IB MYP Approaches to Learning
v2
Concept
The aim of Approaches to Learning is to produce self-regulated learners who have been taught the skills of
effective thinking and learning from information processing to managing their personal organisation and
emotions.
Approaches to Learning represent general and subject specific skills that the student develops and uses during
the study of the subject. The focus is on teaching students how to learn, to develop learning skills and to
support students to take responsibility for their learning. Approaches to learning is another way to develop
Learner Profile attributes
ATL skills are grouped into five broad skill organisers. Within each ATL Skill Category there are one or more
Skill Clusters.
Approaches to learning skills can be
* learnt by the student
* improved with practice
* taught by the teacher
* and developed incrementally.
ATL skills empower students to succeed in meeting the challenging objectives of MYP subject groups and
prepare them for further success in rigorous academic programmes like the VCE and the DP.
ATL Skills are of three types: Cognitive; Affective; and Metacognitive.
Cognitive skills include active information processing and retrieval strategies e.g. study skills. Affective skills
enable students to gain some control over mood, motivation and attitude. Metacognitive skills can be viewed
as: metacognitive knowledge - students gaining awareness of the thinking and learning preferences,
strategies, techniques and skills they use at present; and metacognitive performance - students using that
knowledge to improve performance, changing ineffective strategies, trying new ones and learning new skills.
The ATL Skills Framework lists all the ATL skills under the 5 ATL skill categories and the 10 ATL Skill Clusters.
Within each Skills Cluster are many examples of ATL Skills practices – over 150 learning skill practises are listed.
Relevant subject specific ATL skills are addressed in an MYP Unit. Some appropriate general ATL skills should
also be included in an MYP Unit of study. It is not necessary for any one subject to address all the 150 skills
listed.
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Developing, Implementing, Assessing and Mapping ATL Skills
Subject Group ATL Skills
From the ATL Skills Framework (see ‘From Principles in to Practice’ - Appendix 1. on page 90), subject-groups
are to classify the relevant ATL skills into three categories
• subject specific ATL Skills
• relevant general ATL Skills
• the subject’s ‘top 10 ATL Skills’ that will be a focus for the faculty over the five years of the MYP Program.
These lists are not meant to be set in stone but dynamic. They can change depending on the cohort and the
nature of the unit.
For each subject, these skills will largely remain the same through the five years of the program. It will be the
complexity of the use of these skills that will increase from year to year. The complexity of the ATL Skill and
what a student will need to show in order to be proficient will be defined by the learning experiences and the
summative assessment tasks in the unit.
ATL Skills in MYP Unit Plans
Subject teachers will need to document which ATL Skills they will address in each MYP Unit of Study. Some
ATL Skills will already be embedded in the unit while other skills will need to be taught specifically.
What will an ATL Skill look like ?
In the ‘Action: Teaching and learning through inquiry’ page of the MYP unit planner, teachers should specify
the complexity of the use of the skill i.e. what a student will need to show in order to be proficient. This needs
to be clearly articulated in the unit plan and communicated to the students.
Implementing ATL Skills to students
Have the ATL Skill(s) stated on the relevant activity document. Draw student attention to the ATL Skill and
discuss what they will need to show in order to be proficient at the skill within the context of the activity. Also
refer the skill to one or more of the Learner Profile attributes. Keep on amplifying this message.
Student self-assessment of ATL Skills
Teachers are to implement a student self-assessment approach in order to gather evidence of student ATL Skill
development during a reporting period. This can be carried out using a student self-assessment proforma (see
sample on page 3) which requires the student to reflect on his or her skill proficiency with respect to an ATL
Skill. The student self-assessment proforma contains a generic ATL Skill Proficiency Rubric. This allows
students to assess themselves using the rubric descriptors as either a novice, a learner, a practitioner or as an
expert for a particular ATL Skill. Teachers should implement student self-assessments at least twice for each
skill during the course of an MYP unit.
Reporting on student ATL Skill progress
Teachers use the student self-assessment data together with their own observations and objective summative
assessment data to make an ‘on-balance’ judgement as to the student’s progress in each of the five ATL Skill
Categories. Teachers will report student progress using a four point scale ranging from beginning to developed
- see page 4 for a sample subject report.
Mapping ATL Skills
Atlas can produce a number of reports that can map ATL Skills across the five years of the program for each
subject-group. These reports will include:
• ATL Skills Chart by subject across a year level - horizontal scope and sequence (see page 5).
• ATL Skills Chart by subject across all years of the program level - vertical scope and sequence (see page 6).
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Student Self-assessment of ATL Skills
Name: __________________________ Class: ____
Subject: ____________________ The ATL Skill is: _____________________________________________________________________________________
What will this ATL Skill look like in the unit we are studying ?: ___________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Level 1
The Novice
☑
Level 2
The Learner
☑
Level 3
The Practitioner
☑
Level 4
The Expert
I watch others performing the
task and using the learning skill.
I copy others performing the
learning skill. I follow a step by
step approach when using the
learning skill.
I am able to use the learning
skill whenever I want. I am able
to use the learning skill in
different situations.
I am able to use the learning
skill whenever I want and I can
teach other students how to
use the skill.
I am beginning to understand
how the learning skill works. I
ask questions when I am not
sure.
As I practise the skill I feel that I
am getting better and better.
I can use the skill automatically.
I use the learning skill in
different situations some of
which are new to me.
I often make errors when using
the skill.
When I use the learning skill I
check to make sure I have not
made any errors.
I can only use the skill in
situations that I have practised
before. My teacher needs to
help me sometimes.
I can usually use the skill
without referring to the way
that I have done it in the past. I
can sometimes use the learning
skill in different situations.
Any errors I make I can quickly
correct.
My teacher frequently assists
me to develop my use of the
learning skill.
My teacher only occasionally
needs to help me with the
learning skill.
PCU
3
Any errors I make are corrected
automatically.
My teacher does not need to
help me with the learning skill.
☑
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