is A Curriculum For Excellence?

A Curriculum For Excellence is about enabling free, happy, self-motivated, reflective and involved young people and teachers, who are working together towards a common goal- the four capacities:
 Successful learners,
 Confident Individuals,
 Responsible Citizens,
 Effective Contributors.

What impact will A Curriculum for Excellence have on you?

We now will have the freedom to think more creatively, with increased autonomy, as to how best to support and develop young people in their learning. This needs to permeate our establishments, through a culture of collaboration and collegiality.
Alongside this increased autonomy we have a responsibility to develop the four capacities within young people, through constant reflection, collaborative learning, ensuring relevance plays a key role in a child’s learning and building in opportunities for broader personal choice.
Assessment will now focus on that which promotes learning and recognises different types of achievements.

How do we do this?

It’s happening now! Across the Authority, there already exists an abundance of good practice. This is exemplified through the principles of Assessment is For Learning and Determined to Succeed in practice. Pupils are encouraged to use deeper thinking and development of skills that produce life long learning.
We need to find more opportunities to share and support this within our own establishments and through out the Local Authority or, further afield.

“Much of what is needed already exists,”
The Curriculum Review Group, Scottish Exec. 2004

How are things going to change?
’The Curriculum Review Group’ has outlined these as the Principles for curriculum design.
• Challenges and enjoyment
• Breadth
• Progression
• Depth
• Personalisation and choice
• Coherence
• Relevance.
This means increased personalisation of learning, flexibility in what and how you teach to ensure progression for all, partnership with other schools and organisations, increased use of technologies to support learning and cross curricular/disciplinary planning and learning.