SOLO (Structure of Observed Learning Outcomes) is a taxonomy that describes five levels of understanding - prestructural, unistructural, multistructural, relational, and extended abstract. It provides a common language for teachers and students to understand progress in learning. With SOLO, teachers can design learning intentions and success criteria, provide feedback, and reflect on next steps. Compared to Bloom's Taxonomy, SOLO focuses more on describing the learning outcome and progress toward deeper understanding. It can be used as both an assessment and diagnostic tool to identify students' current level and plan how to help them advance.

1. SOLO
Taxonomy

2. What is it?
SOLO (Structure of Observed
Learning Outcomes) is a model of
learning that helps develop a
common
understanding&language of
learning that helps teachers (and
students) understand the

3. What is it?
• In pairs arrange the five statements
about assessment for learning in order of
understanding
• use the SOLO levels sheet to help you.
• You have 3 minutes

4. 5 typical ways to answer a question
Unistructural
I have one idea
about this
subject
Prestructural Multistuctrural
I’m not sure I have several
about this ideas about this
subject subject
Extended abstract Relational
I can look at these I can link my ideas
ideas in a new and together to see
different way. the big picture…

5. Making it visible

6. Making
it visible

7. “SOLO Taxonomy provides a
simple and robust way of
describing how learning
outcomes grow in complexity
from surface to deep
understanding”
Biggs & Collis 1982

8. With SOLO we can…
• thoughtfully design learning intentions and
learning experiences
• identify and use effective success criteria
• provide feedback and feed forward on
learning outcomes
• reflect meaningfully on what to do next

9. Why?
• How should we show that
“progress” has been made in a
lesson (or 20 minutes of a
lesson)?
• Numbers? Letters?

10. The language of learning
SOLO level Verbs
Unistructural define, identify, name. draw, find, label, match,
follow a simple procedure
Multistuctural describe, list, outline, complete, continue,
combine
Relational sequence, classify, compare & contrast, explain
(cause & effect), analyse, form an analogy,
organise, distinguish, question, relate, apply
Extended generalise, predict, evaluate, reflect,
abstract hypothesise, theorise, create, prove, justify,
argue, compose, prioritise, design, construct,
perform

11. Isn’t this a bit like Bloom’s
Taxonomy?
• SOLO is based upon a theory about teaching
and learning rather than a theory about
knowledge, (Hattie and Brown, 2004)
• Bloom’s is ‘good’ for teachers: planning,
questioning & checking learning
• But not great for students:
I’ve done applying sir, can I move on to
analysis now?
• Progress is not implicit with Bloom’s

12. SOLO is better because:
• It’s a diagnostic tool – provides useful
feedback and makes next steps clear
• It’s a useful assessment tool – clear links with
rubrics
• It can help plan objectives & success criteria
which focus on progress
• It describes the learning outcome

13. Connecting your learning
Deep &
Language of
surface
learning
learning
Multi
Relational Outcomes
structural
Progress feedback
Extended
Understanding assessment
abstract
success
Knowledge
criteria

14. Tips for getting started
• Getting to extended abstract requires you to
pose abstract questions:
Does Shakespeare influence all modern writers?
• But, in order to answer these questions
students need a big multistructural base of
knowledge
• Students need to see that progress depends
on finding the relationships between this
knowledge

15. Thinking Squares
Does Shakespeare influence all modern writers?
How does Shakespeare compare to a
modern playwright?
What did he do and why?
Who is
Shakespeare?

16. REVIEW
Design an activity which could introduce SOLO
to your students
How could you use SOLO?
What do you know
about SOLO?

17. Next steps
• http://taitcoles.wordpress.com
/
• http://lisajaneashes.edublogs.o
rg/
• http://learningspy.co.uk/
Special thanks to Tait Coles @Totallywired77
whose ideas have been used liberally in this
presentation