Stages of Learning - Years 9 and 10

Developing pathways

By the time students reach Year 9 they are well into adolescence and beginning to see their future as adults. These years are developmentally distinct from Years 7 to 8 in the sense that, when beginning secondary school, children are predominantly in a stage of developmental transition from childhood to adolescence. In Years 9 to 10, however, not only are most students well into adolescence, they are beginning to think of themselves as adults, looking towards their future roles in life. They are experiencing profound physical, social, emotional and intellectual development changes as they move to greater levels of challenge and independence.

Parents and teachers have often become less important models, especially with regard to issues that are of immediate concern. In contrast, peers have become more important as models.

Added responsibility and expectation can be a time of adventure, learning and growth. It can also be a time of fear, loss of confidence and insecurity. It has been noted that the rites of passage from childhood to adulthood are becoming more poorly defined, as adolescents mature physically at younger ages and enter the adult world of work and family at older ages; this has led to less clear roles for both parents and adolescents.

The post-compulsory years of schooling are a key developmental point to improve coping skills. The greatest shift in coping occurs between 14 and 16 years which make it the optimum time for adolescents to contemplate their coping behaviour.

Students in this stage often pass the compulsory age of attendance at school. They have a growing interest in the future and, in particular, the pathways they intend to pursue, so they increasingly are aware of the world outside the school. For some this means preparation for work or work-specific training, and for others it means preparation for post-compulsory schooling on the way to a career. In this sense, adolescents are more likely to judge learning activities and experiences in terms of where they will lead, and respond positively to a curriculum that links with, and has meaning for their lives outside as well as in the school.

School is more likely to become a means to an end. Many activities and experiences at school may not trigger curiosity, activate information seeking or develop competence. However, in relation to a broader perspective of the self, it is important to do well in the pursuit of lifestyle choices and/or career goals. This is the last moment in their schooling when we can guarantee students access to the knowledge and skills which all young Australians need as they take their first steps into adult life.

Competent learners begin to use more sophisticated cognitive strategies than in earlier years. For instance, they are aware of, and capable of, reflecting on the differences between mathematic, scientific, literary, historical and artistic methods. They are flexible learners who apply a number of approaches to understanding information in different methods. They value opportunities to explore new ideas in depth, commonly in cooperation with their peers, in an environment where they are encouraged to take intellectual risks.

At this stage, learning is enhanced by opportunities for students to participate in projects they believe to be relevant and important to their lifestyle or career goals that occur over extended periods and are learner directed. These projects encourage deep thinking, a process that gives students an opportunity to apply knowledge and skills flexibly, and to develop a meaningful sense of their application and purpose. To think deeply, students need to relax and consider all of the relevant angles from which an idea might be considered. Students construct a thinking framework that follows a process from conception to application.

As well as developing skills for increasingly sophisticated and specialised learning, students require the skills to effectively participate in their communities and workplaces. Students will have commenced learning these skills previously but require a level of competence for them to participate in projects where they may initiate and apply skills. These skills include: basic fundamental skills (for example, literacy, numeracy, technology); people skills (for example, communication, team-work, customer service); thinking skills (for example, organising, problem-solving, creating, planning); personal attributes (for example, responsibility including for one's own health and physical wellbeing, flexibility, self-esteem); business skills (for example, innovation and enterprise); and community skills (for example, civics).

 

Level 6

Learners begin to see themselves as young adults. They are independent thinkers able to use formal methods of inquiry. They seek to apply learning to the world outside school, ‘discriminate in the way they use a variety of sources (and) generate questions that explore perspectives’ (Thinking Processes: Reasoning, processing and inquiry). They set personal health and fitness goals and undertake activities to achieve them including being aware of ‘identify and explain the rights and responsibilities associated with developing greater independence (and) mental health issues relevant to young people’ (Health and Physical Education: Health knowledge and promotion).

Key characteristics of students at this level include:

• looking towards adulthood
• making choices about the future
• having a career orientation
• employing a range of coping skills
• increasing differentiation and specialisation across domains
• building expertise through formal methods of inquiry
• participating as a community member both within and beyond the school.

Students become independent of family by acquiring a personal point of view in relation to civics, ethics, beliefs and values. They ‘articulate and defend their own opinions (and they) contest where appropriate, the opinions of others’ (Civics and Citizenship: Community engagement). Peers become an increasing source of support and influence. Making connections with pro-social peer groups, and having the corresponding social and emotional skills to make these connections, has a significant bearing on the nature of choices students make in terms of school and career, responsibilities and social aspirations.

Students develop effective organising skills for life and school. They ‘identify their interests, strengths and weaknesses and use these to determine future learning needs, especially in relation to the post-compulsory school pathways’ (Personal Learning: The individual learner). They exhibit respect for others, possess self-esteem, have developed an internal locus of control, and have established trusting relationships with others. They ‘evaluate their own behaviour in relationships, identify potential conflict and employ strategies to avoid and/or resolve it’ (Interpersonal Development: Building social relationships). Motivation and effort is linked to a sense of identity, purpose, and beliefs about self.

Competent learners begin to use more sophisticated cognitive strategies than in earlier years. For instance, they are aware of, and capable of reflecting on, the differences between mathematic, scientific, literary, historical and artistic methods. They begin to build expertise and develop coherent structures of knowledge, methodologies, language, skills and behaviours associated with discrete domains. They express preferences for particular styles of thinking and learning, and these preferences tend to inform motivation and competence. They develop beliefs about their personal strengths and weaknesses, whether they are physical, emotional or cognitive. These beliefs are reinforced by the development of strategies and habits that support learning.

Previously flexible approaches such as collecting relevant information, researching, questioning, using creativity and analysis, rehearsing, elaborating, organising, judging and applying all develop into formal methods of inquiry. These include qualitative and quantitative research and action research. More formal skills facilitate deep learning where students exhibit the capacity to maintain focus over an extended period, build evaluation and reflection into processes, use a variety of strategies to explore diverse perspectives and possibilities, as well as create and analyse, organise and judge information, make predictions and estimations, and apply, test and transfer knowledge and skills. This includes a capacity to ‘use evaluation criteria they have previously developed, and critically analyse processes, materials/ingredients, systems components and equipment used’ (Design, Creativity and Technology: Analysing and evaluating). They also use more complex information and communications technology tools and techniques to represent, reframe and refine their ideas as they develop new understanding and products that ‘demonstrate a clear sense of purpose and respect for the audience’ (Information and Communications Technology: ICT for creating).

Students develop the knowledge, skills and behaviours to effectively participate in their communities and workplaces. They participate in work place learning and civic projects developing social competence, resilience and confidence in the setting. They are cooperative team members capable of problem solving and self-direction and motivation. They reflect on the nature of work and community in the context of its moral and ethical dimensions and are aware of rights and responsibilities, and health and safety issues. They have the self-efficacy, assertiveness, negotiation and communication skills to ‘consider alternative views, recognise multiple possible interpretations and respond with insight’ (Communication: Listening, viewing and responding). They take increased responsibility for their own physical wellbeing as well as their own intellectual growth, values and beliefs.

Students’ growing focus on their intended pathways in the post-compulsory years sees their study across the five broad discipline areas (that is, English and Languages Other Than English, Mathematics, Science, the Humanities and the Arts) complemented by the choice of specialised programs and the standards associated with the relevant domains.

Accompanying increased specialisation is the development of routine study, organisational, note taking and examination preparation habits. These gradually increase in complexity, manifesting in cognitive skills such as the use of deliberate memory and concentration techniques, and the adaptable use of graphic representations for ideas, thinking processes and frameworks.

Links and downloads

• Level 6 standards
• VELS Level 6 booklet (PDF – 788KB)