The presentation explains how structured worksheets helped differentiate learning during a formative assessment activity

1. Biggs & Collis (1982)
Using Structured SOLO
Taxonomy Worksheets on
Teacher Education courses
Robin Trangmar

2. What is it?
 SOLO
 Structure of the
 Observed
 Learning
 Outcome
 A means of classifying learning outcomes in terms of
their complexity, enabling us to assess students’ work
 in terms of its quality
 not of how many bits of this and of that they got right
(Biggs, 2011)

3. Unistructural Multistructural Relational Extended abstract
Define
Identify
Do simple
procedure
Define
Describe
List
Do algorithm
Combine
Compare/contrast
Explain causes
Sequence
Classify
Analyse
Part/whole
Relate
Analogy
Apply
Formulate questions
Evaluate
Theorise
Generalise
Predict
Create
Imagine
Hypothesise
Reflect
SOLO TAXONOMY
(after Biggs and Collis 1982)
Prestructural

4. Unistructural Multistructural Relational Extended abstract
SOLO TAXONOMY
(after Biggs and Collis 1982)
Prestructural
Misses the
point!
Who
painted
Guernica
?
Outline at least
two
compositional
principles that
Picasso used in
Guernica.
Relate the
theme of
Guernica to a
current
event.
What do you
consider Picasso
was saying via
his painting of
Guernica?

5. Application
 The Course Module
 PGCE module: Curriculum Design (Level 5/6)
 The Task:
 “Analyse theories, models and approaches to curriculum
design and their potential influence on outcomes for
individual learners”
 The Problem:
 The question has not been answered well in previous
years.
 The strategy:
 Deliver the content, then assess learning and help students
to frame essay

6. SOLO differentiated success criteria
 HookED SOLO Declarative Knowledge Rubric Generator
http://goo.gl/HfVXwe
 Declarative verb: Analyse
 Content: theories, models and approaches to curriculum
design
 HookED created a Word document
 I used this as a self-assessment tool
 I created a worksheet where the trainee teachers filled in
their responses
 Trainees started in different places
 I was able to see where I needed to work to get people
started, and where I needed to extend people

7. Analyse theories,
models and
approaches to
curriculum design
and their potential
influence on
outcomes for
individual learners.
(What are the parts
and how do they
work?)
I can identify the
theories, models
and approaches to
curriculum design
but I need help to
identify the relevant
parts.
I can identify
the theories,
models and
approaches to
curriculum
design and
have identified
one relevant
part.
I can identify
the theories,
models and
approaches to
curriculum
design and
several
relevant parts.
and I can explain
what would
happen to the
theories, models
and approaches
to curriculum
design if a part
was missing, or
there was a
stronger focus on
one theory,
model or
approach.
and I can :
- generalise
about the
function/purpos
e of the parts
of the theories,
models and
approaches to
curriculum
design
- evaluate the
contribution of
the parts to the
theories,
models and
approaches to
curriculum
design
Effective
Strategies
How will I go
about identifying
these theories,
models and
approaches?
Identify Describe, List,
Combine
Compare/contrast,
Explain causes,
Analyse, Relate,
Apply
Theorise,
Generalise,
Hypothesise, Reflect

8. List one theory, model and approach to curriculum design.
List ALL the theories, models and approaches to curriculum
design.
Compare the theories, models and approaches to curriculum
design and explain their potential influence on outcomes for
individual learners.
Analyse (evaluate) theories, models and approaches to
curriculum design and their potential influence on outcomes
for individual learners.

9. Bruner’s Spiral
Tyler’s four basic principles
List one theory, model and approach to curriculum design.
Transmission Define
Product Establish
Process Organise
Praxis Evaluate
List ALL the theories, models and approaches to curriculum
design.
Which theories worked?
How did we transmit the information?
How is the information received and
processed?
What is the information being transmitted?
Is it relevant to the main objective?
What can the learner do now, that they could
not before?
Compare the theories, models and approaches to curriculum
design and explain their potential influence on outcomes for
individual learners.
Have the Learners been able to meet the main
objective?
Can the learner problem solve simple
problems with the information that has been
transmitted?
Analyse (evaluate) theories, models and approaches to
curriculum design and their potential influence on outcomes
for individual learners.

10. Summary
 Trainees started in different places
 I was able to see where I needed to work to get
people started, and where I needed to extend
people
 Worksheets helped the initial structuring of the
essay by getting deeper thinking established
 Several students have been observed using the
SOLO model in their own lessons to support
differentiation

11. Contact details
 Robin Trangmar FHEA, FIfL, FRGS, M.Ed., CharteredMCIPD
@yrathro
http://yrathro.wordpress.com
 Director, BiviBag Academic
 www.bivibag.com
 r.trangmar@bivibag.com
 Presentation at http://goo.gl/hxARZn

12. Acknowledgements
 Pam Hook’s HookED SOLO Declarative
Knowledge Rubric Generator
http://goo.gl/HfVXwe
 Graphics (Slide 3,4,7,8,9) developed from a
PowerPoint set originally by the Ministry of
Education, New Zealand
http://keycompetencies.tki.org.nz/content/downloa
d/675/4839/file/SOLO%20explained%20ppt.ppt

13. References
• Biggs, J., (1999). Teaching for Quality Learning at
University. Buckingham: SRHE/Open University
Press.
• Biggs, J., & Collis, K., (1982). Evaluating the Quality
of Learning: the SOLO taxonomy New York:
Academic Press.
• Biggs, J., (2011) Solo Taxonomy. Available at
http://www.johnbiggs.com.au/solo_taxonomy.html
downloaded 7 February 2012