National Curriculum

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National Curriculum
David HowesGeneral Manager, CurriculumVCAA
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(No Transcript)
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What is it?
The Boards purpose To develop a single,
world-class Australian curriculum for all
students from Kindergarten to Year 12, starting
with English, mathematics, the sciences and
history. The development of continua of learning
in literacy and numeracy will be a foundation for
this work.

• A National Curriculum for
• English
• History
• Mathematics
• Sciences
• then
• Geography
• LOTE
• then
• ?

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Who is running it?
COAG (Council of Australian Governments) Chair
Prime Minister
Commonwealth Statutory Authority reporting to
both Commonwealth and State Ministers (MCEETYA)
NCB (Interim National Curriculum Board) Chair
Professor Barry McGaw
to be replaced by
NEW
ACARA Australian Curriculum, Assessment and
Reporting Authority
VCAA State Reference Group Chair Terry Hayes
VCAA and equivalent State and Territory Statutory
Authorities
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What is the policy basis?

• a solid foundation in skills and knowledge on
  which further learning and adult life can be
  built
• deep knowledge and skills that will enable
  advanced learning and an ability to create new
  ideas and translate them into practical
  applications
• general capabilities that underpin flexible and
  critical thinking, a capacity to work with others
  and an ability to move across subject disciplines
  to develop new expertise
• http//www.curriculum.edu.au/verve/_resources/Draf
  t_National_Declaration_on_Educational_Goals_for_Yo
  ung_Australians.pdf

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What is the legislative basis?
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What is the conceptual framework?

• Content at each year level
• Structure of achievement standards still under
  discussion one option to be set out as a
  continuum of achievement (similar to current
  NAPLAN), not necessarily linked to year levels
• Expected standards as key stages likely to be
  specified (paras 15 19 of Proposal)

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What are some key issues?

• Some questions
• Equity and inclusivity (para 11) what does a
  national curriculum actually mean in contemporary
  diverse Australia?
• Comprehensiveness (para 12) how does the
  National Curriculum connect with the rest of the
  curriculum?
• Some answers
• Focus on content and subject specific processes
  rather than generic processes e.g. enquiry skills
  (paras 22 29)
• Interdisciplinary skills recognised but not
  defined separately (paras 33 42)

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What about assessment?

• Qualifications to remain responsibility of each
  state/territory (para 55)
• VET, VCAL and IB can continue to be provided
• NAPLAN testing to continue
• End-of-school assessment remains responsibility
  of each state/territory (para 51)
• Current VCE assessment structures likely to
  continue (para 51)

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What about pedagogy?

• As Ive said before when it comes to curriculum,
  especially the teaching of English, Im a
  traditionalist, but Im not going to impose my
  views. I believe decisions like this are better
  left to the experts not the politicians. Theres
  been too much culture war politics involved for
  too long.
• Every Australian child must have the benefit of a
  high class curriculum and know what standards
  they must achieve. Thats why the national
  curriculum will be just that - a curriculum for
  all schools.
• Some have recently argued that non-government
  schools should be exempted from the national
  curriculum and its accountability requirements.
  Thats dangerous, because all our children must
  be exposed to the knowledge they need at the
  standard required to flourish in todays world.
• There is no reason this standard cannot be
  achieved in a variety of ways, through delivery
  methods such as the International Baccalaureate,
  through the philosophies such as Steiner and
  Montessori.  Different delivery methods that can
  achieve high standards.
• The Hon. Julia Gillard, Speech to Australian
  Primary Principals Association, 29 October 2008

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Media release 3 December

• Beyond the requirements of the content and
  achievement standards, there will continue to be
  flexibility for innovation and creativity for the
  development and delivery of curriculum methods,
  at the local level in schools.  The National
  Curriculum Board will also advise on the best way
  to acknowledge internationally recognised
  curricula like Steiner, Montessori and the
  International Baccalaureate.

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What does it mean for Victoria?

• No change until 2011
• Potential changes to content of English,
  Mathematics, Sciences and History
• Little change to assessment
• Opportunity to revisit and review current
  Victorian practice e.g. how is curriculum best
  described as student outcomes or statements of
  content?

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What is proposed for English?

• 3 strands
• Language (grammar)
• Literature
• Language use (literacy)

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Some questions

• The 3 key areas
• What comments do you have about they wording of
  each?
• Are they adequately/ inadequately covered in your
  current teaching?
• In your view, do we continue to work for literacy
  across the curriculum or see literacy as only the
  domain of the English teacher/program, or both?

• Is literature the appropriate term to describe
  what students read and view in English?
• Is there enough focus on each of the modes of
  reading, writing, speaking and listening?
• How important is it to have a range of English
  subjects at senior secondary?

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What is proposed for History?

• Lower primary personal history and past of
  others
• Middle-upper primary key topics in Australian
  history
• A sequential study in secondary school
• (UNIT ORDERING ACTIVITY)
• Year 7 Pre-history to 500AD
• Year 8 Ancient to Modern 500 to1750
• Year 9 Modern 1750 to present
• Year 10 Australian

• History not compulsory at senior secondary level
• Subjects at senior secondary to include Ancient
  History, Modern History (1750 to present) and
  Australian History

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Some questions

• History will be compulsory school teaching
  programs and timetables will have to change so
  what should be in the courses? Do you agree with
  the broad outline proposed?
• The paper proposes a less detail more depth
  approach do you agree?

• Is there anything currently done (or that you
  would like to do or see done) in History in your
  school that could not be done under the proposed
  model?
• Should cross-curriculum learnings be defined in
  the subject curriculums as is proposed for
  History?

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What is proposed for Mathematics?

• Numeracy the responsibility of mathematics
  curriculum
• Proposed domains
• (Domains and strands activity)
• Number
• Measurement
• Chance and data
• Space/Geometry
• Algebra/Structure/Pattern
• Proposed strands
• Working mathematically separate or embedded
  domain?

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Some questions

• What are the current strengths and difficulties
  in the Victorian maths curriculum?
• Would the strengths be maintained and the
  difficulties addressed through the proposed
  framework?

• How many and what sort of maths courses do you
  think should be offered at senior secondary
  level?
• The paper quotes the following statistics from
  the 2006 PISA test. What contribution can the
  curriculum make to redressing this inequity?

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What is proposed for Science?

• Importance of science competencies
• Content can be flexible
• Big ideas energy, sustainability, equilibrium
  and interdependence
• Primary
• Scientific methods and investigation
• Junior secondary
• Flexibility on content
• Senior Secondary
• Physics, Chemistry, Biology and General?

• Activities
• (a) Proposed structure jigsaw
• (b) Less and more

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Some questions

• How can the balance between content and process
  knowledge be achieved?
• What about the history of science?
• What about environmental science, psychology,
  geography?

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Does all this matter?

• Yes, to make sure what we value is maintained in
  the National Curriculum and the opposite
• Yes, because national curriculum has quickly
  become the new site for reaching a new settlement
  on questions related both to curriculum and
  national identity
• Yes, curriculum matters, both as an enabler and a
  constraint

• Curriculum is
• a particular, historically formed knowledge that
  inscribes rules and standards by which we
  reason about the world and our self as a
  productive member of that world Curriculum is a
  disciplining technology that directs how the
  individual is to act, feel, talk and see the
  world and self. As such, curriculum is a form
  of social regulation.
• (Popkewitz,1997 p. 132).

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Will it make much difference?

• The Boards curriculum can address the three
  goals for young Australians directly. In
• pursuing the goal of a more equitable education
  system, curriculum can make some contribution but
  success will depend more on substantial action by
  education authorities funding and running schools
  (para 10)

• Curriculum a necessary but not sufficient
  condition for the pursuit and achievement of
  equity and excellence
• As a necessary condition it makes a difference

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What are the timelines?

• Initial proposal published October
• Draft Advice papers for four subjects published
  and consultation meetings held 13 17 October
• Redrafted Advice papers published early November
• 3 months consultation
• Advice papers redrafted as writers briefs

• Writing commences March 2009
• Writing and trialling completed 2010
• Implementation from 2011 states and territories
  likely to determine staging
• Geography and LOTE
• Other subjects?

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How do we participate?

• Participate in this forum Report forwarded to
  VCAA State Reference Group to inform Minister and
  to Interim NCB
• Respond via website (www.ncb.org.au)
• Respond via subject associations
• Participate in VCAA consultation forums through
  next year as drafts are developed
• Volunteer your school as a pilot in 2010

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Contact Details

• Victorian Curriculum and Assessment Authority
• (VCAA)
• David Howes
• General Manager, Curriculum
• email howes.david.c_at_edumail.vic.gov.au
• ph [phone]
• www.vcaa.vic.edu.au