Agenda item

Report by the GwE Managing Director.

To accept and approve the content of the report along with the proposed activities as outlined.

DECISION

To accept and approve the content of the report along with the proposed activities as outlined.

Discussion

Presented - the Managing Director's report presenting information to Joint Committee members regarding the support available to schools during the next two terms to enable them to implement and deliver the new curriculum. The Joint Committee was asked to accept and approve the content of the report along with proposed activities outlined.

It was asked whether there is expectation that standards are fairly consistent across schools. In response the Primary Senior Lead noted: -

·         It must be acknowledged that all schools are on a different stage of the journey, with some needing more support than others, but with this provision we hope to ensure that statutory elements are in place by September, with all schools having had the support and opportunity to go through the process.   

·         This also gives all schools the opportunity to embark on the planning journey, and look at the areas for training development. Many schools have already made a start on this work, and it would put all schools in a position to be able to start in September.

·         It must be remembered this is only the start of the journey, and there will be much revisiting and support available so that schools can adapt and have the curriculum appropriately in place over the years ahead.

Despite the difficulties of the last 2 years, it is hoped the work has been completed so as not to have to face too many challenges between now and September. In response, the Managing Director noted: -

·         Even though there is room for the local dimension, there is a formal process that everyone must follow in order to reach the destination, and that the main intention of the next series of workshops is to provide a safety network for schools so that everyone is clear as to achieving what needs to be in place.

·         Quality needs to be addressed, as in recent years, but there would be very local challenges, and we all need to consider the community in which we live. The school has a community, but that community also exists within an authority community, and there is corporate discussion around curriculum leadership and the strategic direction the council wishes to follow. Therefore, it must not be assumed that schools are in a vacuum pursuing their own agenda. They are also required to work within this structure.

It was noted the biggest challenge is the transition from Year 6 o Year 7, and how schools are going to cope with this in terms of local catchment areas.  In response, the Managing Director noted: -

·         This challenge is on more than one level; the 3-18 community is required to have a vision for its community, or different strands will come in.

·         To make the situation more complex there are some schools whose natural catchment areas cross, and also pupils moving to a new school in another county or area in north Wales.

·         The question of whether skills or information are transferred, and if both, how then to incorporate the new pupil into its new community?  

·         Even though transition may be planned within a community, cross-community transition is vastly different, and putting the curricular vision into action will bring about many new and different challenges.

It was noted learners' resilience and the higher percentage of disengaged pupils due to the pandemic is another element that will give rise to challenges.

The Chair enquired whether the secondary sector should postpone implementation of the new curriculum for another year in order to ensure uniformity between what primary and secondary schools offer. In response, the Managing Director noted: -

·         At the beginning of the current academic year many secondary schools stated their wish to deliver the curriculum in 2022, but have now reconsidered and are likely to introduce it officially from September 2023.

·         The new curriculum will be a considerable transformational change, and for this to happen in depth time is required to revisit the vision, values and behaviours, converting these into a curriculum plan that will provide guidance to schools on how, and what, to plan.  

·         The profession is weighed down by the pressure of keeping schools open, and as September draws nearer it should be considered on the one hand what is to be gained by rushing to change things this year? On the other hand, schools must not lose momentum, especially as the inspection cycle will commence in the summer term 2022.  

·         There needs to be discussions with schools on an individual basis, as they are in different situations.  

·         Given the pressure on schools in the last 2 years in terms of managing examination years, there needs to be a full discussion on how ready they are for 2022, taking into consideration whether it would be better to use the time to mature their thoughts for 2023.

The Chair suggested it would be useful to hold a briefing session for new members regarding the new curriculum after the Elections in May.