Answer to Question #200911 in English for hangwy

Question

Interpret and analyse how the three principles of the curriculum policy could be applied in the classroom.

Answer 1

What are curriculum principles?

Curriculum principles are the values a school believes will give both their pupils and community the best chance of succeeding, and what they know to be right, given its context. You can think of curriculum principles as being like those by which you live your life and base important decisions on. Except, when deciding on curriculum principles, a school needs to consider what will give all its children the best possible chance of becoming informed, well-rounded, happy individuals who are prepared for the next steps of their lives.

What is curriculum purpose?

In line with documentation from Ofsted, schools should know the intent or purpose of their curriculum and be able to articulate it. But what does this mean? Well, once you have agreed on your principles, you must be able to explain why they are important. So, for example, a school may decide upon the following principle:

‘Our curriculum will be broad and balanced.’

To explain the purpose of that principle, a school may say:

‘A broad and balanced curriculum will provide our children with the skills, knowledge, and understanding they need to develop into well-rounded, informed individuals.’

Another example of a school’s principle might be as follows:

‘Our curriculum will be literacy rich.’

To explain the purpose of that principle, a school may say:

‘A literacy-rich curriculum will provide our children with the opportunities to read and write in a range of contexts for different purposes and in response to a variety of exciting, first-hand experiences.’

What factors might guide the development of your curriculum principles?

Having clear curriculum principles gives the staff of any school a unity of purpose. But what factors might help a school to decide upon them? Influencing factors might include all or some of the following: personal values, religious beliefs, social context, geographical location, pedagogy, national policy, and resources.

You will need to decide which of these factors are important to your school and how to balance them. Amanda Spielman’s initial commentary on curriculum states that, for some schools, external pressures such as school inspection or KS2 tests have led to a ‘focus on performance’ trumping the urgency to establish and stick to a set of fundamental principles, although, she says, not intentionally.

So, where do you start?

A great place to start is by reviewing what currently works well and what needs improving. It’s vital that you set aside time to discuss these points properly, and to look at evidence of both. You should also seek to involve parents, carers, and the children themselves in developing ideas about what their curriculum should be. This can be done through questionnaires or by holding workshop-style sessions.