Department for Education national conversation on the curriculum and assessment system
Department for Education national conversation on the curriculum and assessment system
Young people, parents, education staff, leaders and experts are being invited to take part in a ‘national conversation’ about how the school and college curriculum and assessment system can better prepare young people for life and work. The Improving the curriculum and assessment call for evidence runs from 25 September to 22 November 2024.
The Department for Education has asked us to get the word out far and wide! The review is wide-ranging but you don’t have to answer all the questions. In Youth Music’s response, we’ll be focussing on:
- How the current testing and assessment regime has a negative impact on the wellbeing of children and their teachers, and is a barrier to achievement for learners with additional needs.
- Modernisation of the music curriculum to be more engaging and relevant. Music is young people’s favourite pastime, yet Music GCSE has been in steady decline for years.
- A modernised curriculum, with greater diversity, representation, and youth voice, would harness the power of music to engage young people (as highlighted by this BBC Newsbeat article featuring 2024 Youth Music Award winners calling for a more representative music curriculum in schools)
- None of the Music GCSE subject aims and learning outcomes consider future careers and/or the wider music industries.
- As a creative subject, music can be more accessible than traditional ‘academic’ subjects, a place where people with additional learning needs can succeed. But the GCSE exam, at 40% of the final mark, means that young people who are talented musicians but don’t perform well in exams can’t achieve the grade they deserve.
- 16-19 provision isn’t reflective of the modern music industries. The breadth of courses don’t mirror where the skills gaps are, with a heavy skew towards artists and performers and not enough focus on the skills and experience required to maintain a sustainable music industry career (where the majority are freelance, and many are ‘multi hyphenate’ i.e. have several professions or skills).