Somewhere Between Challenging & Plain Sailing: National Curriculum Changes

The British National Curriculum has, once again been amended – this time because our children are incapable of learning and retaining enough. So one minute GCSE exams are being derived for being too straightforward and now our younger pupils are apparently not absorbing what they are taught.

One newly imposed strategy is less emphasis on Maths and English, because according to comments from the Labour and Conservative parties earlier this year, humanities and creative subjects were somewhat overlooked– yet the 12 times table will also become an essential component of the curriculum from September 2014.

Despite this, Professor David Abulafia from the University of Cambridge said, “I admire the flexibility, breadth and inclusiveness of the new curriculum.”

Technological Transformations

There has also been a proposal for ICT lessons to be renamed Computer Science. The switch aims to embrace the changes in technology and progress young minds of the future into constructing “amazing things with technology”, according to Andrew Eland, Google’s Engineering Director. The objective of this new class style is to inspire young people into becoming “digitally literate” (Bill Mitchell, Director, British Computer Society) as it is widely expected that technological developments will be the driving force behind occupations of the future.

Computer Science classes will allow pupils to generate, develop and display their design ideas through annotated computer sketches. Sir James Dyson believes they will “give…a practical understanding of science and mathematics, where they design, make and test their own product ideas.”

Each Child is Critical

However, it is near impossible to satisfy every British child’s learning style, as well as their knowledge needs and the hopes of their loved ones. Despite how essential computer literacy may be for the professional careers of children, not every student is technologically savvy. Each child has differing learning methods, picks up techniques and concepts at different rates and has different abilities and capabilities to the next. Tessa Hares, a 23-year-old Teaching Assistant based in Swindon said, “Every child should get equal opportunities and there should be lots of choices and creative outlets available.”

She also stated that the school where she has worked for the past year appreciates the various competency levels of each pupil. The school even offers several options for homework for pupils up to the age of 11. Not only does this allow pupils to make selections for themselves and opt to either challenge themselves or go for the leisurely option, but also values the various learning styles our children have. Each child is different and that needs to be recognised.

Music, the Arts & Creativity

There is a strong stigma attached to the Arts and Sport and has been for generations. Many perceive subjects such as Music and Art as unrewarding and laid-back options. Particularly when it comes to GCSE and A-Level selections, pupils who take creative based classes are often regarded as idle young people. However, subject such as these enhance essential life skills such as imagination and communication and help build “social and cultural values” (TheSchoolRun.com).

The School Run also states that Music in particular, can aid memory, thanks to the likes of Nursery Rhymes and action songs- which are also fantastic for children’s early development and moral acquisition. Music also improves listening skills, self-confidence, team-working abilities, preparation and organisational skills, general creativity and a strong ability to concentrate. Even if a child opts to study more academic based subjects further, creative options boost necessary proficiencies needed for study.

Copy Cat Curriculum

Our current Education Secretary Michael Gove has implemented changes such as five-year-olds learning fractions. Gove told ITV’s Daybreak that the changes “cannot come quickly enough” due to other countries “doing better than our own” academically. Although he stressed how much he hoped the changes would improve the education of his own children and all British children, it seems the variations in the Curriculum have been applied to due Gove’s competitive spirit.

It appears he has taken note of the academic abilities of other countries and employed many of their strategies into our own, including longer school hours as seen in France and an increase in foreign language lessons thanks to the likes of Spain. Gove also stressed the cut-throat nature of the job market that is liable to continue as such in the future. He acknowledged the idea that children may have to match rivals from across the globe to launch or further their career.

Michael Gove

Traditional Teaching

Many of Michael Gove’s changes seem to derive from highlighting the importance of traditional academic subjects, specifically Maths, Science and English. With regards to the latter, he aims to press pupils to study a pre-20th century novel by the time they leave Primary School This is due to recent government research portraying that past students have shunned classic authors such as Dickens, Shakespeare and Austen because of a lack of interest and reliability.

He also wants History to be taught in a chronological, worldly manner, seemingly to assist children to pin-point the period each significant event and person. Instead of focusing on important eras such as Victorians, Tudors, Egyptians and Aztecs, key figures will be studied in detail, such as Queen Victoria, Adolf Hitler and Winston Churchill. According to the Department of Education, the revised curriculum concentrates solely on “getting the basics right.”

The National Curriculum needs to adhere to the educational needs of as many British children as possible. Of course it is unfeasible to expect to satisfy all parents and pupils, but Mr Gove has failed to explain any testing changes occurring in September 2014.

Although the Education Secretary has stressed the magnitude of traditionally academic studies as well as future-fitting changes, he has not addressed how students are to be examined. Each child learns at a different rate, utilises different approaches and has conflicting talents and interests, assessment criteria and strategies must be formulated to flatter as many minds as possible. It’s all well and good clarifying what our kids may be taught, but the way they gain a sense of achievement and progress in their educational lives is through examination, whether it be trough formal assessments or coursework.