CAS Interviews

The purpose of the first interview is to:

• gauge the student’s understanding of CAS

• find out the interests of the student

• discuss the student’s plans for CAS experiences

• review the learning outcomes of CAS, ensuring his or her understanding and seeing how the student might achieve these outcomes

• ensure the student is aware of ways to gather evidence of CAS.

Questions are offered for each of these discussion topics as examples. Each interview should last 10-15 minutes.

Understanding

What have you learned about CAS and the CAS stages, and how can the stages help you in CAS?

How will you plan for an equal distribution of CAS strands across your CAS experiences?

Student interests

What are your main interests? How can you incorporate these interests into your CAS programme?

What do you enjoy doing after school? Could this be part of any CAS experience?

What are your personal goals? How could they be achieved through CAS?

What do you expect to gain from CAS? What do you hope to accomplish?

What school, community or other groups or teams are you already involved in?

What do you think your role could be in effecting change for the better?

What issues of local significance concern you most? How could you address these in your CAS programme?

How do these local issues also have global significance?

Student plans for CAS

Have you made any plans for creativity? Activity? Service

What ideas do you have for a CAS project? (Remember that a CAS project should last min. 1 month)

CAS learning outcomes

From the plans you already have, do you see any opportunities that may be helpful in meeting these learning outcomes?

What learning outcome appears as something you will easily do?

What learning outcome might present a significant challenge?

Evidence of CAS

Have you thought of how you will keep evidence (and the types of evidence) that you are engaging with CAS and are meeting the CAS outcomes?

You should prepare a 5 minutes long presentation which should include answers to following questions:

• What has been the most enjoyable and beneficial for you thus far in CAS?

• What has been a highlight of your Creativity? Activity? Service?

• When have you investigated, prepared and taken action so far in creativity, activity and/or service, or with your CAS project?

• What has been a highlight of your Summer CAS? Evidence from your summer CAS work.

• Which LOs have you achieved the most? Why do you think so? Evidence from your reflection entries (your CAS portfolio).

The last 2 questions are the biggest part of your presentation. Your presentation follows up by 5 minute conversation. Evidence can take many forms including, but not limited to, reflections and other forms of documentation such as photos, files, planning documents, emails, meeting minutes, certificates, videos, art, music and journals. This all should be ready in your portfolio, during interview the teacher will open your portfolio and look at them with you.

Prompts to use for second interview:

Outline a skill that you have strengthened or developed from engaging in a CAS experience.

Explain something that has happened in CAS that provoked some strong emotions (“I was really excited when …”; “I was sad when …”; “I was really happy when …”).

Choose a learning outcome and discuss your evidence of achieving it, and what stands out as most significant and memorable.

These are the questions your interviewer will probably ask to continue your conversation:

• Which LOs do you have to focus on more?

• What do you hope to achieve most from CAS? How can you do this?

• What sort of support do you need from me and school?

• Have you ensured an equal balance across the three CAS strands? If not, how will you rectify this?

• What have you learned from your involvement in CAS?

The summative interview for CAS is best scheduled near the end of the DP. The emphasis for this interview is for students to outline how they have achieved the CAS learning outcomes in addition to discussing their overall CAS programme. Moreover, the students can be guided to reflect on personal growth from multiple perspectives including enjoyment, personal awareness and development, achievements and challenges, larger understandings about the world around them, and how this experience might impact future choices and actions. This can lead to self-evaluation regarding what has been beneficial that may truly lead to lifelong integration of creativity, activity and service.

Outline for your 15 minute presentation

Use the presentation that has been previously sent to you. Your presentation follows up by 5 minute conversation. Reflect on your achievements and learning outcomes using your blog entries (provide relevant excerpts, screenshots, and links). Evidence can take many forms including, but not limited to, reflections and other forms of documentation such as photos, files, planning documents, emails, meeting minutes, certificates, videos, art, music and journals. This all should be ready in your portfolio and the presentation, during the interview you should have your presentation open. Record you interview and upload it in your portfolio right after you finish the interview. Send you presentation to your CAS adviser.

These are the questions your interviewer will probably ask to continue your conversation:

• What did you most enjoy about CAS? What would you do differently?

• How do you already apply what you have learned from CAS in your daily life? How can this continue as you make future choices?

• Looking ahead, have any new goals emanated from your CAS programme?

• What advice do you have for upcoming CAS students regarding making CAS enjoyable, sustained over time and meaningful?

• Five years from now, what will you remember most about your CAS programme?