Scottish Secondary Subject Report Comments, S1-S3
In Scottish secondary schools each subject teacher writes a short comment for parents and carers on S1-S3 tracking reports and the full report: what the pupil does well in the subject, a clear next step and how families can help at home. Education Scotland's guidance on reporting to parents and carers (updated 11 April 2023) asks for the latest progress, next steps and ways to support learning at home, in plain language without jargon. The CfE level a pupil is working within or has achieved is reported separately; these examples use Secure, Consolidating, Developing and Beginning to describe how secure the learning is.
Each page below covers one skill for one grade band, with sample strengths and next steps at every level and tips for writing your own. These comments are written for the subject teacher comments on S1-S3 tracking reports and full reports in a Scottish secondary school (the CfE level is reported separately).
Comments by skill and grade band
| Skill | S1-S2 | S3 |
|---|---|---|
| English | English, S1-S2 | English, S3 |
| Mathematics | Mathematics, S1-S2 | Mathematics, S3 |
| Sciences | Sciences, S1-S2 | Sciences, S3 |
| Social Studies | Social Studies, S1-S2 | Social Studies, S3 |
| Art and Design | Art and Design, S1-S2 | Art and Design, S3 |
| Music | Music, S1-S2 | Music, S3 |
| Drama | Drama, S1-S2 | Drama, S3 |
| Design and Technology | Design and Technology, S1-S2 | Design and Technology, S3 |
| Computing Science | Computing Science, S1-S2 | Computing Science, S3 |
| Home Economics | Home Economics, S1-S2 | Home Economics, S3 |
| Physical Education | Physical Education, S1-S2 | Physical Education, S3 |
| Modern Languages | Modern Languages, S1-S2 | Modern Languages, S3 |
| Religious and Moral Education | Religious and Moral Education, S1-S2 | Religious and Moral Education, S3 |
Also: opening and closing sentences for each report period.
For the same report: Scottish Primary Report Comments, P1-P7.
The 4 comment levels
| Code | Level |
|---|---|
| S | Secure |
| C | Consolidating |
| D | Developing |
| B | Beginning |
The four levels describe how secure, accurate and independent the learning is in what has been taught, never a CfE level. Secure suits detailed, accurate work applied to unfamiliar tasks; Consolidating suits a sound grasp with occasional guidance; Developing suits sometimes, or with a model or worked example; Beginning names what is starting to show and the support that helps. Show the level through the work rather than writing the level word.
Tips for subject report comments
- Keep the CfE level out of the sentence. Most schools show working within or achieved third or fourth level, or a tracking judgement, elsewhere on the report, so the comment can describe the learning itself without levels, grades or Benchmark wording.
- Write about learning in the subject, not effort, homework or behaviour, which usually have their own ratings. Two strengths, one next step and an optional home tip fit most report boxes; check your school's character limit first.
- S3 pupils and their parents and carers often read subject comments while choosing subjects for the senior phase. Name a piece of work the pupil will recognise and phrase the next step as something they can start in the next lesson, without predicting results.
This site shows 350 of the 3,928 sentences in the pack. Not affiliated with or endorsed by the Scottish Government, Education Scotland, Qualifications Scotland (formerly SQA), HM Inspectorate of Education or any local authority. Curriculum for Excellence, curriculum area and subject names are used for identification only.
How these sentences were made, and what has been checked: About these comments.