Building a Primary Curriculum that Sparks Joy
The UK Labour government has commissioned Professor Becky Francis to review England's national curriculum, presenting an opportunity to reconsider what and how children learn.
According to Savannah Gill, a student at the University of Cambridge, the current curriculum has become a dense and prescriptive checklist of knowledge, often detached from what excites children.
The pressure to tick boxes and the narrowing of pedagogy is eroding joy for children and teachers.
In this moment of reform, it is essential to centre joy, autonomy, and curiosity in the curriculum.
Author's summary: Reconsidering the primary curriculum to spark joy and curiosity in children.
- Centre joy, autonomy, and curiosity in the curriculum
- Move beyond a prescriptive checklist of knowledge
- Reconsider what and how children learn