Learning Skills - Rationale

In April 1998 a SEED funded project "The Fraserburgh Action Plan" was initiated.

This 3 - year project to raise overall attainment within the Fraserburgh LEaRN:

• had a focus on teaching and learning:
• provided a focus and radical approach to raising attainment;
• complemented existing strategies recognised as being successful in raising attainment;
• had a significant innovative element.

Following evaluation, Aberdeenshire Education and Recreation Service (E&R) decided that the approaches piloted during the above project should be rolled out across Aberdeenshire.

The decision was formalised into an Aberdeenshire Local Improvement Objective, No 9 "Promote the Fraserburgh Learning Skills Curriculum".

To facilitate this Aberdeenshire E&R built into its base budget funding to allow the continuation of the team, originally set up under the Fraserburgh Action Project. This team is now known as the Aberdeenshire Learning Skills Team.

The remit of this team is to support schools in implementing the above local improvement objective through four distinct pathways:

• Accelerated Learning
• Citizenship
• Enterprise
• Study skills
  

Rationale

It is an approach focussing on the process of learning. i.e. the thinking steps pupils must be taught to successfully learn and perform independently.
It involves:

• accelerated Learning
• co-operative Learning
• collaboration
• celebrating success

Function of the Aberdeenshire Learning Skills Team

Aberdeenshire E&R is encouraging all schools to promote the Learning Skills approach to raise standards of achievement.
The Aberdeenshire Learning Skills Team is involved in supporting schools who wish to consolidate or initiate these approaches.
A number of individual schools will already be implementing the recommended "Learning Skills Approach". However others may not yet have begun.

Schools will have evaluated their current teaching and learning position through Self-Evaluation, Local Authority Evaluation and National Evaluation. Schools, in order to raise their standard of Teaching and Learning, may decide to adopt a Learning Skills Approach. This may, in turn, lead to requests for support from the Aberdeenshire Learning Skills Team.

Procedures

• Analysis of need - priorities discussed
• INSET OF STAFF - by Aberdeenshire Learning Skills Team - targeted area of need
  • Modelling of Approaches
  • Provision of Resources
  • Evaluation
  • Continue to monitor and support.

Homepage | Newsletters | Focus Areas | Parents | Pupils | Teachers | Rationale | Resources