Greg Whitby: ’It’s time for schools to change’
THE recently announced curriculum review is aimed at ‘decluttering’ what many see as an already crowded curriculum. There are three things that need to change, Greg Whitby writes.
Parramatta
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IF YOU believe the newspaper headlines, our schools are headed for a shake-up.
The recently announced curriculum review is aimed at ‘decluttering’ what many see as an already crowded curriculum, with the priority being to ensure that literacy and numeracy are treated as ‘foundational skills’. The review will also incorporate the recent ‘Gonski 2.0’ recommendations on how we can improve student performance.
The three areas identified for review are important because none of them can operate properly without the other. Each is critical to ensure that today’s learners are equipped with the skills for tomorrow’s jobs.
The first area identified for review is the curriculum itself. The NSW curriculum is organised around specific areas of knowledge or key learning areas. There is a lot of content to cover which makes it difficult to explore specific subject areas in depth or provide students with the opportunity for them to seek out personal areas of interest.
Technology is the second significant area targeted for review. In the past, the main focus on technology use was to provide students with devices and for keeping up-to-date with the latest apps. Now it needs to be about using technology to enhance learning and create better teaching practices.
The third area — the nature of teaching — is perhaps the most important of all. A good teacher is the most powerful app students have. Ask most teachers and they will tell you that an overcrowded curriculum and the ever-increasing compliance burden leave little time for the real work of teaching.
This review needs to chart a new path. If we get more of the same or a watered-down version of the existing curriculum, or we spend more money on devices rather than on technologies to deepen learning and improve teaching, it will be a waste of time and money.
As NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian said when the review was announced, the world has changed since the last major curriculum review in 1989. It is time for schools to catch up.
Greg Whitby is the executive director of schools for the Catholic Diocese of Parramatta. Follow him on Twitter @gregwhitby
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