Solo Taxonomy

SOLO stands for the Structure of

Observed Learning Outcomes.
SOLO TAXONOMY

A M O D E L T H A T D E S CR I B E S L E V E L S
O F I N CR E AS I N G C O M P L E X I T Y I N
S T U D E N T ' S U N D E R S T AN D I N G O F
S U B J E CT S .
P R O P O S E D BY J O H N B. B IGGS
A N D K. C O L L I S
 What is SOLO Taxonomy?

SOLO MODEL CLASSIFIES STUDENTS LEARNING

OUTCOMES FROM ANY ACTIVITY, UNIT OR
CLASSROOM PROGRAMME.
TEACHERS AND STUDENTS CAN USE IT TO
EASILY SORT LEARNING OUTCOMES INTO THREE
LEVELS OF KNOWLEDGE:
 SURFACE KNOWLEDGE
 DEEP KNOWLEDGE
 CONCEPTUAL KNOWLEDGE.
Who developed this model of
learning?

UNIVERSITY ACADEMICS, DEVELOPED

SOLO AFTER RESEARCHING SAMPLES OF
STUDENTS’ THINKING IN MANY
DIFFERENT SUBJECTS (AND ACROSS
MANY DIFFERENT LEVELS).
 Why use SOLO?

S O L O I S A T R U E H I E R A R C H I C T A X O N O M Y
INCREASING IN QUANTITY AND QUALITY OF
THOUGHT
S O L O I S A P O W E R F U L T O O L I N
DIFFERENTIATING CURRICULUM AND
PROVIDING COGNITIVE CHALLENGE FOR
LEARNERS
S O L O A L L O W S T E A C H E R S A N D L E A R N E R S T O
ASK DEEPER QUESTIONS WITHOUT CREATING
NEW ONES
S O L O I S A P O W E R F U L M E T A C O G N I T I V E T O O L
 What does SOLO do?
THE SOLO MODEL DESCRIBES THE STRUCTURE OF THE
LEARNING OUTCOME. IN THE SOLO MODEL, A STUDENT’S
LEARNING OUTCOME MAY BE UNDERSTANDING AT ANY ONE
OF FIVE LEVELS OF COMPLEXITY:
 NO IDEA
 ONE IDEA
 LOOSE IDEAS
 CONNECTED IDEAS
 EXTENDED IDEAS.
 Count….

TEACHERS CAN USE SOLO TO DESIGN

DIFFERENTIATED LEARNING TASKS AND TO
CREATE DIFFERENTIATED SUCCESS CRITERIA.
THEY CAN USE IT WITH ANY TOPIC TO:

 PLAN THE LEVEL OF LEARNING REQUIRED

FOR THAT TOPIC
 ASSESS THE EXTENT TO WHICH EACH
STUDENT HAS REACHED THAT LEVEL
 MAKE DECISIONS ON NEXT STEPS FOR
LEARNING.
What are the five SOLO levels of
understanding?

 P R E S T R U C T U R A L L E VE L
 U N I S T R U C T U R A L L E VE L
 M U L T I S T R U C T U R A L L E V EL
 R E L A T I O N A L L EV EL
 E X T E N D E D A BS T R A C T L E VE L
 Pre structural level

THE STUDENT ACQUIRES BITS OF

UNCONNECTED INFORMATION THAT
HAVE NO ORGANISATION AND MAKE
NO SENSE. THIS IS NOT A STAGE
THAT WE WANT TO FOSTER
THROUGH QUESTIONING SO WE WILL
NOT PURSUE IT FURTHER
 Uni structural

– S T U D E N T S M A KE S I M P L E A N D
OBVIOUS CONNECTIONS
BETWEEN PIECES OF
IN FO R M A T I O N
 Multi structural

– A N U M B ER O F CO NN E CT IO N S
A RE M A D E , BU T N OT THE M E TA -
C O NN E CTI O NS B ET WEE N TH EM
 Relational

– THE STUDENTS SEES THE

SIGNIFICANCE OF HOW THE
VARIOUS PIECES OF INFORMATION
RELATE TO ONE ANOTHER
 Extended abstract

–AT THIS LEVEL STUDENTS CAN MAKE

CONNECTIONS BEYOND THE SCOPE OF
THE PROBLEM OR QUESTION, TO
GENERALISE OR TRANSFER LEARNING
INTO A NEW SITUATION
Surface and deep thinking
 UNI STRUCTURAL AND MULTI STRUCTURAL
QUESTIONS TEST STUDENTS’ SURFACE
THINKING (LOWER-ORDER THINKING
SKILLS)

 RELATIONAL AND EXTENDED ABSTRACT

QUESTIONS TEST DEEP THINKING (HIGHER-
ORDER THINKING SKILLS)
What do people say about
SOLO?

IN 2013 PROFESSOR JOHN HATTIE

DESCRIBED SOLO AS

“THE MOST POWERFUL MODEL FOR

UNDERSTANDING THESE LEVELS AND
INTEGRATING THEM INTO LEARNING
INTENTIONS AND SUCCESS
CRITERIA”.
 How will SOLO benefit my
students?
.
SOLO SUPPORTS STUDENTS IN
DEVELOPING METACOGNITION

 SELF-REGULATION
 SELF-EFFICACY
 ENGAGEMENT
 RESILIENCE
 How can schools, teachers and
student use SOLO Taxonomy?
SCHOOLS, TEACHERS AND STUDENTS CAN USE SOLO
ANYWHERE LEARNING IS HAPPENING. FOR EXAMPLE,
THEY MIGHT USE IT TO:

 INFORM PLANNING AND STUDENT INQUIRY

 WORK OUT WHAT STUDENTS’ PRIOR KNOWLEDGE IS
 WRITE SOLO-CODED LEARNING OBJECTIVES OR
LEARNING INTENTIONS .
 Count….

 CO-CONSTRUCT SUCCESS CRITERIA FOR EACH

OF THE SOLO LEVELS
 ASSESS AND SELF-ASSESS LEARNING
OUTCOMES FOR DECLARATIVE AND
FUNCTIONING KNOWLEDGE
 DETERMINE NEXT STEPS
 MAKE DECISIONS ABOUT HOW TO
EFFECTIVELY USE HOT SOLO MAPS, THINKING
SKILLS AND E-LEARNING STRATEGIES
 Do teachers need a lot of
training to use SOLO?

NO. THE MODEL IS SIMPLE. SOLO

PROVIDES A PRACTICAL FRAMEWORK FOR
LOOKING AT THE LEARNING PROCESS AND
LEARNING OUTCOMES INSTEAD, THEY
LOOK AT WHAT THEY DO IN A NEW WAY –
THROUGH THE LENS OF PRE STRUCTURAL,
UNI STRUCTURAL, MULTI STRUCTURAL,
RELATIONAL AND EXTENDED ABSTRACT
OFLEARNING OUTCOMES.