Over the last three years as Children’s Commissioner, I have spoken to more than one million children and young people. The school curriculum is an issue that regularly comes up in these conversations: their favourite subjects, the hardest ones, and what should or shouldn’t be on it – so I am really delighted that the government is carrying out a review.
The review being led by Professor Becky Francis, who will focus on breaking down barriers to opportunity so that it meets the needs and expectations of the young people learning it.
In The Big Ambition, children were clear they really valued their teachers – they want great maths and English lessons, and they want to work hard. There is no shortage of ambition among young people, and they recognise the value of particular ‘core’ subjects – but they are equally keen to learn things that will set them up for adult life. They also want value placed on ‘fun’ and lots of sports and music.
Many of them want to feel ready for adulthood by learning more about finances, mortgages and future careers. They also want to be able to access better support if they have anxiety or special educational needs, so that these are no longer barriers to their education.
Earlier this month I was invited to meet Early Education Minister Stephen Morgan with a group of my Youth Ambassadors from across England to discuss a range of topics which they are passionate about. These included the cost of living, climate change, crime, online safety, mental health and education.
They were asked by the Minister about the curriculum review and whether the curriculum as it currently stands reflects modern Britain. The majority of my Ambassadors had strong opinions about how the curriculum needed to be developed and changed so it reflected the real world that they now live in.
Zara said that she wanted to learn skills that she and other young people could apply to their own lives. She was concerned that the curriculum was too narrow in its focus and didn’t reflect England’s diversity.
Others had similar thoughts, including Sofia who is originally from the Ukraine, who said she wanted help to find ways to connect refugees with other young people, so they didn’t feel so isolated.
She was also very keen to see more teaching about child rights and citizenship so that young people in England understand more about voting and politics. Growing up in the Ukraine she said that even before the conflict began, young people there knew and understood the importance of voting.
“It’s so cool to vote in Ukraine, it’s not like that here,” she said.
Rylie, who is doing an apprenticeship with a construction company, told the Minister that education has dragged and lagged behind and there needed to be much more of a focus on the real-world context.
She said in her experience, what she was learning at college was so far behind what she was doing at work.
Other issues that came up focused on the need for after school clubs, learning about public speaking, getting into art later in your education, help with career choices and understanding your options after the age of 16.
Based on what I’ve heard from my Ambassadors, and during my 30 years as a teacher and headteacher, I want the curriculum to be flexible enough to make it inclusive for every learner, broad and balanced enough to make sure every child feels prepared for the next stage of life, but with a steady focus on core skills like reading and numeracy that are so important in our daily lives.
What always comes out very clearly when I speak to my Ambassadors or other young people – and what was reflected in the Big Ambition – is how ambitious this generation is and how they all really want to succeed.
They are brimming with good ideas and solutions to make the curriculum better, so I look forward to sharing these as the review progresses. It’s essential that children’s voices are at the heart of this piece of work.
