Maggie Spence Tuesday 1 st September 2009 Dunrossness PrimarySchool Quality Improvement Officer

Preparing for the future Curriculum for Excellence in Plain English!

It’s all changed ……. ….… since I was at school  Changes in what is being taught  Changes in how children are taught  Different kinds of lessons  Children knowing more about some things than we do.

Keeping up with change  ‘Jobs’ and work patterns  Technology and the internet  Environmental concerns  Health and wellbeing  Living together in a ‘smaller’ world

What is education for?  Learning to be  Learning to learn  Learning to live with others  Learning to do UNESCO: Aims of Education

The future of education in Scotland The hope is that all Scottish children become  confident individuals  successful learners  responsible citizens  effective contributors to work and society

What do we mean by ‘Curriculum’? What children and young people do in school  lessons - in primary schools to develop basic skills of reading, writing and mathematics - in secondary schools subjects leading to examinations and qualifications  day to day life of the school community

Teaching and CfE The Way it happens What happens Who does it Where it happens Why this way

Teaching: the way it happens Discuss with the person next to you how you were taught when you were at school and remember the best teacher you had: what made this person so good? Now think about a subject you hated: why did you hate it?

Teaching: the way it happens Teachers at all stages are being encouraged to move away from: “chalk and talk” “I say and you listen”, “learn from me, I know everything” Towards involving children in their learning

What do they teach? Teachers are being encouraged to move away from the “accumulation of facts” model towards a greater emphasis on helping children to: Understand relevance Develop skills to help them find the facts and use them Join up their learning between subjects (interdisciplinary learning) Work together and learn together

Who does the teaching? Teachers remain the provider, facilitator and manager of children’s learning, but they will more frequently do this in partnership with others: Other teachers Professionals, i.e. health, cooks Businesses Parents Members of the community

Where does teaching happen? There is more emphasis on helping children to see the relevance between what they learn at school and their lives and the world of work. In secondary they may spend part of their week at college, at another programme, even at a workplace At all levels, pupils will often learn during visits, field trips, walks Learning may happen in virtual space-linking with schools across the globe

The Curriculum for Excellence  3 – 5 curriculum is out  5 – 14 Curriculum is out  Curriculum design in the secondary sector is out

The Curriculum for Excellence New Learning Outcomes and Experiences are in 3 – 18 curriculum is in 8 curricular areas are in Numeracy, literacy and health and wellbeing across learning is in Recognition of Achievement is in New qualifications structure will be in

The eight curricular areas health and wellbeing languages mathematics sciences Literacy, Numeracy, Health and wellbeing social studies expressive arts technologies religious and moral education

How to achieve all this? Assessment is for learning Co-operative learning Interdisciplinary projects Personal learning planning 2 secondary phases: S1 – S3 (Broad general education) and S4 – S6 (Senior phase and qualifications) Formal offer of education, training or employment at age 16

Timescales The final outcomes and experiences are now available for all areas. We have an announcement on the new qualifications structure From 2009/10 all schools will be beginning to implement the new curriculum. In 2014 pupils will take the first of the new qualifications these will be the current P7 pupils

What next nationally and locally? Development of agreed ways of reporting on children’s progress Development of ways to recognise wider achievement Development of the national qualifications

What next nationally and locally? A review of qualifications at Access, Higher and Advanced Higher Introduction of National 4 and National 5 in subject areas and will be unit-based. Pupils will be able to take up to 8 subjects Some pupils could by-pass Nationals to study for some Highers in S4 Introduction of National Literacy and National Numeracy awards from S3 onwards

National Literacy and Numeracy awards will be based on a portfolio of work drawn from across the curriculum There will be an emphasis on skills development

Questions?