Category: Leadership

Creating a culture that fosters professional dialogue and delivers a seamless curriculum

How do leaders in schools create the right culture that fosters constructive professional dialogue? Amanda Spielman from OFSTED puts the importance of professional dialogue at the heart of her last two major speeches, one to ASCL and the other to the Muslim Teachers’ Association.

“The Quality of Education judgement is central to putting the curriculum, the substance of education, back at the heart of professional dialogue in schools and colleges. It’s been great to hear that these conversations are emerging, even before the first inspections under this new framework.”

In order to create that school culture where all staff have the opportunity to engage in professional dialogue there needs to be a profound understanding of the difference between professional dialogue and a conversation.

Professional dialogue is one of the phrases that is completely embedded in all of our coaching programmes.  The essence of learning how to coach for those in education is in the development of a range of coaching attributes including highly effective listening skills, the ability to ask incisive, deep and rich questions and to have the confidence and the capacity to influence others to change.  Creating a CPD strategy that embraces coaching fosters professional dialogue and moves individuals away from simply using unstructured conversations.  It can have a profound impact on ensuring all staff are empowered to deliver a consistent, whole school approach to how the curriculum intent, ambition and rationale is translated into innovative planning, highly effective pedagogy and a shared understanding of the sequencing of content over time.

“OFSTED have the concept of dialogue at its core to establish, what  pupils are being taught? How well are they being taught? and, How is what they are being taught setting them up for the next stage in their education?”

The curriculum rationale and ambition that reveals its intent and how this is consistently implemented in every classroom and in many cross curricular contexts is at the heart of what OFSTED want to focus on as part of assessing ‘the substance of education’. Creating opportunities to deepen the skills of leaders, managers, teachers and support staff in how they use professional dialogue as opposed to simply having conversations will help to create the essential, consistent and seamless curriculum offer that builds on prior learning, deepens knowledge, enhances pupils’ skills over time and ensures assessment finds the gaps in understanding and informs future learning.

“The point of observation by inspectors is to see whether the school’s aims and intentions are being translated effectively into practice, ‘does it all come together as it should’.”

If, as Amanda Spielman talks about in her speeches, leaders, managers and teachers are to be an integral part of professional dialogue about the curriculum and how the intent is translated into highly effective delivery that has a demonstrable impact on learning over time; then all staff need to have the right skill set to be an equal participant in that constructive dialogue.  They will need to listen to what is being asked of them, be able to respond with incisive questions that are designed to draw out deeper meaning and have the vocabulary and deep pedagogical and subject expertise that will demonstrate their professional understanding of how the school is successfully delivering powerful learning for all pupils.

Have a look at Learning Cultures’ coaching courses, we have a training opportunity for all staff, for leaders, middle managers, subject specialists, teachers, support staff and SENCOs.

Join us at one of our highly praised curriculum courses, they have been so successful and we continue to update them as more information emerges from DfE and OFSTED.

Subject expertise and subject leadership are pivotal to the proposed changes and we have a new course researched and designed by our expert curriculum team.

Enhancing the Role of the Subject Leader – managing curriculum change that delivers sequential, seamless and deep knowledge and skills

 

Literacy and Numeracy: the essential threads that weave through a deep and rich curriculum

If you are reading this you are using one of the most important skills there is for learning.

It is essential as part of any review of the curriculum to identify the core and generic skills for learning that will open the door for all learners to access the information they need to build a sequential bank of knowledge.

Context provides the vehicle for mastery of the literacy and numeracy concepts that will help pupils to deepen their understanding and become unconsciously competent in their use of the skills they need to access knowledge within subjects and across the curriculum. Each subject expert needs to think carefully about the skills that allow pupils to deepen their understanding of the content of their subject.

Think about the skill of comprehension which is undoubtedly the most important skill for pupils to master in order that they can read and understand. This is carefully taught within English where the texts are used to help pupils to deepen their reading skills. Complex and rich texts are often an integral part of learning in other subjects. However, these texts are often written for the subject and take no account of the reading age of the pupil. Subject specialists, need to have the skills to help pupils decode the language, the vocabulary and the inference within those texts.

What about the skill of measuring in Maths? There are countless examples of where measurement is used as part of learning across the curriculum. Design and build, interpreting a map, making a cake, working out velocity and speed, conducting an experiment, defining cause and effect, comparing or contrasting, to name but a few.

The above two examples are specific skills linked to the teaching in English and in Maths.  There are also the concepts and generic skills that need consideration.  Consider the concept of space or shape, scale or time. All have their place as part of deciphering knowledge in many contexts across the curriculum. Curriculum planning must ensure there are opportunities for pupils to use different vocabulary, understand the method or the process and be able to see how their learning in one subject relates to learning in another one.

The curriculum is not a set of isolated, individual subjects but a tapestry of learning where the concepts, skills and knowledge are interwoven to create the right set of circumstances for pupils to learn and deepen their understanding. It must ensure that knowledge is retained within pupils’ long-term memory and set the context for future challenge.

The key to creating this woven fabric of knowledge and skills is to create opportunities for departments to work together to identify the age-related skills and knowledge within their subject and sequence the content so that there is seamless learning from one year to the next.  There should also be opportunities for cross curricular planning where teachers and their subject leaders can identify where the concepts, skills and knowledge overlap or are re-inforced.  Where teachers have a profound understanding of the wider curriculum they can share with their pupils where similar or the same knowledge is part of learning in other subjects.

Start by reflecting on how much time is given to curriculum planning, who is involved and to what extent there are opportunities for cross-phase, cross-curricular and cross-year collaboration to ensure depth, breadth and balance. Then encourage teams to to collectively piece together a curriculum map that will create the evidence that pupils build on prior learning, deepen their understanding and can develop the skills that will help them to access and master ever increasingly complex and challenging subject content.

We have developed a suite of training to support schools in their quest for curriculum cohesion.

For senior leaders and curriculum managers we look at the strategic vision and consider how to make sure we keep what works well and what needs to change:

For subject leaders we have a new course built on recent research and using our own expertise to look in detail at how to sequence a learning curriculum that builds on prior learning and deepens knowledge over time.

Research suggests that transition creates a dip in learning of anything up to 40%.  We have two highly regarded training courses that look at how to ensure positive academic as well as pastoral transition focuses on curriculum cohesion and building on prior learning.

Specific to those with responsibility for embedding literacy and numeracy across the curriculum we have developed the following outstanding training programmes. They have been part of our repertoire for several years. Our messages haven’t changed, the change of emphasis on curriculum intent, implementation and impact mirror what we already know works and delivers deep and challenging learning.

Weave your own tapestry curriculum using the resources and strategies that we know work.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Concepts in Curriculum Design – Creating the culture that delivers seamless learning

The architects of positive curriculum design must start with defining the concepts that will build a coherent and deep offer that delivers seamless learning and progression.  This is essential if the curriculum is to deliver the highest quality education for all pupils across the ability spectrum.

OFSTED’s new handbook and associated research reinforce the need for a clear and coherent rationale for curriculum design.  Creating a cohesive, inclusive and rich curriculum offer remains the key challenge for all headteachers and their senior leadership teams across all schools from early years, in primary and secondary schools and in post 16 education.

There are two parts to this and both require a focus on certain clearly defined concepts.  The curriculum intent, ambition and rationale is defined by an overarching set of concepts that include breadth and depth, relevance, continuity, progression and attitudes to learning.  Subject leaders have a pivotal role in ensuring the curriculum is implemented so that what is delivered reflects the vision, the intent and the ambition. The concepts that subject leaders need to focus on in relation to strategic planning for their departments, faculties or teams might include coherence, differentiation, continuity, knowledge, skills and understanding.

There is a third set of concepts that then need consideration as the planned curriculum is delivered to ensure high levels of learning and progression. These are linked to both subject content and to generic learning outcomes that are essential to learning in the classroom, across the curriculum and beyond.  Subject concepts might include, sources, predictions, measurement, beliefs, methods, settlements, environment, to name but a few.  Have a look at a list we have compiled, it is a work in progress. If subject teachers simply focus on the knowledge within their subject and do not see the connections both in relation to skills and generic learning concepts, opportunities for depth and breadth, continuity and coherence may be lost.

The key to leading this process and to orchestrating strategic practices that are consistent across all teams, subject specialisms and cross curricular partnerships is to ensure high levels of collaboration and professional learning conversations that bring together expertise from the senior leadership team, within subject specialisms and across the subject divides.

It is essential to turn the concepts into contexts that create clearly defined and workable solutions that all staff can contribute to achieving.  This will happen if continuing professional development (CPD) is carefully planned and linked to quality curriculum implementation which is seen as the essential and overarching vision.

We have designed our coaching and curriculum training to support schools move seamlessly to a solutions focused strategy, start with our Curriculum Re-defining series,

Build a coaching culture that will support highly effective collaboration for leaders, middle leaders and subject specialists,

Develop the coaching skills and pedagogy that will deliver a cohesive and positive curriculum and ensure teachers can share and cascade their practice widely,

Have a look at other coaching courses, courses linked to teaching and learning and those that support curriculum planning and implementation. Start your journey towards a seamless curriculum with Learning Cultures.

 

 

 

CPD in a box – a new way to access our highly acclaimed training courses

CPD in a box is a resource for schools and colleges.  Each box contains all the materials, presentations and activities for one training course. Included as part of the contents is a pen drive so that the training can be disseminated electronically.  The transcripts and materials will also provide all the tools to deliver the course to groups of staff across the school or for a whole school INSET, training session or twilight.

We maintain that there are very clear advantages to having the opportunity to work with other delegates and have the expertise of a talented trainer in a setting away from school. However, the current retention and recruitment crisis and the lack of funding available suggests to us that this is an excellent way of continuing to ensure that outstanding, well-researched and highly relevant CPD is available to as many staff in school as possible.

We will have several of our courses available to buy over the next few months. The first ones will be available at the beginning of the summer term. The first titles will include:-

Each box will cost £595.00 + VAT and can be used again and again with staff across the school.  We hope to have these first boxes of CPD available at the beginning of the summer term. If this is of interest, we would love to hear from you.  Please will you complete the form on our Contact us page with your name, school, telephone number and email address and write CPD in  a box in the comment page.  We can then forward more information about the contents and let you know when the first boxes will be available.

We also have some new training courses available in the summer term. We are constantly revising our offer linked to curriculum, inspectorate and policy changes.  We have a team of experts who keep us all up to date and develop innovative, dynamic and interactive materials and resources to ensure that CPD drives excellence and improvement across your school or college. Have a look at what’s new,

Ensuring CPD is at the heart of your vision for excellence and improvement across the school is a powerful strategy that will reap rewards. Staff feel valued, they are given the opportunity to grow in their role and they learn how to reflect on what they do well and what they need to do to improve upon. We have designed all our CPD courses in such a way that those who attend our training can take their learning back to share it with others. In this way we make sure that the content continues to build learning opportunities widely for all staff.  In this way we know that the CPD we offer is sustainable, cascades knowledge and skills and is cost – effective.

 

Lead a Coaching School for Curriculum Change- Create quality outcomes that deliver outstanding learning and teaching

Lead a Coaching School – Create the quality outcomes that deliver outstanding learning and teaching

I have used the theme quality as the subject for the latest newsletter from Learning Cultures  ‘How Do We Define Quality in Education – linked to curriculum planning, pedagogical input and learning outcomes?  Quality in this context requires a strategy for ensuring every member of staff across a school, or in fact any organisation, is fully conversant with the part they play in creating outcomes that are positive and deliver results. The current focus on developing a sequenced and well-balanced curriculum needs to be managed using clearly defined quality processes. However, implementing the principles and ensuring consistency across all subjects, year groups, departments and phases or key stages requires a model such as coaching that determines the structures within which quality outcomes are unconsciously achieved.

Creating a coaching culture will provide the dynamic and highly effective strategies required to create a collaborative and sequenced curriculum.  Coaching provides leaders with the skills to empower others to change and grow.  Coaching creates for middle and subject leaders, the ability to motivate others to deliver high quality teaching, differentiated learning and consistent stretch and challenge. Coaching provides the medium by which teachers can share outstanding teaching and learning, reflect on their own ability to inspire their pupils and ensure a deep  knowledge rich curriculum can be the right of all pupils through the development of the skills they need to make sense of their learning.

The emphasis is firmly on the need for greater collaboration and opportunities for professional learning conversations. We need a cohesive narrative that creates the culture where there are clear mechanisms for the sharing of schemes of work, programmes of study, subject content, subject and cross-curricular concepts, assessment outcomes and classroom pedagogy that leads to seamless learning from early years to post 16 and beyond.  The opportunity to build a system that is efficient, informed and well-sequenced will ensure that teachers and their pupils know exactly what has been taught and to what depth, can confidently build the next steps for the learner and build in support or stretch and challenge where it is necessary.

For the school leader coaching is a structure and powerful driver for change or re-definition.  The principles of coaching motivate and engage all staff in the quest for highly effective outcomes and give them the skills to be an important part of planning for the future. We would highly recommend that school leaders and their senior teams learn from our highly respected coaching event ‘Leading a Coaching School – empowering positive change that cascades continuous improvement’. Once you embark upon a coaching journey you rarely turn back.

Have a look at our Coaching in Education section for all our coaching courses.  They have been designed using many years of research and expertise, policies and handbooks may come and go but the principles of coaching continue to create the most powerful leadership strategies that lead to outstanding learning and teaching.

Concepts, context and the sequencing of learning for curriculum planning

Learning is a complex and developmental process

Learning is a complex and developmental process that requires pupils to build on previous knowledge and relate that knowledge to new concepts and ideas.  It is, therefore, essential to ask the question ‘What do pupils already know? in relation to planning a new concept, topic or subject.  The pupil needs to be able to make links between what is being taught and what they already know.  New knowledge is connected with what has already being learned and this leads to deeper understanding and the real possibility that the knowledge enters the long-term memory.

Subject specialists and collaboration

The first step in creating the conditions for this to happen must be ensuring that subject and curriculum specialists consider the key concepts, knowledge and skills pupils will learn in order to achieve outcomes defined at the end of a topic or a specific time frame.  The second step is to create the opportunities for those with responsibility for facilitating the learning and teaching the concepts to collaborate on how to ensure the content does, in fact, build sequential learning opportunities.

Understanding the key concepts that underpin subject specific learning

Subject specialists need to define the key concepts that underpin core and subject specific learning and reflect on how these can be interwoven to deepen learning.  There must be a commitment from leaders to provide meaningful planning time for inter-departmental and cross curricular dialogue so that there are opportunities to identify how the learning can be assimilated so that teachers can support pupils to make links between what they are taught and what they already know.

Sequencing the learning

If we agree that there is an imperative to ensure that knowledge and skills are taught in a sequential order that enables pupils to make connections, it is essential that we reflect carefully on how the curriculum is planned over time. If teachers from different year groups, different subjects and different key stages plan in isolation and are unaware of the connections themselves then how can they help their pupils towards seeing the relationship between prior learning and new learning or between the concepts being taught in the core and those that are used in the context of learning elsewhere?

Literacy and numeracy are key to deepening learning

One of the most obvious and often neglected ways to create opportunities for pupils to see connections and to build on their learning is for them to know how the concepts that are integral to the core learning in Maths and English are used to access meaning across all of the foundation subjects.  Simply, give foundation  subject specialists copies of the age related programmes of study for English and Maths when they are planning their schema.  History requires the need to read and understand source material. Interpreting a map in geography requires an understanding of scale, the use of percentages is needed to measure the steepness of a slope and the knowledge of co-ordinates is essential when finding a place from an index. Building a bird table roof requires the ability to accurately measure angles for the apex and the sides.

Creating a strategy for collaborative curriculum planning

Collaboration is key to success here and must create opportunities for all staff to engage in professional conversations that foster new thinking and bring together expertise from across the subject spectrum. In the primary phase early years should work closely with KS1 teachers to ensure that learning has a continuum. There should be opportunities for the sharing of schemes of work from the end of EYFS into year 1 and between KS1 and 2.  Collectively year 3 and 4 teachers take the baton from year 2 and build on what has been taught before.  Equally year 5 and 6 work together to build again on the learning.  Transition from year 6 to year 7 needs very careful consideration and both primary and secondary schools must take responsibility for creating seamless learning across the transition bridge.  KS3 needs to be a stand-alone stage where skills and knowledge enrich prior learning and equip pupils with the breadth and depth they need for GCSE and other NQF qualifications.

Having the right CPD to make this happen

All of the above is at the heart of the philosophy that underpins all of the courses and CPD programmes that Learning Cultures design and deliver.  We have changed nothing in light of the current debate about curriculum intent, implementation and impact or about skills and knowledge.  Coaching fosters collaboration. Seamless transition is essential at the end of EYFS, KS1 and 2. Embedding literacy and numeracy effectively across the foundation subjects deepens learning and formative assessment shapes future learning.  Simply excellent practice that leads to deep and profound learning and is sustainable and cost effective continuing professional development.

 

Planning CPD for the curriculum journey

What are the implications for school leaders now that the draft OFSTED handbook to be used from September 2019 has been published?

Creating a strategy for highly effective, cost effective and sustainable CPD is an essential component. All staff must know the part they play in contributing to the vision. They need to assess and refine their current provision and look at ambitious and new content and approaches that will provide profound evidence that what is planned and implemented has breadth and depth and is sequenced so that new knowledge and skills build on what has been taught before and move the learning towards well defined end points.

OFSTED recognise the need for training and development as one of their 25 indicators published as part of their research into the quality of education through curriculum intent, implementation and impact.

Leaders ensure that ongoing professional development/training is available for staff to ensure that curriculum requirements can be met.

We already have a CPD offer that matches what is being asked for here.  The research and suggested indicators for delivering a high-quality seamless curriculum for learning has been a part of our thinking over many years. We don’t have to change very much at all in reaching out to schools we work with across England with an offer that mirrors exactly the CPD that will make a significant difference to how schools manage change in this context.  Build a CPD plan with us. Use coaching to cascade learning, shape content and share ideas.  We help you define a pathway for ensuring professional dialogue delivers a profound high-quality education for all.

Clearly there is need to focus on what is different, what needs to change and how leaders, managers, teaching and support staff will contribute to creating the evidence that the quality of education linked to how the curriculum is planned and delivered creates opportunities for outstanding learning deeper, understanding and progression over time.

Remember, take advantage of our second delegate rate if you book different members of staff onto several of our courses.  We can also deliver all our training as INSET for your school are your partner schools where this applies.

OFSTED Inspection Handbook – a draft for consultation

The draft OFSTED Inspection framework is now available for review and consultation.  It is accompanied by a consultation document which asks for an approval rating and comments on several of the proposed changes to what and how future inspections will be carried out. For mainstream schools they are:-

  • the proposal to introduce a ‘quality of education’ judgement and looking at outcomes in context and whether they are the result of a coherently planned curriculum, delivered well
  • the proposal to separate inspection judgements about learners’ personal development and learners’ behaviour and attitudes
  • the proposal to ensure that the quality of educational judgements in early years will work well for all those working in different settings
  • the proposal to increase the length of section 8 inspections for some schools from the current one day to two days
  • the proposal for on-site preparation for all section 5 inspections and for section 8 inspections of good schools on the afternoon prior to the inspection
  • the proposal that inspectors will not look at non-statutory internal progress and attainment data

The curriculum is at the heart of the changes. We have seen throughout the build up to the announcement today how schools across the spectrum need to have a very clear rationale for their curriculum plan, know that this will be translated into a cohesive and substantive curriculum for learning and will have an impact on progression and achievement.

The Curriculum is the substance of what is taught

There is clarification that knowledge and skills are closely interconnected and inspectors will be asked to consider what providers are doing to develop both learners’ knowledge and their skills. It is also recognised that education providers may take different approaches to the curriculum and should have some freedom to choose their own approaches to content and delivery.

The school’s curriculum is coherently planned and sequenced towards cumulatively sufficient knowledge and skills for future learning…

The emphasis is on coherence and sequence in relation to curriculum planning so that pupils build on what has been taught before and focuses on building a learning platform that leads towards clearly defined end points. There should be logical progress, which is systematically and explicitly defined for all pupils in order that they acquire the intended knowledge and skills.

The school’s curriculum is strong. Across the school, it is evident from what teachers do that they have a firm and common understanding of the school’s curriculum intent and what it means for their practice.

Inspectors will look for a holistic approach that does not separate leadership of the curriculum from the implementation, the teaching and the assessment.  Assessing the impact of effective curriculum design will be through dialogue with curriculum and subject leaders and observations and reviews of pupils in lessons and the work they produce.

Teachers and leaders use assessment well, for example to help pupils embed and use knowledge fluently, or to check understanding and inform teaching.

School, curriculum and subject leaders must have the expertise to drive and deliver this change and be able to articulate how their rationale delivers a well-constructed curriculum that is expertly taught and leads to good results at the end of the relevant stage of education.  Leaders must be able to share how they know that the curriculum is having an impact for all pupils.

Teachers have a good knowledge of the subject(s) and courses they teach. Leaders provide effective support for those teaching outside their main areas of expertise.

Within the text published today there is reinforcement that OFSTED want to see this as an evolution and not a revolution and are looking for school, curriculum and subject leaders to begin to work towards the changes they need to make over time.  There is a recognition that a lot of what currently is delivered is good, however, some change is inevitable to strengthen and enrich the curriculum in terms of the rationale, the delivery and the impact it has on knowledge, skills and ultimate progression for all learners.

Inspectors will look at how carefully leaders and subject leaders have thought about what end points the curriculum is building towards, what pupils will be able to know and to do at the end of these points and how they have planned the curriculum accordingly?

We will incorporate any new messages from today’s announcements into our coaching and training programmes.  However, we have followed this so carefully over time that we feel that what is included echoes our own expertise and understanding.  We can support schools and colleges from early years to post 16 with a wealth of knowledge and are hugely excited at the opportunity to support these changes. Join us at one of our curriculum events.

Follow our news-posts on our website and have a look at some of our other courses that will ensure staff across the school have the right expertise to manage change.

Transition is an important aspect of creating the coherence and sequencing of learning over time, we have two courses that will support transition managers working between KS1 and 2 and KS 2 and 3.

Leading these changes will be challenging and we would recommend our Leading a Coaching School course which will deepen those leadership skills that empower others to manage change. The role of the middle leader especially for curriculum and subject leaders and Heads of Teaching and Learning is pivotal in driving this forward. Join us for our Coaching for Middle Leaders course and learn and focus on how to create the professional dialogue and positive outcomes that will deliver a seamless curriculum.

Leading an Evolution that Delivers High Quality Education for all

The third phase of OFSTED’s research into curriculum intent, implementation and impact is detailed, evidence based and provides a lot of information for leaders in primary and secondary schools. We discussed in our last news-post that the research highlights 25 indicators they have used to test whether it is possible to assess curriculum quality across a range of different school types.  In this post I wanted to focus on how these indicators provide a positive starting point for headteachers and their teams to assess their readiness for leading an evolution that will ensure their current and future strategies continue to deliver high quality education for all.

Putting the spotlight on the curriculum gives all leaders across the education spectrum an opportunity to reflect on their own understanding of their curriculum rationale and how that translates into a set of centrally prescribed curriculum aims that are ambitious, deliver depth and breadth of learning and ensure the acquisition of knowledge, the development of relevant skills and allow for sequential progression.

The research highlights the critical importance of how this is communicated in order to ensure high levels of accountability of subject leaders and teachers in ensuring they have evidence of informed planning, equitable delivery, progression and depth of content.

The indicators underpin a series of fundamentals that are essential to effective leadership and how the communication of a vision, a rationale and centrally prescribed aims are implemented coherently and consistently and deliver high quality education for all. Putting the curriculum at the heart of a whole school quality assurance strategy makes perfect sense and will embrace many other indicators that create an outstanding school such as strong principles of assessment, the embedding of literacy and numeracy, highly effective classroom pedagogy and differentiated learning that together create an inclusive learning platform.

Leaders must focus on their vision and rationale for the curriculum and audit the skills and gaps of their teams in order to build a coherent professional development programme that will highlight current successes, determine what needs to change and plan for new innovations.  Using coaching CPD as the catalyst for reviewing and improving quality is proven to be the most effective, sustainable and cost-effective way to manage change. Coaching encourages reflection, opportunities for learning conversations and will ensure the focus is on curriculum content, pedagogy and the desired outcomes for learners.

Join us to review and reflect on curriculum issues and how to respond to the current narrative.

Focus on leadership, middle leadership and teaching and learning with our highly praised coaching courses

What is being proposed by OFSTED is not new, it is, however, good practice linked to an approach that focuses on the learning and is not simply about data and end of stage testing.  The principles and ethos have been at the heart of our own well-researched and highly successful training programmes for several years.

 

 

Raising the Curriculum Profile – A whole school strategy that delivers inclusive and deep learning

The publication of the phase 3 findings of curriculum research from OFSTED leaves us in no doubt that all schools will need to reflect on their current curriculum design and raise their curriculum profile to ensure that all those involved in teaching and learning are working together to deliver an inclusive curriculum that ensures parity for all groups of learners and provides evidence that pupils successfully learn the curriculum and deepen their knowledge over time.

Amanda Spielman has described the change of emphasis as ‘an evolution and not a revolution’. Most schools have created a curriculum offer linked to the changes necessary as part of implementing the new National Curriculum in 2014 and much of that should be the starting point for any changes or innovations necessary to meet a new framework for September 2019.

A list of 25 indicators of curriculum quality emerge from the research.  They give us useful benchmarks to use to assess what is currently working well in school and what will need to be strengthened, changed or re-designed altogether.  There are four major areas for consideration,

  1. The role of the SLT including curriculum leaders is to ensure that the rationale for the curriculum design is shared across the school. In developing this there needs to be careful consideration given to knowledge progression and the sequencing of concepts in and across subjects.  The delivery of the curriculum has to be equitable for all groups and enhance pupils’ capacity to access the full curriculum. Leaders, including governors should, as part of the planning process, build in opportunities for review and quality assurance. There needs to be a commitment from SLT to ensure ongoing professional development so that curriculum expertise develops across the school.
  2. The role of the middle leader, phase leaders, heads of department, the SENDCO and heads of key stages is pivotal.  All middle leaders need to be involved in the dissemination and delivery of the vision for ensuring the curriculum offers parity for all groups of learners and meets and exceeds the standards set out in the National Curriculum. Reading is prioritised in every subject and Maths and numeracy are preconditions of success across the curriculum. Middle leaders collaborate to focus on knowledge progression and the sequencing of concepts in their own subject and in the context of learning in other subjects, projects or themes.  Effective CPD ensures middle leaders have the knowledge, expertise and practical skill to design and implement a curriculum.
  3. Teaching and learning teams including Teaching Assistants and support staff plan how the curriculum vision is put into practice in the classroom.  Working closely with their line managers, phase leaders or heads of department there is an imperative to ensure curriculum coverage allows pupils to access the content and make progress through the curriculum. Teachers need to prioritise reading as part of all subject learning and highlight how pupils access knowledge through the development of their literacy skills and their ability to use Maths and numeracy to deepen understanding where number applies in subjects other than Mathematics. The subject or curriculum team need to demonstrate that they are working together to create a model of curriculum progression and contribute to the development of curriculum maps that ensure sufficient coverage across a subject over time. Assessment of the learning is designed thoughtfully to shape future learning, is reliable and consistent and ensures pupils progress well.
  4. Ensuring the right expertise for all staff in school is essential.  Ongoing professional development needs to be an integral part of the planning and implementation process.  How to do this with tight budgets and possible capacity issues is most definitely a constraint.  Much of what is highlighted in the 25 indicators and summarised above is closely aligned to the approach we have developed over several years.  Essentially, what is being asked for is highly effective communication, collaboration and cohesion where all staff know the part they play in designing, implementing and assessing the curriculum. Using a coaching approach to planning a CPD strategy will provide a cost effective and sustainable model that will allow the professional conversations, shared learning and opportunities to deepen the knowledge required to enable curriculum expertise to develop across the curriculum.

Our Curriculum courses are highly rated and continually updated to provide you with all the resources you need to prepare for change,

We have a range of coaching courses that will provide all your staff with the expertise and professional dialogue to foster the sharing and cascading of good and outstanding practice that will ensure you can use the learning from our training to develop your own in-house cost effective and sustainable CPD programmes.

Or have a look at all our coaching courses here