A new way of looking at the curriculum

A photograph of a schoolgirl reading her work

Beyond subjects

For the first time, Scotland is developing a single, coherent curriculum for all children and young people aged 3-18.

Curriculum for Excellence extends beyond subjects. The curriculum is also defined more broadly, to encompass:

the ethos and life of the school
interdisciplinary projects and studies
opportunities for choice and recognition of personal achievement.

There will be a major emphasis on equipping children and young people with strong literacy and numeracy skills. New ‘skills for work’ courses are being developed and introduced by the Scottish Qualifications Authority (SQA).

Assessment, drawing on the lessons of the Assessment is for Learning programme, will support learning at all stages, and learning outcomes within elements of SQA arrangements will be revised to reflect the purposes and principles of Curriculum for Excellence.

A chance to be innovative and creative

Curriculum for Excellence encompasses both the experiences that are planned for children and young people during their time at school and content and subject areas. It will provide a way of unifying the curriculum by embedding in guidance cross-cutting themes such as citizenship, sustainable development, health promotion and creativity.

Implementation of Curriculum for Excellence will encompass much more than the provision of guidance on curriculum content. It will also include:

the development of a supportive ethos in schools, encouraging motivation and commitment to new learning and teaching
effective teacher education and development
necessary adjustments to assessment and qualifications systems
development of thinking on wider, personal achievement
a renewed focus on the variety of routes to help young people in transition from formal education to the world of work.

All this means you will have opportunities to be creative in contributing to interdisciplinary activities and that you will be involved in all aspects of school life. You will have freedom to teach in innovative and creative ways through, for example:

better continuity between pre-school education and P1 for early years
smoother transition from P7 to S1
the opportunities for interdisciplinary activities.

You will need to take responsibility for encouraging your pupils to succeed on a broad front, through a wide range of achievements.