Rethinking the Primary Curriculum – A Call for Change
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This is a powerful response to the government’s curriculum review, urging policymakers to start with the youngest learners when shaping the future of education. As the letter to the Minister outlines, early childhood forms the foundation for lifelong learning – yet current policies risk undermining this crucial stage.
Dear Minister,
I am writing to you as chair of TACTYC: Together And Committed To Young Children in response to your curriculum review. TACTYC was founded in 1978 by a group of Early Years lecturers. Our membership has and continues to include some of the country’s leading experts in early education. It also includes not only those working in a research capacity, in higher education, further education, consultancy and advisory roles, but also those working directly with young children in a wide variety of settings including Primary schools. The period from birth to five is one of critical learning and development. It is here that attitudes and dispositions to learning find their foundation, and as we all know, you cannot build anything without a strong foundation.
While your review focuses predominantly on Key Stage 3 and 4, you have asked for responders to consider the extent to which the current primary curriculum prepares pupils to study the broad and balanced range of subjects they will enjoy when they reach Secondary school (question 28). Our response it that it does not. The fact that Primary schools include three key Stages: Early Years, Key Stage 1 and Key Stage 2 is often overlooked. We hope you will find the following useful when considering how to restructure the curriculum.
The ‘knowledge’ rich curriculum that impoverishes children’s experience
Unfortunately, your predecessor’s insistence on a testable ‘knowledge rich’ curriculum has led to a bland and joyless primary school experience for many children. The insistence on promoting systematic synthetic phonics as the only way to teach reading has destroyed the confidence of many children for whom this strategy is simply not appropriate. This applies particularly to the youngest learners, but the effects are evident in the data which shows us that 51% of children from disadvantaged backgrounds are not reaching expected standards of reading in KS1 (DfE, 2021) and 1 in 4 children leave Primary school unable to read to the required standard (DfE, 2022). These children are no longer reading for pleasure and this significantly impacts their educational outcomes in secondary school and beyond (The Literacy Trust, 2018). Systematic synthetic phonics is not the only way to teach children to read and to love reading, but it is a way that has been tried and failed. Secondary schools are now compensating by introducing phonics schemes in an attempt to offer additional support to encourage children to read, but for many, it is too late. This leaves them unable to access the broad and balanced curriculum available at secondary school.
If we are to build a firm foundation, we must help children to develop a love of reading. This means reviewing the emphasis on phonics in favour of a more balanced approach not just in primary schools but in early years too.
High stakes testing and the narrowing of the curriculum: counting the cost
Wyse and Bradbury (2022) point out that the frequency with which assessment practice have changed over the last few decades makes meaningful comparisons about long term trends in attainment challenging, particularly as teaching to the test has become the norm in primary schools throughout England.
The impact of the assessment culture on pupil’s mental health and wellbeing is well documented (Bradbury and Roberts-Holmes, 2017; Walker et al, 2014 for example). Abusive policies that have insisted on formal testing for younger and younger children have taken a toll on retention too and this is also unsustainable (Perryman, 2022). The independent commission for assessment in primary education (ICAPE) (2022) point out that the purpose of assessment should be to improve and progress learning, not to hold teachers and schools to account. New and more supportive ways of assessing the quality of schools and teaching within them are possible, and the removal of high steaks testing would enable Primary schools to ensure a broader, more balanced curriculum was in place. This would include the removal of the phonics screening assessment in Year 1 (which in much of the developed world, would still be considered part of the Early Years) and of Baseline assessment in Reception.
Our recommendations follow those of ICAPE, any review of the current curriculum must include a review of existing assessment practices so that, rather than destroying children’s confidence from an early age, we build a firm foundation for future learning.
A 21st Century Curriculum
The OECD (2019) and World Economic Forum (2016) have identified a set of 6 foundational literacies, 4 competences and 6 character qualities necessary in the 21st century workplace. These literacies, competencies and characteristics are already embedded in the statutory framework for the Early Years Foundation Stage (2024) but our ability to support the development of creative critical thinkers, with high levels of social and cultural awareness, civic and cultural literacy and the ability to communicate and collaborate with others is compromised by the constant erosion of play based pedagogy.
It is widely recognised that young children learn predominantly through play but top down pressure to perform in statutory assessments has led to the over direction of play and promotion of teaching over learning. There are strong links between play and computational thinking (DfE, 2013) and the essential power of play for the continued growth of new technologies is promoted in The Children’s Alliance’s Power of Play report (2024). If our curriculum is to develop the critical thinkers of tomorrow, we must provide children with opportunities to play today. This requires a highly skilled workforce who understand how to support children’s play.
Our recommendation is to ensure there is sufficient focus on practical work, playing and exploring, active learning and creating and thinking critically within the curriculum not only to support transition to Key Stage 1, but also to ensure children develop the literacies, competencies and characteristics they need to thrive in the 21st century. While it is beyond the remit of this review, we would also strongly encourage you to review the ITT core content framework to ensure that there is sufficient focus on early learning and development and play based pedagogy to ensure our teachers have the skills and understanding they need.
A curriculum for everyone
Finally, we urge you to consider the urgent need to decolonise the curriculum, to ensure that it represents and celebrates diversity. In this way we can build cultural and social awareness and ensure that all children and staff feel valued and respected. The movement to decolonise education began in universities but once again, we would urge you to begin with a firm foundation. An anti-racist approach is necessary to reduce the discrepancies in educational outcomes between different minority groups, increase the number of minority teachers and promote a more harmonious society (NEU, 2024). We hope that your review will highlight numerous ways we can achieve this aim but, once again, we return to the early years foundation stage were our practice is built around the needs and interests of the unique child and we focus intently on building positive relationships with every child and their family in an enabling environment which reflects their needs and interests. While guidance is welcome, there must be enough flexibility for cultural responsiveness so that schools can ensure that every child, every family and every teacher is included.
Since you have come into office, your commitment to rebuilding the relationship between policy makers and educators has been evident. Within weeks, the reliance on one word judgements from Ofsted had gone, the words ‘free childcare’ were replaced with ‘funded childcare’ and you have reversed the unsustainable 20 hours mentoring programme introduced by your predecessors and encouraged those who lost their ITE accreditation to reapply. These are bold steps and we urge you to continue to be bold.
Yours sincerely
TACTYC
The Children’s Alliance (2024). The Power of Play. Available at: https://childrensalliance.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/Play-Policy-18Apr2024-Childrens-Alliance.pdf
DfE. (2022). National curriculum assessments at Key Stage 2 in England 2022.
Independent commission on assessment in primary education. (2022). Assessment for Children’s learning: A new future for primary education. Available at:
https://www.icape.org.uk/reports/NEU2762_ICAPE_final_report_A4_web_version.pdf
National education Union. (2024). Framework for developing an anti-racist approach. Available at: https://neu.org.uk/sites/default/files/2024-09/NEU2532%20Anti-racist%20framework%202024%20WEB.pdf
National Literacy Trust. (2018). Mental wellbeing, reading and writing' Report. Available at: https://nlt.cdn.ngo/media/documents/Mental_wellbeing_reading_and_writing_2017-18_-_FINAL2_qTxyxvg.pdf
OECD. (2019). Transformative competencies for 2030. Available at:
Perryman, J. (2022). Teacher Retention In and Age of Performativity: Target Culture and the discourse of disappointment. London: Routledge.
World Economic Forum. (2016). New Vision for Education: Fostering Social and Emotional Learning through Technology. Available at: https://www3.weforum.org/docs/WEF_New_Vision_for_Education.pdf
