新学年开始，英国中小学教学大纲有较大改变，数学英语和电脑应用都更“难”了，更加强调 “essay writing, problem-solving, mathematical modelling and computer programming”. 主要的变化就是（1）数学增加难度（比如五岁就引入分数）减少计算器的使用，（2）ICT方面不再教怎么用电脑这种最基本的技能，而是从五岁就开始教编程（programming）和算法（algorithm）一直到14岁，（3）英语5岁要会背诗到14岁要学过两个莎士比亚剧，（4）语言，小学阶段就必须学一门外语，（5）科学：8岁要会搭电路，小学要学进化论，14岁要会背元素周期表，（6）历史：重点要偏向英国历史，14岁要搞明白从石器时代到NHS成立这个时期的英国主要历史。
个人对英国“教改”的看法：（1）非常赞同教孩子编程(programming)，怎么用office等根本不需要在学校教孩子学会了也提高不了孩子的技能，但不知道突然间那里有这么多老师会教programming，另外家长辅导孩子更有挑战性了。
（2）数学：非常支持减少计算器的使用，但增加难度和内容完全不可能改善学生的数学技能和知识，目前的数学大纲内容完全不需要增加，关键的问题是要教好教懂了，少学少教学懂了强过学的多但一知半解，现在数学老师教现有内容就困难（说实话合格的数学老师太少了:L ），增加难度只会减少数学老师的“有效性”。（3）英国学生是应该学点外语，但历史学习注重本国历史不是让英国学生更缺乏国际眼光了，（4）英语学习是应该加强essay writing的技能但也不需要学老莎啊。
总之感觉这次教学大纲改革是政客主导的不是教育家和老师主导的。
Pupils begin ‘tough’ new national curriculum
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/education-28987787
Millions of children in England will begin a “tough” new national curriculum when they return to school this week. Five-year-olds will learn fractions and computer coding, while those in early secondary school will have to study at least two Shakespeare plays. The curriculum is being implemented for most year groups simultaneously.
Teachers’ leaders say the timetable is unrealistic, but the Department for Education said its aim was to prepare children for “life in modern Britain”. A spokesman said the government wanted “all children to learn the core knowledge in key subjects - the ones universities and employers value the most”.
All local authority primary and secondary schools have to start teaching the new national curriculum from the start of term. It is not compulsory for academies - which are now a majority of secondary schools. The rewritten national curriculum, described by the prime minister as “rigorous, engaging and tough”, sets out the framework for what children should be taught between the ages of five and 14.
Former education secretary Michael Gove has said changes were necessary for England to keep pace with the most successful education systems in the world.
The new-look curriculum puts a stronger emphasis on skills such as “essay writing, problem-solving, mathematical modelling and computer programming”.
In primary schools where the most significant changes are in maths, English and computing, pupils going into Years 2 and 6 this year will continue with the old curriculum in English, maths and science, so they can sit national tests at the end of the year.
Russell Hobby, general secretary of the National Association of Head Teachers, said teachers had worked hard to prepare for the new curriculum over the past year. He said he was confident they would cope with its implementation but he warned there could be some difficulties with maths, where more advanced topics are to be taught at a younger age.
‘A lot of cramming’
“One of the mistakes in the implementation of the curriculum is that it’s all being implemented at once,” he said. “In maths you need to learn the early concepts before you learn the later concepts, so there is a problem that there will be children who have not learned the earlier concepts before being expected to learn the more demanding ones.” Mr Hobby warned that there would have to be “a lot of cramming in maths this year” as whole classes are made to catch up with the new demands. He added: “The worst thing you can do with maths is rush ahead.”
The Association of Teachers and Lecturers has warned that many of its members feel their schools are not yet prepared to teach the new curriculum. The association’s education policy adviser, Jill Stokoe, said: “Teachers are saying they haven’t had enough information and some people really haven’t got to grips with the new curriculum. What we are saying to them is to use their judgement.” She added that there were particular problems with maths introducing some quite complex ideas for very young children.
The history curriculum takes primary pupils through British history from the Stone Age to the Normans. They can also study a later era, such as the Victorians. “Significant individuals” to be studied include Elizabeth I, Neil Armstrong, Rosa Parks and suffragette Emily Davison. Secondary schools will teach British history from 1066 to 1901, followed by Britain, Europe and world events from 1901, including the Holocaust and Winston Churchill
Maths will expect more at an earlier age. There will be a requirement for pupils to learn their 12 times table by the age of nine. Basic fractions, such as half or a quarter, will be taught to five-year-olds. By the end of Year 2, pupils should know the number bonds to 20 and be precise in using and understanding place value
English will strengthen the importance of Shakespeare, with pupils between the ages of 11 and 14 expected to have studied two of his plays. Word lists for eight- and nine-year-olds include “medicine” and “knowledge”, by 10 and 11 they should be spelling “accommodate” and “rhythm”
Science will shift towards a stronger sense of hard facts and “scientific knowledge”. In primary school, there will be new content on the solar system, speed and evolution. In secondary school, there will be a clearer sense of the separate subjects of physics, biology and chemistry. Climate change will also be included
Design and technology is linked to innovation and digital industries. Pupils will learn about 3D printing and robotics
Computing will teach pupils how to write code. Pupils aged five to seven will be expected to “understand what algorithms are” and to “create and debug simple programs”. By the age of 11, pupils will have to “design, use and evaluate computational abstractions that model the state and behaviour of real-world problems and physical systems”
The Department for Education said the reforms reflected the government’s desire to “ensure every child leaves school prepared for life in modern Britain”.
“We believe it is right that changes are made as soon as possible to benefit the most young people,” a spokesperson said.
“We are confident that all the reforms can be implemented within our planned timeframe which is a testament to the dedication of our high-quality teaching profession.”
New school year, new curriculum: Compulsory foreign languages for primary pupils and lessons in computer coding
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2739412/Pupils-facing-tough-new-curriculum-school-year-starts-Foreign-languages-compulsory-primary-schools-children-learn-computer-programming-biggest-shake-decade.html
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2739412/Pupils-facing-tough-new-curriculum-school-year-starts-Foreign-languages-compulsory-primary-schools-children-learn-computer-programming-biggest-shake-decade.html#ixzz3DO0LYafY
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After six weeks of summer holidays, children can find it quite a shock to be back at school. But when term resumes this week, it may be even tougher than usual. For the country is about to undergo the biggest education shake-up in a decade with a new, tougher national curriculum. And further changes are planned, with Education Secretary Nicky Morgan saying the Conservatives will pledge at the next election to make every pupil study five core academic subjects until they are 16.
Education Secretary Nicky Morgan saying the Conservatives will pledge at the next election to make every pupil study five core academic subjects until they are 16
Under the new curriculum, children aged five will have to recite poetry by heart, 11-year-olds will sit maths exams without calculators and teenagers will study at least two Shakespeare plays. Computer programming will be taught from five to 14, and foreign languages will be made compulsory at primary school.
There will be a new emphasis on spelling and grammar, and history will focus on the story of Britain.
The more traditional curriculum is the culmination of a four-year campaign started by Michael Gove. His successor Mrs Morgan has pledged to continue the drive.
But many parents have been left in the dark and teachers say they are not ready to teach the material. Two-thirds of parents are totally unaware of the changes, a survey of 1,000 by the tuition firm Explore Learning found. And six out of ten teachers say their schools are not prepared, a poll by the Association of Teachers and Lecturers showed. The curriculum was finalised last September – which eight out of ten teachers said left too little time to make changes. In the survey of 618 teachers, nine out of ten labelled the Department for Education’s approach ‘chaotic’ or ‘flawed’. Nansi Ellis, of the ATL, said: ‘The Government has rushed through the biggest change to the national curriculum in a decade.
A headteacher on the new tougher national curriculum ‘Children . . . face an uncertain time as their teachers are still trying to make sense of the new curriculum. It is extremely unfair to jeopardise young people’s education through what seems to be national mismanagement of change.’ Carey Ann Dodah, of Explore Learning, said: ‘The curriculum is a response to fears that England is slipping behind international competitors and there are some drastic changes.’ Meanwhile, Mrs Morgan said the Tories will press for more reforms if they win the election. She laid out plans yesterday for all pupils to study GCSE English, maths, science, one language and either history or geography. Schools that do not teach the five subjects – which together make up an ‘English baccalaureate’ – will not be eligible for a ‘good’ rating from Ofsted, she said. ‘We want students to be able to keep their options open for as long as possible,’ Mrs Morgan added.
She said that while students in wealthy areas already learn these subjects, ‘that is not always happening in less advantaged areas’.
A Department for Education spokesman said teachers had time to prepare for the changes, adding: ‘We will not stand by and allow pupils to lose ground with peers in countries across the world.’
