This document summarizes recent reforms to England's education system to raise standards. It outlines changes made to the national curriculum, qualifications like GCSEs and A-Levels, vocational training, and school accountability. Key reforms include slimming down the national curriculum, placing greater emphasis on skills and end-of-course exams in GCSEs and A-Levels, and measuring school performance based on pupil progress rather than just attainment levels. The goal is for England's students to receive a world-class education to better prepare them for further education and employment.

1. Raising standards in England’sRaising standards in England s
schools: the role of curriculum,
qualifications and accountability
Hardip Begol
Director, Assessment, Curriculum and General Qualifications
July 2013
1
y

2. The English SystemThe English System
 21,053 state-funded schools (16,818 primary, 3,268 secondary, 967 special; 92.3% of
il i t t f d d h l d 7 1% i i d d t h l )pupils in state-funded schools and 7.1% in independent schools).
 Schools education compulsory from age 5 to 16; the vast majority of 3 and 4 year
olds in early education; from 2015 all 17 and 18 year olds must participate inolds in early education; from 2015 all 17 and 18 year olds must participate in
education or training.
 The school curriculum comprises all learning and other experiences that each school The school curriculum comprises all learning and other experiences that each school
provides for its pupils.
 For maintained schools this includes the national curriculum religious educationFor maintained schools this includes the national curriculum, religious education
(RE), collective worship and sex education (at secondary level).
 The school curriculum must be balanced and broadly based and:The school curriculum must be balanced and broadly based and:
 prepare pupils for the opportunities, responsibilities and experiences of life;
 promote pupils’ spiritual, moral, cultural, mental and physical development.
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3. The English System: National curriculum
todaytoday
Subject KS1 (age 5-7) KS2 (age 7-11) KS3 (age 11-
14)
KS4 (age 14-
16)
English ● ● ● ●
Mathematics ● ● ● ●
Science ● ● ● ●Science ● ● ● ●
Physical
Education
● ● ● ●
Information and
Communication
Technology
● ● ● ●
Art & Design ● ● ●
Citizenship ● ●
Geography ● ● ●Geography
History ● ● ●
Modern Foreign ●
Languages
Music ● ● ●
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4. The English System: QualificationsThe English System: Qualifications
GCSE (G l C tifi t f S d Ed ti ) th i GCSEs (General Certificate of Secondary Education) are the main
qualification taken by 14 to 16 year olds at key stage 4 (KS4).
 AS (Advanced Subsidiary) and A (Advanced) level qualifications focus on
academic skills and are usually taken by 16 to 18 year olds.
 A levels are the main routes into higher education but can also lead to
employment.
 There are a range of vocational qualifications.
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5. Arguments for reformArguments for reform
 “.. so many great schools, so many superb teachers and so many
outstanding head teachers ..” but we are performing below our potential and
failing to keep pace with the world’s best-performing education nations.
 The gulf between educational attainment of the rich and the poor remains
too wide.
 International surveys show that results in England are not improving: 25th for
reading, 27th for mathematics and 16th for science in the latest PISA
rankingsrankings.
Source: White Paper: The Importance of Teaching, 2010Source: White Paper: The Importance of Teaching, 2010
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6. 6

7. 90%560
hs
e
Trends in England’s GCSE maths grades and PISA maths scores 2000‐
2009 PISA maths pper limit
80%540
C in GCSE math
SA maths score
2009 PISA maths upper limit
PISA maths average
PISA maths lower limit
70%520
achieving A*‐C
PIS
Maths GCSE A*‐C
60%500
% pupils
Maths results from PISA 2000
were not properly calibrated
since maths was only a minor domain
60%500
50%480
40%460
2000 2003 2006 2009PISA cohort
Sources: OECD PISA databases, Micklewright bias analysis and NPD database
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8. Arguments for national curriculumArguments for national curriculum
reform
 The national curriculum has become larger and more complex covering more The national curriculum has become larger and more complex - covering more
subjects, prescribing more outcomes and taking up more school time than originally
intended.
 The Importance of Teaching White Paper (2010) stated that the national curriculum
should:
– set out the essential knowledge that all children should be expected to learn
– embody their cultural and scientific inheritance
– avoid covering every conceivable area of learning or endeavour
learn from the highest performing jurisdictions in the world– learn from the highest performing jurisdictions in the world.
Source: White Paper: The Importance of Teaching, 2010
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9. Arguments for Qualifications reformArguments for Qualifications reform
 The Importance of Teaching set out a commitment to ensure that our
qualifications match the best in the world, providing a good basis for further
study and employment.
 Evidence that standards of our examinations have fallen over time and the
expectations they set for our students are now below those of other
international jurisdictions.j
 Employers dissatisfied with school leavers’ literacy and numeracy.
 A wide range of research also points to a lessening over time in the demand
of GCSE qualifications.
Source: White Paper: The Importance of Teaching 2010Source: White Paper: The Importance of Teaching, 2010
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10. International EvidenceInternational Evidence
A l i f th i l l t d t t ti d f d Analysis of the curricula related to expectations and focussed on
 Organisation – content and skills
 Breadth – what content and what skills
 Specificity – detail and teaching-vs-outcome focus
 Challenge – age-related expectations
Messages
 High degree of commonality in terms of both content and skills.
 Higher age-related expectations in some high performing jurisdictions.
Wider MessagesWider Messages
 Many high performing jurisdictions prioritise autonomy for schools and
teachers, allowing them to design their own curricula.
Source: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/review-of-the-national-curriculum-in-england-what-can-we-learn-from-the-
english-mathematics-and-science-curricula-of-high-performing-jurisdictions
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11. Changes to the national curriculumChanges to the national curriculum
 To give all schools the space to develop their own curriculum, the national curriculum
is being reformed and slimmed down, so that:g ,
– pupils are taught a curriculum that ensures they have a solid foundation of
knowledge and understanding and develop skills that compare with the best ing g p p
the world;
– pupils must study a foreign language in primary school, to equip them for further
study at secondary, and computing will replace ICT;
– all pupils continue to receive a broad and balanced curriculum, with no changes
to the other subjects that are currently compulsory; and
– teachers will have greater professional freedom over how to teach and the time
to go be ond the national c rric l mto go beyond the national curriculum.
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12. Secondary general qualifications –
GCSEs
 We will reform GCSEs so they:
– place greater emphasis on the skills young people require;
– have all assessment taken at the end of the course; and
– favour examinations and confine internal assessment to only where necessary.
 New GCSEs will include:
– more extended writing in subjects like English and history;
– more testing of advanced problem-solving skills in mathematics and science;
– more testing of mathematics in science GCSEs, to improve progression to A
Levels;
– more challenging mechanics problems in physics;
– a stronger focus on evolution and genetics in biology; and
– a greater focus on foreign language composition, so that pupils require deeper
language skills.
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13. Secondary general qualifications – A
levels
A l l f d th d th t f l di i iti N A levels reformed so they command the respect of leading universities. New
A levels should be linear, assessed at the end of the two year course.
 Universities to have a more substantial role in the design and development
of A levels.
 Annual post-examinations review involving universities.
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14. Vocational qualificationsVocational qualifications
 Following a review of vocational education, we have placed restrictions on
the non-GCSE qualifications that are recognised in the key stage 4 (KS4)
performance tables. Schools should only be offering vocational
lifi ti th t i d i il ’ b t i t tqualifications that are rigorous and in pupils’ best interests.
 We want a similar process to ensure vocational qualifications for 16 18 year We want a similar process to ensure vocational qualifications for 16-18 year
olds are of a high quality.
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15. School accountabilitySchool accountability
E l d h t t bilit t f h l England has a strong accountability system for schools:
– parental choice
– governing bodiesg g
– performance tables
– independent inspection.
 We are changing the measures of performance to drive the right behaviours
in schools:
i i 8 bj– average point score in 8 subjects
– a progress measure should be part of the minimum standard expected
of every school.
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16. TimetableTimetable
N ti l i l fi li d l t thi d fi t t hi ill t k New national curriculum finalised later this year and first teaching will take
place from September 2014.
 New GCSEs and A levels in the main academic subjects will be available to
schools from September 2014, with first teaching from September 2015 and
first examinations in summer 2017.

17. Our websiteOur website
F f th i f ti i it For further information you can visit:
 www.education.gov.uk/nationalcurriculum for national curriculum reformg
or
 www.education.gov.uk/schools/teachingandlearning/qualifications/gcses
for qualification reform.