• Learning is a cumulative process so learning situations should build on what the learner already knows.

• Learning is an active rather than a passive process, therefore provisions will be made for students to be actively involved, to make discoveries, to ask questions.

• Learning involves risk-taking. If the learner is encouraged to use divergent and exploratory thinking, mistakes will inevitably be made. However, errors can be a positive learning experience. Understanding the nature of students' errors provides valuable insight into the learning processes themselves. In order to develop intellectually, to explore ideas and to think creatively, students need to be in an environment which supports risk-taking.

• All learners need to experience success. This is true irrespective of age, ability and level of motivation. Teachers will actively strive to provide appropriate recognition to all children.

• Effective learning and the learner's self-esteem are closely related. Learning which takes place through activities which are purposeful and meaningful to the student is more likely to be remembered by the student.

• Students vary widely in the rate and manner of their development. Thus it cannot be assumed that all pupils of a given age will have reached the same point of development. Because of this our curriculum does not require that all pupils be engaged in the same tasks at the same time. Some children need more time than others. Provision is made for these differences.

• Content which is related to the interests or needs of students will be seen by them as more relevant, and hence will be more readily learned, understood and retained. This can form the base from which to extend learning.

• The learner grows and matures if the environment is supportive and stimulating.

• Interested and motivated learners are encouraged to extend their knowledge and competencies independently of the teacher.

• Students will be encouraged to make and act on responsible decisions about their own learning and its outcomes.

• Self-correction and self-evaluation are part of learning. Students will gain insights into their own learning if they have the opportunity to evaluate their own progress.

• The social setting is an important contributor to the learning of values, attitudes and co-operative skills. This applies equally to the early development of group skills as to the complex range of attitudes and values of the adolescent.

• Student learning does not begin and end at school. Students learn within the school setting as well as in a variety of other settings such as on excursions, in the home, in clubs and through television and the media. The role of the peers and the family in learning is important.

• Black Rock Primary School recognises that the family and significant others have a great influence on the learning of the student, including the nature of the child's value system. The school will seek to aid and educate its parents whenever possible to assist them in their educative role as there is much incidental learning in the education of our children. The student's model of the world is influenced by the planned curriculum as well as the "hidden" curriculum.

• Over emphasis on learning activities based on competition can be counter-productive since it leads to experiences of failure for some students. Co-operative learning, by contrast, allows students to learn from each other in an environment that encourages risk-taking, interaction and group achievement. Black Rock Primary School promotes and supports the use of co-operative techniques, the development of feelings of self-worth and the appreciation of others within the context of society both at school and within the wider community.

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