The National Curriculum was introduced into England, Wales and Northern Ireland as a nationwide curriculum for primary and secondary state schools following the Education Reform Act 1988. England is a Country which is part of the United Kingdom. Its inhabitants account for more than 83% of the total UK population whilst its mainland Northern Ireland (Tuaisceart Éireann Ulster Scots: Norlin Airlann) is a Country within the United Kingdom, lying in the northeast of Primary education is the first stage of Compulsory education. Australia See also Education Public education is education mandated for or offered to the children of the general public by the Government, whether national regional or local provided by an institution The Education Reform Act of 1988 is widely regarded as the most important single piece of Education Legislation in England, Wales Notwithstanding its name, it does not apply to Independent Schools, which by definition are free to set their own curriculum, but it ensures that state schools of all Local Education Authorities have a common curriculum. An independent school is a school which is not dependent upon national or local Government for financing its operation and is instead operated by tuition charges gifts and

The Education Reform Act 1988 requires that all state students be taught a Basic Curriculum of Religious Education and the National Curriculum. In Secular usage religious education is the Teaching of a particular Religion (although in England the term religious instruction would refer

The purpose of the National Curriculum was to ensure that certain basic material was covered by all pupils. In subsequent years the curriculum grew to fill the entire teaching time of most state schools.

Contents 1 Principal Aims & Purposes 2 Statutory Subjects 2.1 Core and foundation subjects 2.2 Additional Entitlements 2.2.1 Primary Education 2.2.2 Secondary Education 3 National Curriculum Assessment 4 See also 5 References 6 External links 6.1 Concerning Assessment

Principal Aims & Purposes

There are two principal aims and four main purposes set out in the National Curriculum documentation^[1]:

• Aim 1: The school curriculum should aim to provide opportunities for all pupils to learn and to achieve.

• Aim 2: The school curriculum should aim to promote pupils' spiritual, moral, social and cultural development and prepare all pupils for the opportunities, responsibilities and experiences of life. Spirituality, in a narrow sense concerns itself with matters of the Spirit, a concept closely tied to religious belief and Faith, a transcendent reality A moral is a message conveyed or a lesson to be learned from a story or event Definition In the absence of agreement about its meaning the term "social" is used in many different senses referring among other things to attitudes Culture (from the Latin cultura stemming from colere, meaning "to cultivate" generally refers to patterns of human activity and the symbolic

• Purpose 1: To establish an entitlement

• Purpose 2: To establish standards

• Purpose 3: To promote continuity and coherence

• Purpose 4: To promote public understanding

Statutory Subjects

Core and foundation subjects

The table below lists those subjects which form a statutory part of the National Curriculum under the Education Act 2002 (Part 6) as updated. The Education Act 2002 is a United Kingdom Act of Parliament which received Royal Assent on 24 July 2002 ^[2][3][4]

Subject	Key Stage 1 (age 5-7)	Key Stage 2 (age 7-11)	Key Stage 3 (age 11-14)	Key Stage 4 (age 14-16)
English	*
Mathematics
Science
Art & Design
Citizenship
Design & Technology
Geography
History
Information & Communication Technology				*
Modern Foreign Languages
Music
Physical Education
Work-related Learning
Welsh (Wales only)

*English is not statutory in Key Stage 1 in Welsh-medium schools in Wales *ICT is not statutory at KS4 in Wales. Key Stage 1 is the legal term for the two years of schooling in maintained schools in England and Wales normally known as Year 1 and Year 2 when pupils are aged between 5 and 7 Key Stage 2 is the legal term for the four years of schooling in maintained schools in England and Wales normally known as Year 3 Year 4 Year 5 and Year 6 when pupils are aged between Key Stage 3 is the legal term for the three years of schooling in maintained schools in England and Wales normally known as Year 7 Year 8 and Year 9 when Key Stage 4 is the legal term for the last two years of compulsory schooling in maintained schools in England, Wales and Northern Ireland - normally known

Additional Entitlements

In all maintained schools, provision is made for the requirement to offer a course in Religious Education under the Education Act 1996. Parents have the right to withdraw pupils from this if they wish. ^[5] In addition, at all Key Stages, the Department for Children, Schools and Families suggests that pupils are offered provision in Personal, Social and Health Education, although this is not statutory. The Department for Children Schools and Families ( DCSF) is a British government department created on 28 June 2007 following the disbanding of the Personal Social and Health Education (PSHE is an element of the State school Curriculum in England. ^[2]

In some Key Stages there are additional entitlements which form part of the National Curriculum, but for which prescribed programmes of study are not clearly set out.

Primary Education

Primary schools, while not required to include Sex education in the curriculum are advised by the government to include a programme of education which is rooted in the PSHE curriculum which covers topics such as puberty and adolescence. Sex education is a broad term used to describe Education about human sexual anatomy, Sexual reproduction, Sexual intercourse, Reproductive Schools should maintain a policy outlining what will be covered in their programme, and parents maintain a right to withdraw their pupils from such courses. ^[6]

Secondary Education

The Education Act 1996 requires that all pupils in secondary education are provided with a programme of Sex education, including education about AIDS, HIV and other sexually-transmitted diseases. Sex education is a broad term used to describe Education about human sexual anatomy, Sexual reproduction, Sexual intercourse, Reproductive Human immunodeficiency virus ( HIV) is a Lentivirus (a member of the Retrovirus family that can lead to acquired immunodeficiency syndrome A sexually transmitted disease ( STD) or venereal disease ( VD) is an illness that has a significant probability of transmission between Humans While a statutory provision, this does not form part of the National Curriculum, and parents have a right to remove their children from this provision. ^[5]

The Education Act 1997 (as amended) requires that all pupils in Key Stages 3 and 4 be provided with a programme of Careers education. Careers education classes are where pupils learn what subjects they need to take for the job they want in the future then have to decide three subjects to take in Key Stage 4 This does not form part of the National Curriculum but is a statutory entitlement for all pupils. ^[7][8]

Schools are required, under the amendments to the Education Act of 2002, to provide at least one course for those pupils who wish to study it, in each of the entitlement areas at Key Stage 4. These are: the Arts; Design and Technology; the Humanities; and a Modern Foreign Language. The arts is a broad subdivision of Culture, composed of many expressive disciplines. Design and Technology (also Craft Design and Technology, D&T, D The humanities are academic disciplines which study the Human condition, using methods that are primarily Analytic, Critical, or Speculative Language education includes the Teaching and Learning of a Language. ^[3]

National Curriculum Assessment

Main article: National Curriculum assessment

Assessments are carried out at three ages: seven (school year 2, at the end of Key Stage 1), eleven (Year 6, the end of Key Stage 2) and fourteen (Year 9, the end of Key Stage 3). National Curriculum assessments are a series of educational assessments used to assess the attainment of children attending maintained schools in England. Key Stage 1 is the legal term for the two years of schooling in maintained schools in England and Wales normally known as Year 1 and Year 2 when pupils are aged between 5 and 7 Key Stage 2 is the legal term for the four years of schooling in maintained schools in England and Wales normally known as Year 3 Year 4 Year 5 and Year 6 when pupils are aged between Key Stage 3 is the legal term for the three years of schooling in maintained schools in England and Wales normally known as Year 7 Year 8 and Year 9 when Some aspects of subjects are teacher-assessed, whilst others involve sitting an examination paper. In Education, a teacher is one who helps Students or pupils often in a School, as well as in a Family, religious or To examine somebody or something is to inspect it closely hence an examination is a detailed inspection or analysis of an object or person The results are considered when school and LEA performance league tables are being compiled, but they do not lead to any formal qualification for the candidates taking them. A league table is a Chart or list which compares sports teams institutions or companies by ranking them in order of ability or achievement

See also

• Education in England
• Education in Northern Ireland
• Education in Wales

References

External links

• National Curriculum online official website
• New Secondary National Curriculum for England
• Department for Children, Schools and Families (England)
• Welsh Assembly Government (Wales)
• Department of Education (Northern Ireland)

Concerning Assessment

• UK government info on assessments at age 7
• UK government info on assessments at age 11
• UK government info on assessments at age 14

England is a Country which is part of the United Kingdom. Its inhabitants account for more than 83% of the total UK population whilst its mainland Northern Ireland (Tuaisceart Éireann Ulster Scots: Norlin Airlann) is a Country within the United Kingdom, lying in the northeast of

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