National Curriculum Reform: Key Stage 4 Core Subjects Consultation
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RESPONSE FROM VOICE THE UNION Consultation Response Form Consultation closing date: 13 June 2014 Your comments must reach us by that date National Curriculum Reform: Key Stage 4 Core Subjects Consultation on Draft Order and Regulations If you would prefer to respond online to this consultation please use the following link: https://www.education.gov.uk/consultations Information provided in response to this consultation, including personal information, may be subject to publication or disclosure in accordance with the access to information regimes, primarily the Freedom of Information Act 2000 and the Data Protection Act 1998. If you want all, or any part, of your response to be treated as confidential, please explain why you consider it to be confidential. If a request for disclosure of the information you have provided is received, your explanation about why you consider it to be confidential will be taken into account, but no assurance can be given that confidentiality can be maintained. An automatic confidentiality disclaimer generated by your IT system will not, of itself, be regarded as binding on the Department. The Department will process your personal data (name and address and any other identifying material) in accordance with the Data Protection Act 1998, and in the majority of circumstances, this will mean that your personal data will not be disclosed to third parties. Please tick if you want us to keep your response confidential. Reason for confidentiality: Name: Ian Toone Please tick if you are responding on behalf of your organisation. Name of Organisation (if applicable): Voice: the union for education professionals Address: 2 St James’ Court, Friar Gate, Derby DE1 1BT If your enquiry is related to the DfE e-consultation website or the consultation process in general, you can contact the Ministerial and Public Communications Division by e-mail: [email protected] or by telephone: 0370 000 2288 or via the GOV.UK 'Contact Us' page. Please mark the box that best describes you as a respondent. School College Representative bodies Parent/Carer Young person Awarding organisation Governor/Governing Headteacher/Principal Union Body Other Please Specify: Voice is a trade union representing both teaching and non-teaching staff in all phases of education, from nursery to tertiary. Draft Order and Regulations: 1 Do you have any comments on the draft Order which is proposed to give effect to the new ‘National Curriculum in England – Framework Document’, which includes the programmes of study for English and mathematics for key stage 4? The programmes of study will be taught to year 10 pupils from September 2015 and to all key stage 4 pupils from September 2016. Yes No Not Sure Comments: It is unreasonable to expect comments when final programmes of study for Key Stage 4 English and mathematics have not yet been published. This gives no reassurance that our comments on the draft programmes of study have been taken into account. Based on these drafts, we have a number of concerns about the content of these programmes of study, the extent to which they provide for appropriate progression from Key Stage 3, and the disproportionate negative impact which they are likely to have on various ‘protected characteristic’ groups. These concerns are set out below. 1. Comments on the draft programmes of study for Key Stage 4 English. 1.1. Although the subject content for KS4 English is intended to be consistent with the subject content for revised GCSEs in English language and English literature, it appears to be a truncated amalgam of the respective GCSE syllabi without any rationale being given for the chosen selection. 1.2. Given the removal of GCSE English, with the consequence that many pupils will in future be entered only for a single GCSE in English language (rather than GCSEs in both language and literature), there may be a disincentive for schools to teach some of literature elements of draft subject content, particularly a whole Shakespeare play and novels from across three centuries. It is expected that most schools will teach the KS4 English curriculum through GCSE courses in English language and English literature, so pupils who are only studying the single GCSE in English language may miss out on those aspects of the KS4 English curriculum which will be delivered through GCSE English literature. This could be remedied by reinstating a GCSE in English. 1.3. Given that the vast majority of pupils will be taking GCSE English language (perhaps also in conjunction with GCSE English literature), the KS4 English curriculum may only have relevance for the very small minority of pupils for whom GCSE entry is inappropriate. Such pupils will generally be functioning below level 1 of the national qualifications framework, in which case the KS4 English curriculum is likely to be very demanding for them, especially as much the content seems to be pitched at the current A*-B candidate. 1.4. It is of considerable concern that the draft subject content for KS4 English appears to focus on academic demand at the expense of the development of functional literacy. Insufficient basic literacy has been included for less able pupils and those for whom English is an additional language (especially those newly arrived in the country). Such pupils will be disenfranchised if the content is too demanding for them to access. 1.5. Ironically, it is also possible for pupils to demonstrate skill, knowledge and understanding in relation to some of the ‘higher’ content whilst still performing poorly in functional literacy. This is something that many employers complain about, as they would normally expect a C grade at GCSE to indicate that a young person possesses functional literacy, although they, apparently, often find that this is not necessarily the case. It seems, therefore, that it may be a perverse consequence of the accountability system that more pedagogical attention is given to the acquisition of so-called higher order skills at the expense of ensuring that more basic aspects of literacy are established. As the proposed subject content pays scant regard to basic literacy, this phenomenon is likely to continue. 1.6. As the proposals appear to emphasise technical and higher order English skills over functional literacy, it may be that pupils who are less confident as readers, writers and speakers of English will fall even further behind as they will find it difficult to access the subject at a level which meets their needs. The proposed subject content seems to assume that pupils will arrive at KS4 fully confident in their reading, writing and speaking skills, which, for significant numbers of pupils, will not be the case. 1.7. It is evident that there has been an attempt to embody an expectation of higher standards in the new curriculum, but too much reliance has been placed on adding more demanding content without considering how to engage pupils effectively in the process of learning. This could turn out to be counter-productive as, without ensuring that the curriculum is sufficiently stimulating to engage learners, pupils may become alienated, in which case standards would soon decline rather than increase. 1.8. The attention given to spoken English in the new curriculum is welcome; however, as for most pupils this will be assessed through GCSE English language, in which accreditation for speaking and listening is to be reported separately on the certificate rather than contributing to the final grade, there is a significant risk that spoken English will not be given the time and space that it deserves in terms of curriculum delivery. It is imperative that spoken English be taught and assessed on a par with reading and writing to prevent it being devalued, with the concomitant risk of estranging and demotivating pupils whose strengths lie in this area of the curriculum. 1.9. There are considerable implications for teacher workload, professional training and support if teachers are to be ready to deliver the new curriculum from September 2015. It is not clear that sufficient time and funding will be available, particularly in the case of small and rural schools. 2. Comments on the extent to which the draft programmes of study for English provide for appropriate progression from Key Stage 3. 2.1. There are many ways in which the proposed subject content is narrower than the current (disapplied) National Curriculum. In particular, the subject content for English at KS3 emphasises world literature and reading for pleasure, neither of which are specified in the draft revision. This may mean that it will be very difficult to ensure that reading for pleasure remains an essential aspect of English beyond KS3, and as the draft revision fails to mention non-British literature in English, it is not clear how a love and learning of literature written in English by people who are not English (which will have been encountered at earlier Key Stages) can continue to be developed in KS4 – surely an unnecessary restriction given the wealth of literature written in English by American, Antipodean, African and Indian writers? 2.2. Overall, there appears to have been an insufficient focus on progression between Key Stages. Whilst effective progression has been attempted in terms of subject content, it cannot be assumed that progression will follow automatically merely because of this. 2.3. The model of progression adopted in the new National Curriculum appears to be one in which pupils are seen as a homogeneous group and are, therefore, expected to achieve at the same level. This is a dangerously erroneous notion which, if enacted, could have a devastating impact on the lives of significant numbers of pupils, particularly those with special educational needs. 2.4.