LO1 Strengths and Areas for Growth (DP IB Creativity, Activity, Service): Revision Note

What is Learning Outcome 1 and how can students show evidence?

Understanding Learning Outcome 1 (LO1)

• Learning Outcome 1 (LO1) requires students to identify their own strengths and developing areas for growth

• This outcome requires you to see yourself as an individual with various abilities and skills

  • You must recognise that some of these skills are more developed than others

• It involves the process of self-evaluation—a thoughtful assessment of your own performance and qualities to support personal development

• Strengths—the talents and skills you already possess and can use to contribute to a CAS experience

  • A CAS experience is a specific event or series of events where you engage with Creativity, Activity or Service

• Areas for growth—the qualities or skills that are currently less developed and offer opportunities for improvement

Demonstrating growth across the programme

• You should reflect on who you are at the start of the CAS programme to establish a baseline for your journey

  • The CAS programme is the mandatory 18-month core component of the IB Diploma

• LO1 is often achieved when you choose to participate in different activities that push you beyond your comfort zone

• You must show how your experiences have helped you develop new qualities or improve existing ones over time

• Being open to improvement and growth opportunities is a key descriptor for successfully meeting this outcome

• Your CAS journey should be individualised based on your unique interests, values and background

Evidence in the CAS portfolio

• You are responsible for gathering evidence in your CAS portfolio—a collection of work that showcases your CAS journey

• Evidence for LO1 is primarily found in your reflections—the process of thoughtfully considering your experiences and personal growth

• Effective reflections for this outcome should describe:

  • The specific strengths you discovered or used during an experience

  • The challenges you faced and how they highlighted a need for growth

  • The specific goals you set to improve a skill or character trait

• You can use a personal profile—a document created at the start of CAS to map your interests, skills and talents—as early evidence for this outcome

• Supporting media can also act as evidence, such as:

  • Photographs or videos showing you practising a skill

  • Certificates of achievement that mark a specific milestone in your development

  • Supervisor reports—feedback from the person overseeing your activity that comments on your engagement and progress