BOYCP CAS Resource Website
What is CAS? CAS is one of the three essential elements that every student must complete as part of the Diploma Program (DP). It is organized around the three strands of creativity, activity, and service which as defined as follows:
Creativity - exploring and extending ideas leading to an original or interpretive product or performance
Activity - physical exertion contributing to a healthy lifestyle
Service - collaborative and reciprocal engagement with the community in response to an authentic need.
Although it is not formally assessed by IB, students must reflect on their CAS experiences as part of the DP, and provide evidence of achieving the following seven learning outcomes:
Breaking it down:
Students must engage in CAS experiences that involve one or more of the three CAS strands. A CAS experience can be a single event or may be an extended series of events. A CAS experience must:
- Fit within one or more of the CAS strands
- Be based on a personal interest, skill, talent, or opportunity for growth
- Provide opportunities to develop attributes of the IB learner profile.
- NOT be used or included in Diploma Course requirements.
Students undertake a CAS project of at least one month’s duration that challenges students to show initiative, demonstrate perseverance, and develop skills such as collaboration, problem-solving, and decision-making. The CAS project can address any single strand of CAS, or combine two, or all three strands. A CAS project must follow and show evidence for five (5) stages:
- Investigation: identify your interests, skills, and talents to be used and determine the purpose for the project. In the case of service, identify and explain the need to be addressed.
- Preparation: clarify group participant roles and responsibilities and develop a plan. Identify specified resources and timelines, and acquire any skills as need to engage in the project.
- Action: The steps taken along the way to prepare for the project demonstration.
- Demonstration: Project implementation.
- Reflection: Descriptions of what happened along the way (good, bad, ugly). This is the place to express your feelings, generate ideas, and raise questions. Reflection can and should occur at all points of the project stages to help assist with revising plans, detailing learning experiences, making explicit connections between your growth, accomplishments, and the learning outcomes.
