Curriculum for Excellence update September 2008

Draft experiences and outcomes - research on feedback

Many thanks to all those who have provided feedback on the draft experiences and outcomes. Glasgow University was commissioned to collate and analyse this feedback and has now completed an interim report involving data from online questionnaires, trialling and stakeholder focus groups.

Overall, the feedback shows educationalists are pleased with the scope the draft guidance gives for flexibility and creativity, for links across the curriculum and the increasing trust in their professional judgement. It demonstrates that the engagement process has been successful in offering the profession a voice and that the education profession is fully involved in shaping the future of education in Scotland.

The findings will now be used to discuss what action is to be taken and agree revisions with key partners as well as considering priorities for providing support and exemplification.

This work is already under way and you will find examples of good practice case studies, pedagogy papers and senior management thinking group reports below and on the Curriculum for Excellence website. This advice will be expanded, covering key points within Building the Curriculum 3, over the coming months.

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Final deadline on feedback

Don’t miss your chance to give feedback on the religious and moral education, religious education, technologies, and health and wellbeing draft experiences and outcomes. The online questionnaires close on 30 November 2008. This is your chance to get involved and play a part in the process of finalising the draft experiences and outcomes. Your feedback is critical to the successful improvement of the new curriculum.

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National Qualifications Consultation Engagement

The Scottish Government Consultation on the Next Generation of National Qualifications in Scotland is under way and will run until 31 October 2008. Five National Consultation workshops are being held across Scotland to provide information and gather views from stakeholders. It is hoped that a wide range of people will participate in these events including teachers, parents, carers, business representatives and local authority staff. The workshops will be held in Inverness (29 Sept), Edinburgh (2 Oct), Dundee (3 Oct), Glasgow (7 Oct) and Ayr (9 Oct). Directors of Education have been invited to nominate a number of attendees, including teachers, parents and local authority staff. If you would like more detail of these workshops, please email Qualifications Consultation.

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Pedagogy

Curriculum for Excellence has reinvigorated the debate on how to improve the quality of learning experiences for children and young people. A number of people share their personal views on learning and teaching in a range of papers on the approaches to pedagogy enabled by Curriculum for Excellence and their experience in the context of Curriculum for Excellence. The latest paper in this series is from Dawn Wighton, Depute Headteacher of Glenlee Primary School. Graeme Logan, Headteacher of Peel Primary School, West Lothian, outlines his views on what he believes teaching for excellence means within the values and principles of Curriculum for Excellence.

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Latest resources

The two recently released DVDs, 'Curriculum for Excellence - The Story So Far' and 'Curriculum for Excellence - Information for Parents and Carers' are also available to view online. The first DVD shows the ways in which two schools are putting the draft experiences and outcomes into practice. The second aims to explain to parents and carers how and why Curriculum for Excellence is changing the learning experiences for children and young people - further information on this below.

A new poster that illustrates how all aspects of Curriculum for Excellence come together to build the Scottish curriculum will be distributed to all schools and centres.

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Engaging with parents and carers

There is a growing awareness amongst parents of Curriculum for Excellence. This has been partly stimulated by the key focus on Curriculum for Excellence at the National Parents Conference on 7 June. Many schools are also working hard to keep parents abreast of curriculum developments, sharing information and beginning to engage with parents and carers around what Curriculum for Excellence means. For example, the pupils of Harrysmuir Primary in West Lothian held a fantastic event for their parents and carers called Flying High 2 Excellence. The programme involved the children explaining and showing what Curriculum for Excellence meant.

Some schools have invited parents to see Curriculum for Excellence in action. For example, at Meldrum Primary in Aberdeenshire, as an introduction to demonstrating Curriculum for Excellence, the whole community was able to experience a local history day to celebrate the 700th anniversary of the Battle of Barra. The day had been organised to show the range of skills and learning experiences that had taken place throughout the term, but had been brought together in one big event.

To help discussion at school level a new DVD is now available for parents, which has been sent to all Parent Councils and headteachers. Parentzone and Parents as Partners in Learning websites also continue to be developed to help share practice and ideas.

Parents are key stakeholders of Curriculum for Excellence, as well as being vital to supporting children’s learning. We need to work with them to address any concerns they may have and to keep them involved and on board throughout this period of change.

Further information, advice and support for parental involvement is available from Lorraine Sanda, National Parental Involvement Co-ordinator: l.sanda@LTScotland.org.uk.

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Classroom practice

The website features case studies and descriptors to give teachers more of a feel for the sort of methodologies that should become increasingly common in our classrooms. Examples from Inverclyde Council describe the background and whole-year planning it has undertaken as it prepares for Curriculum for Excellence.

Watch St Margaret's High School pupils describe how they undertook a study linking music and business management.

Find out how pupils at Balfron High School benefited from a project which brought them together as teams working in PE, design and technology.

Learn how Glenlee Primary School is developing continuity from nursery to primary, as part of the implementation of Curriculum for Excellence

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Sharing practice inspiration

Supporting parents in North Lanarkshire

Enlisting the support of parents in achieving the four capacities is high on the agenda at St Monica’s Primary in North Lanarkshire. The school has spent considerable time over the past year helping parents understand how learning and teaching has changed, particularly around the approaches to active learning in P1-P3. Headteacher Ellen Trainer appreciates that for many parents these approaches will be very different from their own experience of school. A collaborative and sensitive approach by the principal teacher, educational psychologist, family support worker, class teachers and assistants has placed a great focus on helping parents experience some of these new approaches. They were then able to move forward with sessions to think about what parents and other family members could do to support the four capacities at home. The success is evident in the way that the children have developed greater confidence in language and communication skills, with results in terms of literacy and numeracy too. The headteacher is clear that the support and involvement of parents and other family members is fundamental to the success of what they are trying to achieve in Curriculum for Excellence.

Contact details: Headteacher: Ellen Trainer - ht@st-monicas.n-lanarkshire.school.uk

The Bo’ness Fair (social studies)

St Mary's Primary School in Falkirk provided an excellent example of how to successfully incorporate social studies experiences and outcomes into an existing topic - The Bo’ness Fair. This traditional annual fair in Bo’ness acted as the focus for a whole variety of activities involving pupils from all stages. From a social studies perspective, pupils investigated various aspects of the fair including the history of the fair, which they displayed in timelines, relating this to their own personal timelines, Victorian Bo’ness and mapping skills. Some of the groups also contacted and interviewed people within the community who were able to share their recollections of the fair from years gone by.

Contact details: Headteacher: Julie Hanlon

Tel: 01506 778 380
Web: http://www.st-marys.falkirk.sch.uk/

Blast from the past (social studies)

Pupils from Dunoon Grammar in Argyll and Bute took part in a project which focused on interdisciplinary working between the social studies and business education departments at the school. Pupils researched key figures and events from the Wars of Independence and used this information to prepare an interviewer and interviewee script. Pupils considered the clothing of the time to ensure their 'blast from the past' activity would demonstrate an accurate replication of the time.

To prepare the virtual news programme 'Blast from the Past', pupils learned how to use a digital video camera and learned to use and understand the initial concepts of Chroma Key technology and the associated software required to complete the virtual news programme. Throughout, pupils demonstrated collaborative working and decision-making skills.

Contact details: PT Modern Studies and History: Joe Glancy
PT Business Studies: Paul Gallanagh
Tel: 01369 705 010   
Web: www.dunoongrammar.argyll-bute.sch.uk/ 

The Victorians (technologies)

Pupils at Aberlady Primary School in East Lothian will be studying ‘The Victorians’ in the new term. To incorporate technologies experiences and outcomes in the plan they intend to investigate Victorian toys and how mechanisms were used to create movement. They will then take this knowledge forward and apply their learning through a design challenge with the pupils working in teams to create mechanical toys of their own. Stage two of their work is going to focus on the use of ICT when the newly created mechanical toys become the central characters in an animated sequence that pupils will plan, film and edit.

Contact details: Headteacher: Miss P. Curran aberlady.ps@eastlothian.gov.uk 
Tel: 01875 870 232

Making smoothies (mathematics and numeracy)

As part of trialling the mathematics and numeracy draft experiences and outcomes, children at Crawfordyke Primary School in South Lanarkshire embarked on a project to make and sell smoothies. Pupils carried out market research before buying a smoothie maker, cups and ingredients, by contacting local retailers to compare prices and check availability. Calculating the cost to be just over 10p to make one smoothie, they chose to set the price at 20p per smoothie. The children were then organised into groups of five, each child choosing a role in advertising, quality control, sales, accounts or presentation. The smoothies were sold over five days and a spreadsheet of income and expenditure was kept over this period. An overall profit of £14.09 was made. Handling real money made the whole experience more meaningful and relevant as did the use of local shops in a real-life context.

Hamewith care home project (expressive arts)

Children from Marchburn Infant School in Aberdeen City Council entertained the elderly residents of Hamewith care home by organising an event where they sang Scottish songs, in memory of Gwen Mayor, the teacher killed in the Dunblane tragedy. By obtaining a £150 grant from the EIS Gwen Mayor Trust, the school was able to buy a fruit bowl and a vase for the children to sponge paint, some fruit and vegetables, and tartan material so that the children could wear sashes. The children sang favourite songs like ‘Ye cannae shove yer granny aff a bus’, ‘Three Craws sat upon a wall’ and ‘I am a dingle dangle scarecrow’. 

The project encompassed many of the generic outcomes and the overarching principles of the expressive arts draft experiences and outcomes. It was an enjoyable experience for both the children and the care home residents and greatly boosted the children’s confidence.

Jim Scott (CST Expressive Arts) Jiscott@aberdeencity.gov.uk

A whole school approach to writing (literacy)

The Royal School of Dunkeld has taken a refreshing approach to writing to encompass the draft literacy experiences and outcomes. The children each work to their own individual targets, which they then evaluate and assess using success criteria provided by the school. Children are encouraged to share their work to develop confidence and self-esteem and to model good practice, and their writing is displayed around the school for others to read and enjoy. Increased quality time is spent on writing, with children being encouraged to write extended pieces with a number of words set, to give them a challenge. Motivation is increased by real-life writing tasks and this provides good opportunities for cross-curricular writing.

Callander Youth Project

Since January 2006, Callander Youth Project has been working in partnership with McLaren High School to deliver an additional support programme called Compass. This programme offers personal development and employability activities for participants as part of a flexible curriculum timetable, making use of the Duke of Edinburgh Award to provide structure and certification for activities such as physical recreation, volunteering in the community, skills development, and outward bound activities. In addition, young people on the programme receive numeracy and literacy tutoring, skills for life training, work placements, and transition planning, all managed through an informal youth work approach. Project activities are based on individual Action Plans that are written with participants on entering the project, setting targets and quality outcomes that are reviewed every term and changed where necessary. As a whole, the project fits neatly with the Curriculum for Excellence agenda within the high school, providing participants with an engaging, flexible, and alternative school experience that produces successful learners and positive transitions. Compass participants develop strengths from which they can achieve the success, knowledge and confidence required to access meaningful employment and training, and to equip them to become valued and valuable citizens within society. 

Contact details: Ruth Jack, Project Manager Callander Youth Project info@cyp.org.uk 
Peter Martin, Headteacher McLaren High School martinp@stirling.gov.uk

Financial awareness at Lossiemouth High School

In partnership with UK Youth, pupils at Lossiemouth High School undertook the course ‘Developing Financial Awareness’, a resource developed by UK Youth. A group of 21 pupils were identified as potential beneficiaries, and timetabled for one hour per week until June 2009 (ie two years).

The core activities covered budgeting, financial planning and personal risk management. Once pupils became engaged in their learning they started to explore their values and attitudes to money and share issues they had experienced with the staff. They stated that the relationship that they built up with the staff was very important. Feedback from pupils, the school staff and families was extremely positive. The staff have learnt to appreciate and learn from each other's skill base and the pupils reported that they are much more aware of the budgetary decisions their parents have to make and now frequently use the websites available to secure advice or better deals on mobile phone or credit card offers. Through project work their maths and social skills have improved and within the community they have built bridges with independent youth projects that they were previously excluded from. The group unanimously agreed that the course 'prepares you for life' and would recommend it to others. Their folders will be presented for moderation for the Youth Achievement Award in September 2008 and the group has been asked to undertake the financial management for school activities week next year!

Contact details: David Millar, Community Learning and Development Service, The Moray Council david.millar@moray.gov.uk
Don Carthew, Depute Headteacher, Lossiemouth High School donnie.carthew@moray-edunet.gov.uk

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Previous email updates

The June 2008 email update contains a message from the education minister Fiona Hyslop.