Curriculum Rationale
Ofsted’s School Inspection Handbook states that “inspectors will consider the extent to which the school’s curriculum sets out the knowledge and skills that pupils will gain at each stage”. This requirement, now commonly referred to in school as curriculum intent, is not a separate judgment. Instead, “inspectors will reach a single graded judgement for the quality of education, drawing on all the evidence they have gathered and using their professional judgement”. Lots of subject leaders refer to Programmes of Study as the basis for the “knowledge and skills” that form the basis of their curriculum. While their introductory paragraphs of each Programme of Study provide a clear sense of intent, relying on this document alone can be problematic.
Let’s look at the Key Stage 2 Programme of Study for Art and Design as an example: “Pupils should be taught to develop their techniques, including their control and their use of materials, with creativity, experimentation, and an increasing awareness of different kinds of art, craft and design. Pupils should be taught:
- to create sketch books to record their observations and use them to review and revisit ideas
- to improve their mastery of art and design techniques, including drawing, painting and sculpture with a range of materials [for example, pencil, charcoal, paint, clay] about great artists, architects and designers in history” The information is extremely scant and arguably provides more questions than it answers: who are the great artists, architects and designers in history?
What different kinds of art should pupils know about? What does effective experimentation look like?
Kirsty McMurdo, Head of Teaching and Practitioner Development
Read the full article: From Theory to Practice: Curriculum Rationale