Victorian Curriculum reporting requirements

Owned by Richard Kennedy (Unlicensed)
Last updated: Sept 30, 2022
7 min read

General reporting requirements

Reporting student achievement using a 5-point scale

See Configuring a standard five-point performance report.

Student achievement must be displayed using a 5-point scale and every report must include a 5-point scale to rate the quality of the student's progress and achievement against learning standards.

For English, Maths, and Science, the 5-point scale must represent achievement against age-expected achievement standards using a graphical representation chosen by the school. See Creating subject assessment areas for entering expected results.

For all other subjects, the 5-point scale scale can represent achievement against:

  • learning goals to show how well a student is progressing towards learning goals and targets within a particular unit of work
  • dimensions to show how well a student has achieved targeted knowledge and understanding, skills and capabilities, and/or dispositions within a particular unit of work.

This scale must include:

  • previous level of achievement as shown below using a hollow dot
  • expected level of achievement as shown below using a highlighted section
  • student progress achieved as shown below using a solid line
  • current level of achievement as shown below using a solid dot.

Reporting personalised expected levels of achievement

Personalised levels of student performance can be reported using a graphical representation chosen by your organisation. The personalised level of student performance should be derived from the numerical score of the curriculum area entered to establish the expected level of student achievement.

Representing student work habits

Student work habits indicating 'Effort' and 'Class behaviour' can be reported using comments or a 5-point scale accompanied by a legend box.

Best practice guidelines

Schools should ensure their reports for each student:

  • are

    - clear
    - individualised
    - provide accurate information, about their progress against the Victorian Curriculum.

  • clearly identify

    - areas of strength
    - areas for improvement.

  • do not rely on pre-populated comments.

Minimum and additional reporting requirements

The Victorian Curriculum F–10: 

  • sets out a single, coherent and comprehensive set of content descriptions and associated achievement standards to enable teachers to plan, monitor, assess and report on the learning achievement of every student 
  • incorporates and reflects much of the Australian Curriculum F–10 but differs in some important respects, most notably the representation of the curriculum as a continuum of learning and the structural design. 

Victorian government and Catholic schools are required to use the Victorian Curriculum F–10. Independent schools may use the Victorian Curriculum F–10 as a model and resource for the effective implementation of the Australian Curriculum.


 View minimum reporting requirements

The minimum reporting for Victorian students for Victorian Curriculum F-10: 

  • Schools must provide a student report at least twice a year to parents/carers for each child at the school. 
  • Reports must be issued in the first half of the year and the second half of the year. 
  • Reports must be provided in an accessible form and be easy for parents/carers to understand and use. 
  • Schools must make provision to issue reports to more than one parent/carer where family circumstances make this appropriate. 
  • Schools must report on an approved curriculum framework.
  • Reports must comprise accurate, objective and on-balance judgements of assessment evidence gathered in each school-defined subject during this period. 
  • Judgements must be made against the standards defined for each curriculum area taught. 
  • The standard curriculum frameworks approved for use are:

    - Victorian Curriculum F–10, including subsets (2.5, 4.5 and 6.5-10 continuum) and stage/levels A to D
    - Victorian Curriculum F-10 English as an Additional Language (EAL)
    - EAL (English as an Additional Language) Developmental Continuum P–10
    - the relevant diocesan religious education curriculum, such as Religious Education (RE) and Religious Education Renewed (REN) and Religious Education (RESALE).

  • English, Mathematics, Science must be reported at least annually, with all other curriculum areas reported at least biennially. 
  • Accurate judgements must be recorded for every student. 
  • Judgements must be recorded in the format prescribed by the responsible authority. 
  • Judgements must be displayed in a way that conveys a student’s achievement. 
  • Achievement for English and Mathematics must be displayed at the strand/mode level. 
  • All other curriculum areas must be displayed at the curriculum area level.
  • Where more than one judgement has been made against the same standard in a reporting period, reports must display an aggregated judgement for that standard at the appropriate level.
  • Where achievement is displayed graphically, it must be accompanied by a scale.
  • Judgements must be displayed in a way that conveys progress since the last time the standards were reported against in the school.
  • Achievement must be displayed using a 5-point scale. 
  • The scale employed for English, Mathematics and Science must be an age-level-expected scale. That is, a scale indicating if a child is well above, above, at, below or well below the standard expected for their age at the time of reporting. 
  • If a parent/carer requests it, schools must provide parent/carers with an indication of how their child’s performance compares to that of his/her peer group. 
  • Schools that choose to provide parents with access to the student report digitally must make a printed version available to parents/carers on request. 
  • A 5-point scale must be employed to display judgements against standards in modified reports for Students with Additional Learning Needs. 
  • A modified report for Students with Additional Learning Needs can only be issued with the endorsement of the principal and must involve consultation with the student and parents/carers. 
  • Special circumstances reporting:

    - can only be employed in the case of Exemption from a Curriculum Area, Late Enrolment, School Refusal, Serious Illness, Unapproved Extended Family Holiday
    - must involve consultation with the student and parents/carers
    - uses Did Not Participate (DNP) codes.

  • Pathways reporting can only be employed where a managed pathway is in place, and must involve consultation with the student and parents/carers. 
  • Students commencing VCAL in Year 10 must receive a report that also includes information about their progress and achievement in the curriculum areas of English and Mathematics.


 View additional reporting requirements

Additional reporting requirements for Victorian Catholic schools:

  • The standard curriculum frameworks approved for use are:

    - Victorian Curriculum F–10, including subsets (2.5, 4.5 and 6.5-10 continuum) and stage/levels A to D
    - Victorian Curriculum F-10 English as an Additional Language (EAL)
    - EAL (English as an Additional Language) Developmental Continuum P–10
    - the relevant diocesan religious education curriculum, such as Religious Education (RE) and Religious Education Renewed (REN) and Religious Education (RESALE).

  • Achievement for English, Health and Physical Education, and Mathematics must be displayed at the strand level. 
  • Religious Education, English, Mathematics, Science must be reported at least annually, with all other curriculum areas reported at least biennially. 
  • Judgements must be recorded in software that has been approved by the CECV for use in Victorian Catholic schools. If recorded results are not in the prescribed format, the results are not in ICON ePlan.

  • The learning entitlement for students pursuing a managed pathway comes from their participation in learning experiences drawn from multiple curriculum frameworks: 

    - Enrolled in VCAL, and not undertaking VET
    - Enrolled in VCAL, and undertaking VET 
    - Enrolled in VCE, and not undertaking VET 
    - Enrolled in VCE, and undertaking VET 
    - Pursuing another managed pathway (not enrolled in VCAL or VCE).

  • Special circumstances reporting can only be employed in the case of Exemption from a Curriculum Area, Late Enrolment, School Refusal, Serious Illness, Unapproved Extended Family Holiday, Managed Pathway (VET, VCAL) using Did Not Participate (DNP) codes.

  • Religious Education: 

    - Well below, Below, At, Above, Well above (primary schools 2016-2017) 
    - 6.00 - 11.50 indicating Well below, Below, At, Above, Well above (secondary schools 2016-2017) 
    - 0 to P01 progression point values (all schools 2017-2018) for Knowledge & Understanding, Reasoning & Responding, and Personal & Communal Engagement.

  • Do not use Not Taught or NT code:

    - the DNP (Did Not Participate) code allows for other special circumstances 
    - if there is no score we assume that it is not taught.

  • Multiple scores to be accepted with the ability to: 

    - Generate a default average (potentially rolled up) 
    - Override the default average (i.e. teacher moderated default).

Subject reporting requirements

English, Maths and Science

Schools report student progress against the age-related expected level of achievement for every student every year in:

  • English - showing modes:

    - Writing
    - Reading and viewing
    - Speaking and listening.

  • Mathematics - showing strands

    - Numbers and Algebra
    - Measurement and Geometry
    - Statistics and Probability.

  • Science - from Year 3.

This can be varied where an exception has been determined for an individual student by the school in partnership with parents/carers.

See Creating subject assessment areas for entering expected results.

English as an Additional Language (EAL)

Schools need to produce reports for students learning English as an Additional Language (EAL) showing achievement and progress in a format that is consistent with the reports for other curriculum areas.

Schools report student progress using the proficiency levels for Pathway A (A1.1 to A2.3), Pathway B (BL.1 to B3 (B3.3) and Pathway C (CL.1 to C4.3) for: 

  • Speaking and Listening
  • Reading and Viewing
  • Writing.

Note: You do not need to report against an age-related expected level of performance for English as an Additional Language (EAL).

See the EAL section in /wiki/spaces/SYNMAIN/pages/2294736363.

Health and Physical Education

Schools report student achievement, twice a year, against the achievement standards in Physical Education. Health is reported on whenever it is taught within the two year band of schooling, in accordance with the whole-school teaching and learning plan.

Year level reporting requirements

Foundation to Year 2

In Foundation (F) to Year 2, schools report on:

  • four learning areas

    - English
    - Mathematics
    - Health and Physical Education
    - The Arts.

  • and one general capability:

    - Personal and Social Capability.

These areas all have a standard at Foundation. 

In the early years of schooling, schools may choose to structure teaching and learning programs around the five outcomes of the Victorian Early Years Learning and Development Framework (VEYLDF). 

Foundation is also referred to as 'prep' in Victorian schools; short for 'preparatory'.

Years 3 through 10

Students engage in a broad education and begin to plan their senior secondary program of study. 

Schools report on student achievement during each two year band of school, in accordance with their whole school teaching and learning plan and sector specific requirements:

  • Learning areas, other than English, Maths and Science:

    - Humanities: including History, Geography, Economics and Business (from Year 5), and Civics and Citizenship (from Year 3)
    - Technologies: including Design and Technologies and Digital Technologies
    - Languages
    - Health and Physical Education
    - The Arts including Dance, Drama, Media Arts, Music, Visual Communication Design (7-10), Visual Arts.

  • Capabilities:

    - Critical and creative thinking
    - Intercultural
    - Ethical
    - Personal and social.

Exceptions:

  • Levels A-D for students with disabilities

  • EAL (English as an Additional Language).