Michael Gove, the UK Education Secretary, has launched a review of England's national curriculum. He wants to focus more on essential facts and core knowledge in subjects like history, geography, and science. The review may reduce the number of compulsory subjects and give ministers more control over curriculum content. Gove argues the current curriculum has too much focus on teaching methods and not enough on substantive content. He wants English students to learn more basic facts about countries, historical figures, and academic subjects.

1. Gove stresses 'facts' in school curriculum revamp<br />Education Secretary Michael Gove has said he wants more quot;
factsquot;
in England's national curriculum, as he launches a review of what children are taught.<br />Mr. Gove told the BBC there was currently too much focus on teaching methods and not enough on content.<br />The review may opt for fewer compulsory subjects, with ministers specifying only four that must be studied.<br />Labour and teaching unions accused him of trying to foist 1950s-style education on to schools.<br />Under the review, launched on Thursday, a panel of experts will examine the national curriculum, which defines what is taught in England's state schools.<br />Mr Gove said the current curriculum was quot;
sub-standardquot;
and England had sunk in international education league tables, adding that 15-year-old maths students in China were now two years ahead of those in England.<br />He said he wanted to reduce quot;
unnecessary prescriptionquot;
and that the curriculum would be slimmed down so that it reflected the quot;
essential knowledgequot;
that children should learn.<br />Speaking on the BBC Radio 4's Today programme, Mr Gove said it would be for the panel leading the review to determine what content should be specified in the new curriculum.<br />quot;
I'm not going to be coming up with any prescriptive lists, I just think there should be facts,quot;
he said.<br />quot;
One of the problems that we have at the moment is that in the history curriculum we only have two names [of historical figures], in the geography curriculum the only country we mention is the UK - we don't mention a single other country, continent, river or city.quot;
<br />The education secretary has in the past been vocal about the lack of a quot;
connected narrativequot;
in the teaching of British history.<br />Writing in the Daily Telegraph on Thursday, he lamented the absence in the curriculum of figures such as Winston Churchill, Florence Nightingale and Horatio Nelson.<br />The current curriculum specifies what students should study in some subjects, such as maths, but outlines only broad areas in others, such as history, leaving teachers to decide on content.<br />Mr Gove said the new national curriculum should quot;
embody for all children in England their cultural and scientific inheritance, enhance their understanding of the world around them and introduce them to the best that has been thought and writtenquot;
.<br />He said it should be informed by the best international practice.<br />The review panel has been asked to look at what subjects should be compulsory for pupils of different ages, as well as the content that should be taught in them.<br />The government has said that English, maths, science and PE must remain compulsory for children of all ages.<br />The review will then decide on whether other subjects should also be required study for different age groups.<br />Currently schools must teach 13 compulsory subjects to children aged 5-7, rising to 14 for pupils aged 7-14 and then dropping to eight for 14-16-year-olds.<br />The fourteen subjects are art and design, citizenship, design and technology, English, geography, history, ICT, mathematics, modern foreign languages, music, physical education, science, PSHE (personal, social, health and economic education) and religious education. <br />Mr Gove said religious education would remain a statutory requirement at all ages (although parents can choose to stop their children from attending classes), but no programme of study would be prescribed.<br />