What Thousands of Student Responses Have Taught Me About Teaching CAFS

If you’ve ever found yourself marking a CAFS task and wondering “Why aren’t they getting it?” you’re not alone.

You’ve delivered the content. You’ve worked through the syllabus. You’ve even drilled the acronyms. And still… they fall short of the depth, clarity or application required for those top bands.

I’ve been in that same spot.

But I’ve also been in another one the senior marking room, reading thousands of student responses as a judge, a senior marker and ultimately as the NSW Supervisor of Marking for Community and Family Studies.

And what I’ve learned through that experience (and nearly 40,000 CAFS responses later) is this:

Band 5 and 6 results don’t happen by accident they’re built through deliberate teaching strategies, applied consistently and confidently throughout the course.

Today, I want to share the five most powerful shifts you can make in your CAFS classroom because the gaps I saw in the marking room are the very same gaps I still see now in schools across NSW.

Let’s pull back the curtain.

1. It’s Not the Acronyms That Count It’s What Comes After

Acronyms are memory joggers not mark earners. They help students get started, but markers aren’t looking for regurgitated structures. They’re looking for:

• Extensive knowledge

• Clear understanding of syllabus content

• Application to relevant groups, contexts or scenarios

If students are simply dumping everything they know into a response and hoping something sticks, it’s not enough. They need to know how to use their knowledge with purpose.

2. Bring the Syllabus to Life Beyond the Whiteboard

Too often, CAFS becomes a content-heavy course delivered via static notes or endless Google Slides.

That’s not how our students learn best.

We need to immerse them in the content through practical teaching and learning strategies that help them see, feel and experience the syllabus. Try:

• Scenario-based tasks

• Card sorts and debates

• Guest speakers and lived experiences

• Stimulus-based role plays

• Case studies that actually connect to real-world issues

If we want them to understand the lived experience of careers, individuals or vulnerable groups, we must go beyond the page and into something real.

3. Connect the Dots Across the Course

Many CAFS teachers still teach the syllabus in isolation ticking off one dot point at a time. But the best student responses come when students can make rich, strategic links between concepts.

Here’s what that looks like:

• Teaching Resource Management first in Year 11 (not last!)

• Bringing in examples from Groups in Context when teaching Parenting and Caring

• Scaffolding your IRP so that students build on their option content to research with depth

It’s not “double-dipping” it’s smart sequencing. And it sets students up for success across both internal tasks and the HSC.

4. Teach the Glossary of Key Words Like Their Marks Depend On It (Because They Do)

If your students can’t unpack what “assess” or “to what extent” means, they cannot score highly no matter how good their content is.

This isn’t about memorising definitions. It’s about explicitly teaching, modelling and practising:

• Cause/effect relationships in “explain”

• Judgement and evidence in “assess”

• Comparisons and contrasts in “discuss” or “evaluate”

We see this gap every single year in marking. It’s not new. But it’s entirely avoidable.

Start in Year 7. Keep going until Year 12. We’ve even built resources into all our TLN memberships to help with this.

🔗 Grab the free glossary resource here: www.thelearnnet.com/glossary

5. Write Like a Marker Is Watching

Markers aren’t just looking at what students write but how they communicate.

To access the top bands, students must demonstrate:

• Organised, logical and coherent paragraphs

• Explicit examples (not vague, recycled ones)

• Consistent use of CAF-specific terminology

• A tone and structure that guides the marker through their thinking

Dot points won’t cut it. Neither will blanket statements. It’s about structured, purposeful, sophisticated responses and that takes practice.

We don’t want marker sympathy. We want marker certainty.

And If You’re Still Wondering What’s Missing…

You’re not alone.

Even now after presenting CAFS professional learning since 2010, and running The Learning Network since 2020 I still see these same gaps. Not from a lack of passion or hard work, but simply a lack of knowing what to look for.

That’s why I built the CAFS Conference not just to improve student results, but to create a space for connection, clarity, and curriculum confidence.

🗓 October 17–18
📍 Killcare Surf Life Saving Club (on the beach, literally)
🎟 www.thelearnnet.com/conference

We’ll go deep on all of this. I’ll show you how to embed these strategies practically in your classroom and you’ll walk away with the tools to shift your students from Band 4 to Band 6.

If you’ve ever thought, “I just need someone to show me exactly how to do this,” this is it.

Because CAFS Isn't Just Another Course…

It’s not PDHPE. It’s not HMS. It’s something entirely different.

It’s raw. It’s real. And it’s built on concepts that cannot be Googled or ChatGPT-ed away. It requires heart, empathy, strategy, and skill and that’s what I want to help you grow.

So if you’re ready to reclaim your confidence, rewrite your approach, and help your students finally break into those top bands I’ll see you in October.

And if you’ve got questions before then?
DM me with “CAFS question” I’m an open book.

Let’s raise the bar together!

Next Steps

To explore these strategies further and see them in action:

• For in-person learning, the 2025 CAFS Conference offers the perfect opportunity to experience practical workshops, connect with other teachers and refine your approach:
  www.thelearnnet.com/conference 

• Join us inside The CAFS Collective where resources and mentoring are available year-round:
  www.thelearnnet.com/collective 

• Listen to the full podcast episode here:
  www.thelearnnet.com/151