A Summary Of The National Curriculum

Following the Education Reform Act 1988 the National Curriculum was introduced to England, Wales and Northern Ireland for Primary and Secondary State Schools. This however does not include, or apply to independent schools as they may set a curricular of their own. The Act ensures that schools which fall under the Local Education Authority (LEA) all have a common curriculum (which must also include Religious Studies) (R.E). Academies may move away from the National Curriculum, however they must still teach English, Maths, Science and R.E. The National Curriculum was brought about so that all content taught, throughout, could be assessed and the findings could then be added to a league table providing statistics for each school. These tables are then available to parents of school aged children to help them choose a suitable/preferred school for their …show more content…
Schools in Scotland have a non-statutory curriculum, which means they are not told by the Government what they have to teach, however the Government is responsible for providing the framework to Scottish schools learning and teaching. It is the Local Authority and school who have the responsibility for what children are taught and do take into account the National Guidelines and advice offered. The National Curriculum is arranged into blocks of years, in schools these are normally known as the ‘Key Stages.’ As children can start school before the age of 5 years old this has also to be taken into account. In England there is a ‘Foundation Stage’ for 0-5 years and in Wales this age group is known as ‘Foundation Phase’. The children are taught under one of these stages until they are 5 years old, this is because some reception classes do have under 5’s, and then from here onwards they will come under /be taught under the National Curriculum. The stages that follow