Fair Education Alliance Response to Government Announcement on the Curriculum and Assessment Review
The publication of the Curriculum and Assessment Review marks a pivotal moment for education policy and our collective mission for education equity. There is much to celebrate for our members, for the education system and most importantly, for young people.
The Fair Education Alliance warmly thanks and congratulates Professor Becky Francis CBE and members of her review team for this important and positive report. The recommendations, along with the government’s response, signal a range of welcome and ambitious shifts to help children from all backgrounds access a varied, rich and modern education. It is also clear that the team have actively listened and incorporated the views, insights and experiences of parents, young people and the education sector including many of our members.
Notably, many of the recommendations - such as oracy and enrichment benchmarks - are the culmination of many years of collaboration between our members. We are delighted to see the fruits of working together with a shared goal for young people come to bear.
We strongly support the government echoing the Review’s focus on inclusion and support for low-income children, on equipping young people with the skills and knowledge they need to participate in tomorrow’s world, and on providing high-quality enrichment opportunities for all. These are essential steps for a fairer education system.
A number of the government’s commitments echo recommendations the Fair Education Alliance has made in its Curriculum and Assessment Review input and in our Annual Report Cards, including:
Heightened expectations and support for schools to deliver high-quality enrichment
A future-focused Computer Science GCSE, exploring a new Data Science and AI qualification, which will help young people step into the jobs of tomorrow
Removing the restrictive EBacc and giving parity of esteem to the arts, supporting a broader offering that enables young people to follow their passions
Compulsory citizenship education, and a focus on spotting fake news and disinformation in primary school, important measures to prepare young people to participate in our democracy
The introduction of ‘stepping stone’ qualifications for post-16 students retaking maths and English and the wider range of qualifications and pathways heralded by new V-levels will also help the full spectrum of learners and reflect their need for diversity in choice
We are also supportive of vital recognition that development of numeracy and literacy skills begin in the early years, and the expansion of Maths Champions to reflect this. Measures to ensure all students can access Triple Science at GCSE will be beneficial in opening an opportunity that is currently disproportionately unavailable to young people from low-income backgrounds. However, these measures will require support and resources from the government to be successful. Teacher shortages are already especially acute in STEM subjects including physics, computing and chemistry, and we need more workforce innovation to deliver the changes to those subjects contemplated in this report.
The government’s commitment to compulsory new Key Stage 3 assessments for reading, writing and maths is an area where we would like to see further detail. These tests must be accompanied by additional resources and support for children falling behind in these subjects, beyond the commitment to introduce new training and CPD for primary and secondary teachers.
We wholly support parallel government investments in promoting reading for pleasure through the National Year of Reading campaign and would like to see this positive framing matched in the introduction of tests for literacy and numeracy skills. Ensuring these assessments are used to inform practice rather than to extend school accountability and increase pressure on teachers and students is key. The welcome commitment to reduce GCSE exam time reflects an important recognition of the strain that testing can place on students. This same consideration should guide the introduction of any new assessments. We encourage the government to work in partnership with the Literacy Link network to mitigate these risks in implementation. Taking a collaborative approach to developing and trialling these new assessments before a full roll-out will enable children’s and teachers’ views to be reflected in their design and ensure that any unintended consequences - such as reducing intrinsic motivation for reading - are fully understood.
The Curriculum and Assessment Review and the government’s adoption of so many of its recommendations shows the power of collaboration across schools, charities and innovators working to support young learners. Making this a reality by 2028 will require the continuation of this collective action and partnership. We look forward to continuing work with our members and policymakers so that this implementation can be as effective as possible in achieving a fair education for every child and young person.