Secondary School Report Comments (KS3 and KS4), Years 7-11
Schools in England must send parents a written report each year covering general progress, with brief particulars of achievements that highlight strengths and developmental needs (GOV.UK guide for headteachers). In secondary schools, every subject teacher and the form tutor usually give an attitude to learning judgement, often with a short comment or focus, at two or three points in the year. There is no national scale; these examples use Outstanding, Good, Requires improvement and Unsatisfactory.
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 attitude to learning comments of subject teachers and the form tutor on a secondary school report in England.
Comments by skill and grade band
| Skill | KS3 (Years 7-9) | KS4 (Years 10-11) |
|---|---|---|
| Engagement and Effort | Engagement and Effort, KS3 (Years 7-9) | Engagement and Effort, KS4 (Years 10-11) |
| Independent Study | Independent Study, KS3 (Years 7-9) | Independent Study, KS4 (Years 10-11) |
| Organisation and Preparation | Organisation and Preparation, KS3 (Years 7-9) | Organisation and Preparation, KS4 (Years 10-11) |
| Resilience and Response to Feedback | Resilience and Response to Feedback, KS3 (Years 7-9) | Resilience and Response to Feedback, KS4 (Years 10-11) |
| Collaboration and Communication | Collaboration and Communication, KS3 (Years 7-9) | Collaboration and Communication, KS4 (Years 10-11) |
| Conduct and Responsibility | Conduct and Responsibility, KS3 (Years 7-9) | Conduct and Responsibility, KS4 (Years 10-11) |
Also: opening and closing sentences for each report period.
The 4 comment levels
| Code | Level |
|---|---|
| O | Outstanding |
| G | Good |
| R | Requires improvement |
| U | Unsatisfactory |
Let the described behaviour carry the judgement. Outstanding suits consistently, independently and without being asked; Good suits usually and with few reminders; Requires improvement suits sometimes or when prompted; Unsatisfactory describes what has been happening and the support in place, such as a head of year check-in. Avoid writing the judgement word itself in the sentence.
Tips for report comments
- Keep attitude to learning separate from attainment. Leave out grades, targets and working-at language, which usually sit in the data section of the report, and describe how the student works: starting tasks, handling feedback, meeting deadlines.
- Write for the teenager as well as their parents and carers, since students often read their reports too. Describe behaviour rather than personality, avoid sarcasm and labels, and give a next step the student can own, such as ten minutes of self-quizzing after homework.
- Ground each judgement in evidence a family could check: the planner, exercise books, the homework platform record, corrections made in improvement time or preparation for mock exams. One concrete detail is more useful than three adjectives and makes a lower judgement easier to accept.
This site shows 170 of the 1,234 sentences in the pack. Not affiliated with or endorsed by the Department for Education, Ofsted, any exam board, any local authority or any academy trust. Year groups and key stages are named for identification only.
How these sentences were made, and what has been checked: About these comments.