Hannah Thomas, Director of Professional Learning

Enhancing Student Learning Through Continuous Feedback

Effective student reporting goes beyond grades; it should communicate learning progress, provide clear insights, and support meaningful conversations between schools and families.

In our recent professional development session at Cranbrook School, we explored the research behind continuous reporting and its impact on student learning. Drawing on findings from Communicating Student Learning Progress: A Review of Student Reporting in Australia (Hollingsworth, Heard & Weldon, 2019), we examined best practices in student reporting and how we can refine our approach to provide clearer, more timely feedback.

Some key takeaways:

• Traditional semester reports are becoming less relevant; parents and teachers alike value more frequent, real-time insights.
• Reports often focus on achievement rather than progress over time; shifting towards progress-based feedback is essential.
• There is scope to improve clarity: consistent terminology, aligned reporting methods, and accessible information benefit all stakeholders.

To build on Cranbrook’s continuous reporting system, Adrian Harrison outlined the vision for refining our approach, ensuring it remains meaningful and effective for students, teachers, and parents alike.

Following Adrian’s presentation, Tara Schmidtke outlined best practices for ensuring consistent feedback on Canvas. She highlighted key strategies for providing clear, actionable and timely feedback, emphasising the importance of alignment across departments to support student learning effectively.

Our Canvas Champions within each faculty then led teachers to explore ways to enhance continuous feedback, ensuring that our approach remains both collaborative and impactful.

It is inspiring to be part of a school that prioritises clear, research-informed communication about student learning.

Hannah Thomas
Director of Professional Learning