Assessing the National Curriculum

The National Curriculum has been with us since 1988 and yet it continues to arouse controversy and disquiet. In this collection, major educationalists debate its history, purpose, achievements and future direction.

Some of the contributors write from first-hand experience of the original development, but while Eric Bolton and Chris Woodhead are largely satisfied with the result, Paul Black believes that the drive for simple tests could undermine all its achievements. Other analyses of the overall context and shape of The National Curriculum draw on academic and school perspectives, including that of Paul Hirst who questions the place of subjects at the centre of its structure.

More than half the collection focuses on specific aspects of the curriculum, with contributions by leading experts who draw on research and their own projects. These range from Ken Robinson′s review of the need for a coherent and strengthened approach to the arts, to Barbara MacGilchrist′s analysis of effects of The National Curriculum in primary schools. Other topics considered include: assessment, special needs, science and technology, religious education, values and diversity, humanities, personal and social development and the 14-19 curriculum.