8. Impact of the curriculum The success of the curriculum will always be measured by a range of hard and soft measurements. These include formal exam results, unit awards, access to employment, independent living, attendance, pupil voice, leavers destinations to name a few. All these outcomes are evaluated every year as can be seen through our yearly Exam results tracking document, Leavers destinations tracking documen t, students’ curriculum and timetable survey to ensure that the curriculum continues to meet the needs of our students.
Appendix A: Key Principles of Curriculum Design Dylan Williams (Principled Curriculum Design)
In summary, Dylan Williams describes 7 strands to the curriculum and encourages schools to look at the balance between the strands to ensure that it meets the needs of the cohort
Balanced: Promotes intellectual, moral, spiritual, aesthetic, creative, emotional and physical development as equally important.
Rigorous: Seeks to develop intra-disciplinary habits of mind; the subject matter is taught in a way that is faithful to its discipline.
Coherent: Makes explicit connections and links between the different subjects/experiences encountered.
Vertically Integrated: Focuses on progression by carefully sequencing knowledge; provides clarity about what “getting better” at the subject means.
Appropriate: Looks to avoid making unreasonable demands by matching level of challenge to a pupil’s current level of maturity/knowledge.
Focused: Seeks to keep the curriculum manageable by teaching the most important knowledge; identifies the big ideas or key concepts within a subject.
Relevant: Seeks to connect the valued outcomes of a curriculum to the pupils being taught it; provides opportunities for pupils to make informed choices
Curriculum design priorities for different key stages Our current thinking is to design the curriculum with the following priorities for each key stage
Key Stage 1 & 2
Key Stage 3
Key Stage 4
Key Stage 5 Relevance
coherent focused
coherent focused
Rigorous
vertically integrated
Rigorous
appropriate
appropriate
appropriate
vertically integrated
balanced
balanced rigorous
balanced Relevant Focused coherent
Appropriate
vertically integrated
Balanced Coherent Focused
relevant rigorous
vertically integrated
relevant
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