Welsh schools 'feel positive about development of new curriculum'

Welsh schools involved in the development of the country's new curriculum are generally convinced that positive progress is being made.

This is according to a new report from the Welsh government, which assessed the attitudes among "pioneer schools" taking part in this project of how work on the development of the new curriculum is proceeding.

It was shown that schools generally feel supported and confident in their work developing the six different Areas of Learning and Experience (AoLE), which will make up the new curriculum when it is rolled out from 2022 onwards.

These six areas are expressive arts; health and wellbeing; humanities, including compulsory religious education up to age 16; languages, literacy and communication, including mandatory Welsh lessons up to age 16; mathematics and numeracy; and science and technology.

Interviews carried out as part of the new research also showed that schools feel confident that they understand the aims and objectives of these AoLE groups, and are happy with how they are being run. Additionally, they said they felt sufficiently supported to make independent progress and to work collaboratively with other schools.

Welsh education secretary Kirsty Williams said: "Our pioneer schools are at the heart of the process of designing the new curriculum. That's why it's so important for us to listen to their views and act on them accordingly.

"There will always be challenges when introducing a new curriculum, but it's encouraging to know that schools are feeling confident and supported in taking this vital work forwards."

The government has pledged to continue to monitor the progress of the development process and consider feedback to ensure the curriculum is fully fit for purpose, with all maintained schools and settings expected to be using the new curriculum and assessment arrangements by September 2022.