Welcome to this special issue of Professional Development Today, which is entirely devoted to considering the nature and substance of what should constitute the school curriculum. The new Secretary of State at the Department for Education has commissioned a 'thoroughgoing Curriculum and Assessment Review'[1] and PDT has asked 20 leading educationalists and practitioners to share their thinking, analysis and proposals for the curriculum.
The Curriculum and Assessment Review
The declared aim the Curriculum and Assessment Review is to develop a cutting-edge curriculum which is rich and broad, inclusive and innovative.[2] The review aims to develop a curriculum which builds the knowledge, skills and attributes young people need to thrive, including embedding digital, oracy and life skills in their learning.
In particular, the review is called upon to deliver:
- An excellent foundation in the core subjects of reading, writing and maths;
- A broader curriculum, so that children and young people do not miss out on subjects such as music, art, sport and drama, as well as vocational subjects;
- A curriculum that ensures children and young people leave compulsory education ready for life and ready for work. This includes embedding digital, oracy and life skills in their learning.
- A curriculum that reflects the issues and diversities of our society, ensuring all children and young people are represented.
- An assessment system that captures the strengths of every child and young person and the breadth of curriculum, with the right balance of assessment methods whilst maintaining the important role of examinations.
Daunting task
Reviewing the curriculum and assessment arrangements is a somewhat daunting task facing the government and the Review Chair, Professor Becky Francis. In her Call for Evidence, she acknowledges that 'debates continue about the breadth and depth of the curriculum, and whether it meets young people’s needs in terms of motivation and preparation for the future.' She adds that 'this is particularly pressing in a world where social, technological, commercial and environmental conditions are rapidly changing.'[3]
Certainly, there has never been a shortage of opinions and advice on the curriculum from a range of quarters. Woodrow Wilson is reported as saying (although some attribute this to another US President, Calvin Coolidge): 'It is easier to move a cemetery than to change a curriculum.'