The school curriculum and the National Curriculum
Values and purposes
Education influences and reflects the values of society, and the kind of society we want to be. It is important, therefore, to recognise a broad set of common values and purposes that underpin the school curriculum.
There is belief that education, at home and at school, is a route to the spiritual, moral, social, cultural, physical and mental development, and thus the wellbeing, of the individual.
Education is a route to equality of opportunity for all, a healthy and just democracy, a productive economy, and sustainable development. These include valuing ourselves, our families and other relationships, the wider groups to which we belong, the diversity in our society and the environment in which we live. Education should also reaffirm our commitment to the virtues of truth, justice, honesty, trust and a sense of duty.
At the same time, education must enable us to respond positively to the opportunities and challenges of the rapidly changing world in which we live and work. In particular, we need to be prepared to engage as individuals, parents, workers and citizens with economic, social and cultural change, including the continued globalisation of the economy and society, with new work and leisure patterns and with the rapid expansion of communication technologies.
Aims for the school curriculum
Aim 1: The school curriculum should aim to provide opportunities for all pupils to learn and to achieve
Aim 2: The school curriculum should aim to promote pupils' spiritual, moral, social and cultural development and prepare all pupils for the opportunities, responsibilities and experiences of life
The interdependence of the two aims
These two aims reinforce each other. The personal development of pupils, spiritually, morally, socially and culturally, plays a significant part in their ability to learn and to achieve. Development in both areas is essential to raising standards of attainment for all pupils.
The national framework and the purposes of the National Curriculum
The two broad aims for the school curriculum are reflected in section 351 of the Education Act 1996, which requires that all maintained schools provide a balanced and broadly based curriculum that:
promotes the spiritual, moral, cultural, mental and physical development of pupils at the school and of society
prepares pupils at the school for the opportunities, responsibilities and experiences of adult life.
The Act requires the Secretary of State, local authorities and the governing body and headteacher to take steps to achieve these requirements. The Secretary of State meets his responsibilities in this area by providing a national framework which incorporates the National Curriculum, religious education and other statutory requirements. This framework is designed to enable all schools to respond effectively to national and local priorities, to meet the individual learning needs of all pupils and to develop a distinctive character and ethos rooted in their local communities.
The four main purposes of the National Curriculum
To establish an entitlement
To establish standards
To promote continuity and coherence
To promote public understanding
Developing the school curriculum
While these four purposes do not change over time, the curriculum itself cannot remain static. It must be responsive to changes in society and the economy, and changes in the nature of schooling itself. Teachers, individually and collectively, have to reappraise their teaching in response to the changing needs of their pupils and the impact of economic, social and cultural change. Education only flourishes if it successfully adapts to the demands and needs of the time.
This content relates to the 1999 programmes of study and attainment targets.
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