It is a public school with no classrooms, school bells, year levels or exams — as we know them.

Opening next week in Sydney, Lindfield Learning Village promises to break the mould and "change the measures of success", according to its principal.

"The education system we currently have in place was developed over 100 years ago to produce factory workers, and obviously that's not what we need to be producing in this era," said principal Stephanie McConnell, one of the architects of the new education model.

Ms McConnell gave 7.30 an exclusive first look inside the new school, which will open its doors to students from kindergarten to year 10 next week. Eventually it will host students up to year 12.

Principal Stephanie McConnell gives a group of students and parents a tour of the school, which is still under construction. ( ABC News: Nadia Daly )

But there are no formal year groups and students will progress according to their ability, while they "take ownership of their learning pathway".

Instead of classrooms there are "waterholes", "campfires" and "caves" — names for the different learning spaces where students study in groups with peers of different ages.

And instead of class exams, students will be assessed individually at different times.

"A student might choose a particular point in time when they feel they can demonstrate the learning required to meet a particular learning outcome," Ms McConnell explained.

"There will be very rigorous assessment but perhaps not in the way we understand assessment in a traditional environment."

The school is costing the NSW Government $40 million to build.

'We are on the verge of an education revolution'

Principal Stephanie McConnell says schools should no longer be a "sausage factory of the HSC". ( ABC News: Nadia Daly )

Since the school was announced, Ms McConnell said she had witnessed a hunger in the community for a more individualised model of education.

"We have 2,500 students on our waiting list for this year and a further 500 beyond that," she said.

"We are on the verge of an education revolution.

"I think what people are looking for is something that's not that lock-step, sausage factory of the HSC."

Students and their parents test out the tables and chairs in a meeting room. ( ABC News: Nadia Daly )

Mario Trinco, who is sending his three daughters to the school, said he hoped it would set them up for success.

"I think the [traditional] education model is broken," he said.

"Things have changed so much in the last 20 years, with social media [and] the internet — and the education system hasn't kept up."

Mr Trinco and his wife Lucie hoped the school would help their children "find their passion" and foster a love of learning.

Ken Truong said he chose to send his daughter and son to the school because, as a small business owner, he saw many young people who did not have the ability to "think outside the box".

Stage not age

Students get a preview of the new Lindfield Learning Village in Sydney. ( ABC News: Nadia Daly )

The Lindfield Learning Village is housed in an old university campus on Sydney's upper north shore that is being refitted for the school.

When 7.30 visited, hundreds of construction workers were busy finishing the building work before students arrive next week.

Despite calls by education advocates like Australia's chief scientist Alan Finkel for a stronger focus on core subjects like maths and science in Australia's curriculum, students at Lindfield Learning Village will not have specific lessons on these subjects at all.

Instead, maths, science and English will be incorporated into project-based classes and real-life problem-solving scenarios.

"The student would be engaged in project teams which might be connected to real-world projects, or connections with corporate and business partners, where they will be solving real-world problems and actively engaging our local community," Ms McConnell said.

"Whilst it might appear on the surface there is a lot of flexibility or freedom in the learning style, what sits behind that is a very rigorous foundation that allows a very clear connection between what the students are learning and the outcomes."

The parents 7.30 spoke to said they had some initial concerns about whether children would have a less rigorous education in core subjects like maths and science, but were confident the school would be able to teach those subjects through its project-based model.

The school is based on a student-led approach, where the young people are expected to forge their own path with the guidance of teachers.

Students examine one of the meeting areas. ( ABC News: Nadia Daly )

It uses a "stage not age" model, which promises to give children agency and "allows students to progress by their ability level, not just because the calendar year changes".

Ms McConnell said research supported the methods and the school would provide students with "rigorous support".

She said despite the less structured approach, the model would be suited to "every child, no matter what their ability".

Education professor Deborah Corrigan from Monash University said the school was challenging the idea of what a school should look like.

"I think it's making a bold move and it will continually evolve and I think it will learn from its mistakes," she said.

"We need to get away from the idea that there is one model, one size fits all and that's the thing we really should be thinking about in our schools."

Watch this story tonight on 7.30.