This research suggests that Government policy has an impact on where schools allocate teaching resources, and highlights gaps in our current curriculum that the CAR must address. It also suggests that while the curriculum is set by central government, its implementation varies across the country and the educational experience children receive is impacted by a variety of factors.
Curriculum reform is a crucial lever in ensuring educational opportunities and experiences are the best they can be. At the same time, schools face constraints and incentives placed on them by funding levels, government policy, and contextual factors. This analysis seeks to shed light on the disparities that exist and suggest solutions to ensure all children receive a rich and rounded education.
Summary and conclusions
This briefing outlines new analysis by the National Education Union of a survey of primary school teachers that asked them how much curriculum time is devoted to each subject offered in their setting. The analysis below shows that:
- Primary teaching hours are dominated by English and maths. Out of 20 and a half teaching hours reported weekly on average, 12 hours were taken up by English or maths, or 58 per cent of the total hours taught.
- This is above recommendations made by the Qualifications and Curriculum Authority in 2002.
- This figure was higher in year 6, the year in which students sit SATs tests, than in other groups – 14 extra minutes of English per week and 20 extra minutes of maths compared to the average across all year groups, reflecting the additional focus that SATs demands teachers put on these two subjects in order to achieve the best results for the school.
- Respondents say that some subjects are studied for less than an hour a week on average at primary school. In some cases, this is because foundation subjects may be alternated with each other on a half termly basis.
- This means that some pupils receiving, on average, almost 12 hours of English and maths lessons a week, can go weeks or even half a term at a time without learning any history at all.
- Time devoted to science falls well short of QCA recommendations and correlates with a decline in England’s PISA scores for science in the 20 years since those recommendations were published.
- The pressure of the demands of English and maths on other curriculum subjects is particularly stark in schools with the most disadvantaged intakes. The most disadvantaged 20 per cent of schools dedicate one hour 33 minutes a week on average to PE. This is 15 minutes a week less than schools with the lowest levels of disadvantage.
The data is published as the government conducts a review of curriculum and assessment and forms part of the NEU’s written evidence to the review. In its submission, the NEU has made the following calls:
- The curriculum is currently not, and must become, broad, diverse, inclusive and fit for the future in order for young people to thrive.
- The content mandated for each subject must become, then continue to remain, manageable and enable students to enjoy and consolidate their learning.
- Assessment methods are not diverse enough to develop the breadth of skills required nor to properly allow students
to show what they can do – in many instances using just one mode, the formal written test. - Results of tests are misused for school accountability, leading to damaging, perverse consequences to curriculum breadth and student and staff wellbeing.
- Professionals must be at the heart of curriculum and assessment reforms. No significant change to curriculum
and assessment can be made without meaningful, consistent engagement with the profession.