A Celebration of Learning

At Tessa International School, for the End of Unit Celebration, students have been demonstrating different arts and crafts they have created related to the Unit of Inquiry, performing songs and dances,  or making short speeches about what they have learned. 

The Celebration of Learning is a part of the IB PYP curriculum framework and a  great way to develop a partnership between parents and schools. 

It is such a powerful opportunity for students to make their learning public and gain confidence by presenting it to an authentic audience.

Through this process, students can embrace the different learner profiles to reflect on their learning by communicating what they now know and what they are inquiring about. 

Are your children enthusiastic and proud to show you what they have inquired about? Are they able to explain it? Can they use some vocabulary of the targeted language ( French or Spanish)

Parents (and teachers) have on the other hand to show respect, curiosity, confidence and appreciation in the progress during the Celebration.

Do we show pride when we see our students accomplishing their goals? Do we empower them and give them ownership by  being curious and asking questions?

Indeed, “the PYP is a transformative experience for students, teachers and the whole school community. PYP students learn how to take control of their learning, teachers collaborate to deepen student- learning and increase their confidence and self-motivation. The whole school community, including parents, are viewed as partners in learning, and actively contribute to a holistic educational experience” 

For those reasons, we have to embrace every kind of progress as it is a demonstration of skills (socially and academically) they have acquired through the learning.

In the PYP, there is no standard way to do a celebration of learning as it is a reflection of the students work and progress. 

For that reason, teachers and students can choose the format but the most important thing is that celebrating your children’s learning is a way to realize an effective assessment which is profitable not only for teachers but also for students and parents.

Indeed, effective assessments allow students to:

• share their learning and understanding with others;
• demonstrate a range of knowledge, conceptual understanding and skills;
• use a variety of learning styles, multiple intelligences and abilities to express their understanding;
• know and understand in advance the criteria for producing a quality product or performance;
• participate in reflection, self- and peer-assessment;
• base their learning on real-life experiences that can lead to further inquiries;
• express different points of view and interpretations;
• analyze their learning and understand what needs to be improved.

And it allows parents to:

• see evidence of student learning and development;
• develop an understanding of the student’s progress;  
• provide opportunities to support and celebrate student learning.

That being said, we had a wonderful Celebration of Learning last week!!!!

Elodie Sylvestre.