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Warwick Mansell @warwickmansell.bsky.social · 1d

Re-reading the curriculum and assessment review's interim report, ready for final report's publication soon. Int that, while interim report states that 2011-13 curriculum review "aimed to create a curriculum that was 'knowledge-rich'", the term "knowledge-rich" didn't feature in 2011 framing doc.

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Warwick Mansell @warwickmansell.bsky.social · 1d

Tower Hamlets council, which funds the provision, says it is confident on reaching agreement with the union, though the latter says its key demands have not been met, with four more strike days scheduled for next week.

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Warwick Mansell @warwickmansell.bsky.social · 1d

It is calling for a cap on class sizes and guaranteed learning support in each class, to support what it says are “some of the most vulnerable kids in the country”.

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Warwick Mansell @warwickmansell.bsky.social · 1d

New: Union reaches 25th day of strikes over impact of closure of alternative provision facility in East London
educationuncovered.co.uk/news/union-r...
NEU has been raising concerns about impact of amalgamating two centres in Tower Hamlets, East London.

Education Uncovered | News| Union reaches 25th day of strikes over impact of closure of alternative provision facility in East London

NEU seeking to cap class sizes and guarantee learning support assistants at London East Alternative Provision centre.

educationuncovered.co.uk

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Warwick Mansell @warwickmansell.bsky.social · 2d

As mentioned, this piece follows up on a blog and underlying data published today by @fftedudatalab.bsky.social, which itself is viewable here: ffteducationdatalab.org.uk/2025/10/what...

What will be the impact of the Curriculum and Assessment Review on subject take-up at Key Stage 4? - FFT Education Datalab

With the publication of the Curriculum and Assessment Review imminent, we look at the extent to which schools offer different subjects at Key Stage 4, and how entry patterns have been changing in the ...

ffteducationdatalab.org.uk

Warwick Mansell @warwickmansell.bsky.social · 2d

All this comes with government’s curriculum and assessment review, the interim report of which considered the impact of Michael Gove’s EBacc, due imminently.

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Warwick Mansell @warwickmansell.bsky.social · 2d

This graph, for example, makes the point with regard to music, with “quintile 1” being schools with lowest 20% of FSM pupils, and “quintile 5” being those in highest 20% for FSM. www.datawrapper.de/_/PCYYC/

Percentage of schools with no pupils taking music qualifications at KS4, by FSM quintile | Created with Datawrapper

The graph compares schools in the most disadvantaged 20 per cent (quintile 5) and those in least disadvantaged (quintile 1)

www.datawrapper.de

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Warwick Mansell @warwickmansell.bsky.social · 2d

Some of these effects are particularly pronounced when grouping schools by levels of disadvantage. Disadvantage gaps – the proportion of high-FSM schools with no courses in particular subjects, compared to those with the least FSM- grew rapidly for D and T, music and performing arts.

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Warwick Mansell @warwickmansell.bsky.social · 2d

Design and tech, ICT/computing, religious studies and music have all seen the proportion of schools with no entries in the subject at KS4 growing rapidly since 2015.

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Warwick Mansell @warwickmansell.bsky.social · 2d

New statistics from @fftedudatalab.bsky.social provide fresh evidence of KS4 curriculum narrowing, with schools in disadvantaged communities hardest hit.

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Warwick Mansell @warwickmansell.bsky.social · 2d

New: Disadvantage gap for access to some subjects outside the EBacc core has grown dramatically in past 10 years, new data analysis shows
educationuncovered.co.uk/news/disadva...

Education Uncovered | News| Disadvantage gap for access to some subjects outside the EBacc core has grown dramatically in past 10 years, new data analysis shows

Children attending schools in poorer areas now much more likely than they were a decade ago not to be offered courses in design and technology, music, or performing arts.

educationuncovered.co.uk

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Warwick Mansell @warwickmansell.bsky.social · 2d

FFT also states:

"In our previous work on creative subjects we showed how schools with more disadvantaged cohorts were more likely not to offer creative subjects."

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Warwick Mansell @warwickmansell.bsky.social · 2d

New analysis by (the excellent) @fftedudatalab.bsky.social shows number of schools with no KS4 qual entries in Design+Tech, ICT, RS and music all at least doubling,2015-24. Will feed into debate re narrowing curriculum, ahead of curriculum review report: ffteducationdatalab.org.uk/2025/10/what...

Make a complaint

ico.org.uk

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Warwick Mansell @warwickmansell.bsky.social · 3d

Thanks, Peter.

Reposted by Warwick Mansell

Peter Lacey 🇺🇦 @ecarda1.bsky.social · 3d

Time back NCC designed a curriculum checking in with subject associations. It was about selecting what was beneficial to learning the subject. After which SEAC designed instruments to assess a sample of the intended curriculum. A separation of powers to ensure curriculum not reduced the testable.

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Warwick Mansell @warwickmansell.bsky.social · 3d

It will be interesting to see, too, if DfE will be open about the individuals/orgs selected to do the drafting.

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Warwick Mansell @warwickmansell.bsky.social · 3d

Am a bit surprised this has not generated more interest. Quite rare to see a DfE document setting out details of national curriculum development process, as it will happen after Prof Becky Francis's review and DfE response, expected next week.

Warwick Mansell @warwickmansell.bsky.social · 3d

Exclusive, I think: DfE seeks consultants for £500-a-day work to rewrite England’s national curriculum
educationuncovered.co.uk/news/dfe-see...
But would-be drafters of detailed programmes of study warned: you must not use AI.

Education Uncovered | News| DfE seeks consultants for £500-a-day work to rewrite England’s national curriculum

Invitation to tender document also reveals that ministers expect much of the detailed programmes of study work on the curriculum to be completed by next summer. But the instruction to consultants is: ...

educationuncovered.co.uk

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Warwick Mansell @warwickmansell.bsky.social · 3d

Very interesting comments under this piece now, including one stating: "If the NC [review] report does not include full exploration of, and citation of, robust critiques of current policies then people will question its independence."

Warwick Mansell @warwickmansell.bsky.social · 3d

Exclusive, I think: DfE seeks consultants for £500-a-day work to rewrite England’s national curriculum
educationuncovered.co.uk/news/dfe-see...
But would-be drafters of detailed programmes of study warned: you must not use AI.

Education Uncovered | News| DfE seeks consultants for £500-a-day work to rewrite England’s national curriculum

Invitation to tender document also reveals that ministers expect much of the detailed programmes of study work on the curriculum to be completed by next summer. But the instruction to consultants is: ...

educationuncovered.co.uk

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Warwick Mansell @warwickmansell.bsky.social · 3d

Any “consensus,” on that, if it did exist, was broken, of course, after Michael Gove and Nick Gibb came to power. But I digress…

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Warwick Mansell @warwickmansell.bsky.social · 3d

I quote from QCA’s 2007-08 annual report in this piece, in which it set out how it managed 2ndary curr review at that time, stating: “The debate reached a broad consensus: what was needed to meet the challenges of the 21st century was a more flexible framework allowing greater personalisation.”

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Warwick Mansell @warwickmansell.bsky.social · 3d

Pre-2010, the Qualifications and Curriculum Authority oversaw the curriculum writing and review process.

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Warwick Mansell @warwickmansell.bsky.social · 3d

Piece offers a look back at previous nc reviews. This doesn’t seem first instance of such outsourcing – my 2012 Guardian piece revealed that external adviser Ruth Miskin’s name appeared in doc properties as author of draft of primary English programme of study. www.theguardian.com/education/20...

The new national curriculum: made to order?

New questions are being asked about the framing of the planned primary curriculum

www.theguardian.com

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Warwick Mansell @warwickmansell.bsky.social · 3d

One for me is what seems a hectic timescale, with this process now demonstrably considerably faster than its counterpart was under Michael Gove during the coalition years.

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Warwick Mansell @warwickmansell.bsky.social · 3d

Ministers will stress that it is they who have the final say on national curriculum and associated content. But plenty of questions about all of this.

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Warwick Mansell @warwickmansell.bsky.social · 3d

Those wanting to apply for the programme of study/exam content drafting work have until next Tuesday to apply. They will have to pledge not to rely on tools such as ChatGPT, the doc states.

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