Putney Public School

Excellence Through Endeavour

Telephone02 9807 6255 02 9807 6466

Emailputney-p.school@det.nsw.edu.au

Innovation in Learning

Classes in Years 3-6 have been exploring a variety of learning experiences designed to enrich and extend learning opportunities to cater for the varying needs of learners in our classrooms. One new initiative this year is the introduction of Self-Organised Learning Environment (SOLE) sessions.

A SOLE lesson involved students working collaboratively together in small groups to explore a 'big question' using the internet. These open-ended questions can be related to what students are learning in a particular Key Learning Area, derived from everyday experiences or created by the students themselves. The implementation strategies of SOLE can vary from class to class and is scheduled at the discretion of the class teacher in response to the age, ability levels and interests of the students in the class.

Some questions students have responded to this year include, "How do people or groups influence legislation?" and "What makes a hero?" Groups communicate their understandings with a speech and often with an accompanying resource.

This inquiry based learning model was developed by Dr Sugata Mitra and enables students to shape their own learning, to develops skills of collaboration, critical thinking, creativity and communication which are necessary for their 21st Century futures.

More examples of Self-Organised Learning