encourage more English use (not sure how?)Visual ArtsRika: really hit a wall in late 2016 – was not completing exhibition work on schedule, was proposing valid, but wildly unworkable projects for herself. Have adjusted our assessment schedule to help mitigate this, but HL timing remains a challenge for students to complete required work on time, in class. Also with comparative study – started work, then basically stopped for many months. Have adjusted the teaching, implementation, and focus to help students try to meet the requirements and also develop understanding of the concepts, goals, and aims of the study. So TakeuchiEnvironmental Systems and SocietiesDid not submit complete drafts, did not complete homework, did not act on feedback, did not ask questions in class, did not understand key terms, poor time managementDepartmental detentions?Focus on goal setting and time managementSophia YamamotoEnvironmental Systems and SocietiesDid not submit complete drafts, poor English skills, did not act on feedback, did not use English in class, did not ask questions in class, did not contribute to class discussion, did not understand key terms, poor time managementDepartmental detentions?Focus on goal setting and time management, encourage more English use (not sure how?)Mathematical StudiesSophia is one mark off a three. (In fact she 0.666666666 off a three) Sophia has had difficulty succeeding in mathematics. If we want students like Sophia and Reo to have success we need more targeted intervention and support for them throughout the programme. Some ways we could do this would be to ensure that students have a DP study hall, have a teacher with training in learning difficulties that could focus on those students who are having difficulties in the classroom. A more targeted, program-wide ESL intervention could also improve performance? Sana KomatsuBiologySee summary at the end of this box.George SatoBiologySee summary at the end of this box.Yukio OtaBiologySee summary at the end of this box.Hina OhtaChemistrypoor English skillsPerhaps not, I feel that she should have achieved a 5 given her effort and was only 3 marks away. I was disappointed I could not have helped her more.Not sureFocus on goal setting and time managementBiology summary of Kisa, George, Sana and YukioBoth Kisa and Sana had a good command of English and each student took English A. As mentioned above, both Kisa and Sana performed well in the mock exam and their performance in Tamagawa assessments, although inconsistent, indicated they should have achieved a level 5 in the final exams, the Tamagawa grade for each student at the end of year 12 was a 4 out of 5 and their IB grades were 5 out of 7. One week before the start of the final exams both students completed a paper 3 mock exam and both students performed badly in this. Furthermore each student had not submitted homework on time for three weeks in a row and had achieved low scores our last end of unit Tamagawa assessment. I sat down with each student and we had a one to one discussion about the mock paper three exam and how they were feeling about the ‘real’ exams in the forthcoming weeks. Sana was very open and honest and told me that she had been focusing on her HL subjects (History, Economics and Japanese) and as a result, was not giving biology much attention. I said that while this is understandable as she wanted to study ‘Liberal Arts’ at university, it was a shame as she had the potential to achieve at least a level 5 and that possibly, her overall DP points score would suffer. Sana agreed with what I had said but did not make any real commitment to working harder. She seemed to have lost a lot of confidence as a result of recent poor assessment performances and was perhaps finding it difficult to manage her workload in the run up to the final exams. Kisa was less articulate than Sana but implied that she was focusing on other subjects. It was also clear that she was not feeling confident about the biology final exams, or the final exams in general. In her paper 3 mock exam she made a number of simple, basic mistakes (as she has done throughout the two year course).Going forward it may be useful to ask students why they have chosen to study biology and what they intend to do at university. While a student’s responses may vary over time, if students declare that they do not wish to study sciences at university and instead want to do liberal arts/humanities which many of our students ultimately do, it may be better to steer them towards ESS as this is closer to a humanities subject than biology in terms of the course content, and students may find the examinations easier as there will be greater overlap with economics and/or history. ESS may also be more relevant to what they wish to do in the future. I would also encourage students to take chemistry with biology as the two courses overlap in terms of content and the skills required for examinations. Next year I will get students to repeat Tamagawa assessments and mock exams if their grade falls below what I would expect based on their MYP grade, English level etc. Students will continue to repeat the assessment until they reach a satisfactory grade. This should help to ensure that if students do lose motivation towards the end of a course or term as was the case with Kisa and Sana, then at least they will have to do something to improve their grades. Perhaps if this is done very early on in the term it should help students to perform better in year 12 and remove the need to use this practice in the weeks and month before the final exams when students are under more pressure and juggling homework and assessments with final exam revision. With regards to Yukio and George the failure of each student to achieve a level 7 is less obvious. George was three points off a level 7 and had his IA achieved the 20/24 I had given it, rather than being marked down to 17, he would have made up those three extra points. I have asked for his and Yukio’s papers to be returned so I can find out why they received the score they did from the IB. If the IB make some valid points as to why each student’s work was worth only 17 points I will incorporate their feedback into my planning of the IA next year to make appropriate improvements. Both Yukio and George achieved a level 7 on paper 1 but only a level 6 on papers 2 and 3. This suggests that each student knew the content well and had revised thoroughly, however in papers 2 and 3 they were less able to apply what they had learnt to different types of questions and/or had some difficulty interpreting, analysing and evaluating data. Going forward I will give exam technique an even more explicit focus than in previous years and try to integrate more exam style questions into lessons, spending time to explain in more detail and with more clarity why marks are awarded in the way they are. Exam style questions are well embedded into units such as unit 6, Human Physiology, but less so in other units such as unit 4, Ecology. A more consistent approach to exam style questions and technique across all units would help students with papers 2 and 3 which assess all content through application type questions. Yukio’s assessment and homework scores started to slide in year 12. We discussed this in the weeks prior to the final exam and he said that alongside final exam revision he was preparing for an admission interview for medicine at Okayama University and this was taking up much of his free time. Nick also mentioned that his chemistry scores had really improved in year 12, so perhaps he had shifted his attention elsewhere given that all of his year 11 biology assessments were level 7s in year 11. Perhaps when Yukio shifted his attention back to biology in the weeks before the final exams, although he may have revised hard, he did not give himself enough time to make the preparations he needed to do get to a level 7. George had some issues submitting homework on time in the weeks and months prior to the final exam but as mentioned, was performing very well in the run up to the exams so I was surprised that he did not achieve another level 7 in at least one of paper 2 or 3. As suggested with Kisa and Sana perhaps making high potential students such as Yukio and George repeat assessments until they achieve a level 7 may be one way to better ensure they reach the top grades. The biology exams were the last exams for Kisa and Sana and the penultimate exams for Yukio and George. Students may have lost motivation to make last minute preparations for the exams or may have left their biology revision to ‘the last minute’ (Sana and Kisa would have been far more likely to do this as I imagine they would have spent more time on exams for their HL and university subjects which they had before biology). If possible we could counter this problem by making the mock exam schedule better reflect the final exam schedule if it is published this far in advance. Not only would this help with making grade predictions more accurate but it would also help students better cope with issues related to exam fatigue and losing motivation after multiple weeks spent revising for and completing exams. I do appreciate however that it may be difficult to make mock exam week two to three weeks long or however long the final exam weeks last for, but anything which gets us as close to the real thing as possible would surely be of benefit to students Please write down the effect the following have had on your results.Formative assessments.English A: Language and Literature.IOC – The students had plenty of practice using Soundcloud. Generally speaking, I felt the IOCs were nothing to write home about, but I can only conclude that they helped, not hindered, the students in achieving the grades they did.Papers 1 & 2 – Opportunities to write past papers were invaluable.Japanese A: Literature.Intensive oral course: Before IOC, students had chances Intensive writing course: Before the Final Exam, mainly in HL class, students had chances to practice making their plans and writing commentaries and essays for paper 1 and 2. Before and after they wrote, they shared their ideas and plans with their classmates. After submitting their writings, they received the teacher’s feedbacks. English B.Students have a clear knowledge of what is expected.Students have the opportunity to practise as much as they want / need.Samples and templates give clear guidelines and practical help.Japanese B.Regular testing of reading helped them in the exam. Kanji test was once a week. Repetitive assessments so they could get used to it. EconomicsLittle, if any. I try to keep all kinds of assessments limited, as there seem to be more effective ways to spend time. I am also very conscious of the rest of the classes and demands on students’ time. Sometimes when there is no summative assessments at the end of a book chapter, I prompt the students to write responses for end-of-chapter text questions, as they usually come from past IB exams. I will then give feedback on them, usually written.HistoryVery important in class context, mostly used in terms of teacher Q&A. Regarding written workpeer and one to one teacher feedback mostly used to pinpoint specific areas of knowledge and/or language needs.Environmental Systems and SocietiesStudents that scored well in unit tests scored generally better in the exams.Students that scored well in the investigations scored generally better in the IA.BiologyThrough verbal questioning, in class activities (for example presentations) and in class written questions I was able to gain some understanding of students grasp of concepts and content. However with three class members (Yukio, Sana and Kisa) often being unwilling to volunteer answers or to elaborate on these even when prompted it was difficult to gain an accurate understanding of their progress. Had students oral communication skills and confidence been stronger perhaps I would have been better able to assess the extent of students’ knowledge and understanding and design more appropriate interventions. Kisa for example throughout the course indicated that she understood basic ideas and concepts but I was unable to explore her depth of understanding as she was very shy and/or unwilling to articulate what she did or did not know. It was perhaps only when she made glaring errors in assessments that the limit of her understanding became clear. She attributed these to a lack of concentration but perhaps in hindsight, it was due to a lack of understanding. George on the other hand by regularly asking questions and by volunteering answers whenever he could made it clear what he did or did not have a good understanding of. This was particularly useful as I could aim targeted questions and even recommend places where he could get further clarification or explanation. Next year rather than getting students to write their answers in notebooks or on worksheets during in class activities I will instead encourage the use of a google doc which myself and other members will have access to. This will not only help me to assess students’ understanding but also encourage students to begin tasks more quickly and stay on course. It will also ensure that I can get as much of an understanding of what quiet students such as Kisa understand compared to more vocal students such as George. Finally, it will present me with an opportunity to provide additional written feedback to students.ChemistryStudents that scored well in unit tests scored generally better in the exams.Students that scored well in the investigations scored generally better in the IA.Mathematical StudiesEarlier formative assessments provided the best predictor of their future success.Types of homework throughout the course.English A: Language and Literature.Most students could cope with basic comprehension-style reading assignments. As the weeks and months progressed, most homework was specifically linked to imminent IB assessments and examinations. Any frivolous homework (i.e. nothing specifically linked to an imminent IB assessment of examination) wouldn’t get done.Japanese A: Literature.Rewriting: Following the feedback, some students rewrote their commentaries and essays. (fully optional homework)Simplified chart: They filled in the blank charts to sort out the points of the literary works which they studied. (fully optional) They could use them for quick review.English B.Reading comprehension: expose students to various text types and topics.Writing tasks: require students to write various text types and follow their conventions.Japanese B.Every weekKanji test : Once a week :Rule is practice 20 characters every week and take a test if they got wrong, those Kanjis add to kanji test fot next weel.So They should be get all correct answers. Summer, Spring, Winter breakPreparing next unit ex: Written assignment, Individual Oral Ryota didn`t do any homework after the summer break (the last two months of the course). EconomicsFor HL, it is mostly mathematical problems to solve. I never collect these as the answers are in the back of the book. We always go over at least half of these verbally in the following class. For both SL and HL, I have increasingly used a flipped-classroom technique, as the online materials are numerous and of high quality. The students I have interviewed seemed to like the material, and most came prepared for class. Students commented on being able to relax and go at their own pace, re-winding the videos, turning on closed-captioning, etc. as advantages to this style of learning.HistoryMostly background reading and assessment preparationEnvironmental Systems and SocietiesMost homework is reading the textbook and answering questions, watching videos or reading about appropriate case studies. Students are asked to discuss in small groups, present to the class and also write extended responses to open questions.BiologyExam style questions every week. Occasional poster or oral presentations. Occasional prior or further reading.ChemistryMost homework is reading the textbook and answering questions, watching videos and completing relevant worksheets. Sometimes homework was to analyse data from experiments.Mathematical StudiesHomework provided them with practice and this was reflected directly in their understanding, perhaps with Sophia as an exception. I regularly spent time with her assisting with her homework during class but she did not make similar growth to Risako or Sana but often put in similar efforts. Homework was usually textbook focused. This year I think I have improved this by focusing more on exam style questions and review packages.Mathematics SL and HLPractice problems from the textbook were most common.Reading ahead on a specific section of a topic was also utilized.Working through past exams problems leading up towards assessments.Visual ArtsHomework is focused on submission work. Additional work with study, research, intentions can be implemented. Across classes, background knowledge is low, research and investigation into styles, artists, traditions is low, and can be improved. Much work is done outside of class on preparing process pages and putting together submission work. Have begun using more homework to help with concepts, principles, and criteria for comparative study as well as process and exhibition. Am continuing to refine and review how to use homework more effectively. Currently, much of work is strictly final submission based, can work to include homework earlier to prepare for comparative study, also specific criteria, such as Critical Investigation in process pages. More reports and outside reading about specific artists / styles / techniques. Lack of resources hurts here, as I am preparing homework, pages to hand out, assignments from scratch. *Figuring out what questions to ask, and what specific tasks to undertake is ongoing Information gained from mock exam results.English A: Language and Literature.Papers 1 & 2 - They were used to inform the strengths and weaknesses of the respective students, but we regularly practiced past papers, so the mocks weren’t particularly that big a deal.IOC – The gap between the mock IOC and the official one was a matter of days. Therefore they may have provided either quiet optimism or a kick up the backside depending on the student.Japanese A: Literature.Feedback: Advice on their good points to develop and weak points to be paid attention.English BStudents needed to work on their time management, as well as reading and following carefully instructions. Japanese B.Both of students needs to improve Writing skills. EconomicsI think it is a timely wake-up call for students and very effective. Ryoma, Aoi and Risako may have been influenced by these results to put more effort into the last stretches of the course.HistoryNeed for more sophisticated language and to move essays away from being just narrative basedEnvironmental Systems and SocietiesThe usual weakness of extended writing was observed and focused upon.BiologyThe information I gained from the mock exams was somewhat misleading, particularly with regards to predicting the future performance of SL students. As mentioned, both students achieved a level 7 on paper 1 (20%) and achieved a level 4 and 5 in paper two (36%). This lead me to reasonably conclude that in the real exams both students would probably achieve overall a level 5 or 6 as they would have had an additional 3-4 months to revise and prepare. Both SL students told me that they had done these papers before, but only once, so with this in mind I thought a final predicted grade of five for each student was appropriate. The additional mock exam we did a week before the real exams was a much better indicator than the summer mock exams as the two SL students’ scores were much closer to what the students had actually achieved in papers two and three indicating that they had done little or no revision or review since the mock exams, nor did they do much between the last week of term and the final biology exams. The mock exams were far more accurate for HL students. One student achieved a high level 5, the other a low level 6 on paper two and both boys achieved a level 6 in paper one. My predictions that each boy would add a level to their final exam score was therefore close to what the boys actually achieved, level 7s on paper one and level 6s on paper two.ChemistryStudents realised that Paper 2 was very difficult and that they had to remember the experiments that were done in class as well as content from Grade 11.Mathematical StudiesThis changed my approach to revision and I think this influenced their results. Students all performed poorly on the Paper 2 mock so I dedicated a lot of class time to preparation for Paper 2 at the expense of Paper 1. Student results reflect this approach and I would definitely take a more balanced approach regardless of the mock results in the future. Essentially, I put too much faith in their performance in the mocks when it came to Paper 1.Mathematics SL and HLOpportunity to gain a wider pool of questions for students to practice. Resources from the IBO such as Past Papers, official websites, Teacher Support Material, Question bank (if applicable). English A: Language and Literature.The InThinking website is a godsend. Brilliant. Japanese A: Literature.Handouts of structures for writing commentary and essays: For writing practice for Paper 1 and 2, students could refer to them repeatedly as they need.Use of simplified charts to sort out and revise the points and plot of each literary works.Review classes: Immediately before the Final Exam, students had opportunities to check the points and analyse tendency of the past exams.English B.Past papers and Examiners reports. Teacher created resources.Economics Past papers were used throughout the course on summative assessment tasks. More were handed out both before summer vacation and towards the end of the course for extra practice. Students often requested papers of specific dates, showing that they were taking them very seriously and were even practicing them on their own. Sana and Risako were two notable students who worked very hard on past papers, perhaps contributing to their good results.HistoryPast papers used especially in grade 12, also teacher produced exam style resources, e.g source papersEnvironmental Systems and SocietiesCALP activity on graph language, exemplar IAs reviewed, past papers.BiologySee comments in ‘homework’ and ‘good practice’ sections.ChemistryCALP activity on graph language, exemplar IAs reviewed, past papers.Mathematical StudiesPast papers and question bank based papers were very important for revision, as well as formative and summative assessment. I got an InThinking subscription at the start of this academic year and used it extensively for supplementary review materials. These materials were particularly useful as starter activities at the beginning of review lessons.Mathematics SL and HLOpportunity to gain a wider pool of questions for students to practice. Past Papers, Teacher Support Material (important examples for the IA), Question bank (important for unit test creation)Visual ArtsHave used some, especially with comparative study and process pages. Most of the examples from the IBO were very high level, none in the middle or low levels. More samples and examples from IB would be helpful. Questions about using/ teaching specific styles, artists, forms as compared to the student led selection for their submission work is something to consider and adjust moving forward. The resources from IBO have helped me to understand the course better, but it remains a task to get them to student level. I am unsure if giving some of the IBO papers is helpful or hurtful, as they are confusing and written at a complex level. Use of departmental websites (Schoology / Managebac). Please explain how you use them.English A: Language and Literature.All resources are on Schoology for the students to access.Japanese A: Literature.Handouts of structure: These handouts had been saved in Schoology for students’ easy access.Presentation materials: Students had kept their power point slides, resume and other materials in Google doc. They could refer to them and review their group understanding and their individual ideas as they wish.English B.Schoology, Google Docs (good for feedback)Japanese B.I did not use both of them. I want to know how to use Managebac.EconomicsSchoology was used throughout the course to post flipped-classroom videos, store both main and alternative textbook chapters and post revision material from class. Students occasionally used it to post messages, questions, etc. I think it was a convenient repository for material and that students appreciated the east access to everything in one site.HistoryUse of Schoology, many course resources, such as literacy or background information are uploaded on to this websiteEnvironmental Systems and SocietiesMy website (non-departmental) is used to help the students manage their workload as they can check the homework on their phone and re-watch videos or review websites we have used.BiologySee comments in ‘good practice’ sections for Schoology use comments. No use of Manage Bac.ChemistryMy website (non-departmental) is used to help the students manage their workload as they can check the homework on their phone and re-watch videos or review websites we have used.Mathematical StudiesI used schoology to post past exams, homework answers and answer schemes to some tests. I also posted some homework infrequently usually at the request of one of the students. This is easily a resource I could have used better.Mathematics SL and HLWe use gmail as storage of submission work and an ongoing page with information from the class and collected info from the class. Students have personal folders where they store their submission work, I put together shared documents and folders for students to use in/out of class. Revision strategies given to the students.English A: Language and Literature.Not a strategy as such, but lots of opportunities to view, write and grade past papers.Japanese A: Literature.Making plans to write: Students had been advised repeatedly to make their plans before writing. This would be helpful not only to keep focusing on their points but also to paying their attention to time management.English B.Past papers used extensively. Students were encouraged to complete tasks under exam conditions (time limited, no dictionaries)Text types and their conventions studied and analysed. Students requested to write a second draft taking into account teacher’s feedback.Japanese B.Make a chart for text types and discuss about them. The students used the text type handout which helped for their writing in paper 2For summer break homework, do same question that students choose mock exam using teacher’s feed back and do question that student did not choose on mock exam. That means students have to do all questions.EconomicsPast papers with copious and explicit feedback. Feedback classes, both group- and individually-centered; a mix of both verbal and written feedback.HistoryMind mapping and flashcards of key terms/events that was modelled in class; also use of revision `buddies`Environmental Systems and SocietiesMaintain a flash card set of key terms using Quizlet.Review videos and websites using my website.Past Paper questionsBiologyPast paper practice questions. CrosswordsKahoot quizzesMind mapsIn light of the fact SL students did very little independent revision, not enough class time was spent on revision, even with the use of additional classes. This was partly due to the breadth and depth of course content and a limited number of course hours. ChemistryMaintain a flash card set of key terms using Quizlet.Review videos and websites using my website.Past Paper questionsMathematical StudiesReview booklets, chapter summaries over the winter break, check and reflect worksheets with exam style questions, question bank questions, past papers, studentMathematics SL and HLPractice! Working through as many past papers as possible.The ideal way to prepare for mathematics exam is to allow students time to practice in a supportive learning environment. This practice was then followed by a class about the process incorrectly solving the problems. Visual ArtsI work with students one on one and in written suggestions to the students. Much work is student led and the challenge for HL especially is completing the required exhibition work in time. Unsure how many of the suggested edits and changes to all submission work are followed through. The schedule plays in here, as there is always the next assignment / project coming up, with little time for looking back – must be done outside of class, as homework.7 MYP focusHow can the results be used to help backward planning into the MYP with a view of improving DP results in the future?English A: Language and Literature.Ongoing focus on ensuring students have ample opportunity to analyse literary texts (writing P-E-A-L paragraphs at Phase 4 minimum and then moving on to writing analytical essays).Further opportunities to read, analyse and write non-fiction texts.Extra focus on ensuring the students are taught to be media literate (advertising, media bias, social media…)Japanese A: Literature.Making plans to write: Students had been advised repeatedly to make their plans before writing. This would be helpful not only to keep focusing on their points but also to paying their attention to time management.English B.Expose students to more wide reading, not just short comprehension texts.Make students study and practise visual literary.HL students to practise opinion articles to prepare for Paper 2 Part B – Personal ResponseJapanese B.MYP units are related to DP units. Some of the topics that I would like to do in DP don`t have enough time.MYP new worked is connected to the units in the DP. EconomicsCarefully. We need to ask Maeda-sensei to research the I&S MEXT curriculum and give us a detailed run-down on what must be included and for how long. Based on this information we may be able to include more Economics in grade 10 and even grade 9 I&S. However, with the January start of the DP coming up (and the grade 10 I&S class becoming shorter), this may be difficult.HistoryGreater liaising between grade 10 and DP teachers on how to bridge the gap between the MYP and DP in terms of content and lesson tasks e.g source work; I have already started this with Jamie in Grade 10 I&S.Environmental Systems and SocietiesA focus on language development through reading and extended writing may helpCriterion D in MYP Sciences is especially helpful for ESS.BiologyYear 7 – Students assessed on each term’s contentYear 8 – Students assessed on a year’s contentYear 10 – Would be advisable for students to be assessed on all MYP content. E-assessment would serve this end however it seems we are unlikely to go with this (final term of year 10, September to December could be spent revising and reviewing content from whole MYP programme)Above suggestions would better prepare students for ‘terminal’ exams whereby they are assessed on two years’ worth of content in one go across two or three papers. Consistency among MYP teachers to ensure Group 4 sciences are covered in enough breadth. This will ensure fewer subjects re introduced to students for the first time in the DP. Regular review of previously learnt content when starting new units will also help to create a ‘spiral curriculum’ and reinforce key and main ideas. In recent years for example I have had to teach and review year 7 concepts to year 11 students such as the pH scale and what different cell parts do. Backwards planning of skills, calculations and key vocabulary has begun but this will require consistent review and reflection and actual implementation (i.e. not just being put on documents for the sake of it). Use of Amrit’s skills sheets may help students with papers 2 and 3 and the internal assessment.ChemistryA focus on test performance and difficult questions will help students to prepare. Have end of semester exams and end of year exams that are more than 1 hour and also ask students to remember content from the beginning of the academic year.Mathematical StudiesI have already implemented a Maths Studies DP style assessment in both Year 8 and Year 9 on the topic of statistics that requires very similar content to the DP version in the hope that if they do this twice before DP it will be easier for all involved.Mathematics SL and HLPlanning of the order of topics leading up to the start of Y11. Particularly for Y9 and 10. Focus on the use of command terms used by DP so students are more familiar with their usage in textbooks, questions, and problems.Visual ArtsHave begun working analysis/description into MYP classes. Additional work here is needed, challenged by 1x, 2x a week classes. Skills work is also needed, also challenged by lack of classes / units in MYP. An increased emphasis on concepts, ideas is being added, -- but must balance between skill work and analysis/ conceptual work. ................
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