1. Curriculum for Excellence Presentation for Parents and Parent Councils

2. What is Curriculum for Excellence?
Scotland’s new curriculum
What your child will be learning
New ways of teaching and learning
More emphasis on Skills for learning, work and life
New exams
But also much more…..

3. We are preparing young people for jobs
that don’t yet exist… requiring
technologies that haven’t yet been
invented….. to solve problems of which
we are not yet aware.
Shift Happens:

4. Curriculum for Excellence
The future of education in Scotland
The hope is that all Scottish children become
confident individuals
successful learners
responsible citizens
effective contributors to work and
society

5. Curriculum for Excellence
Design Principles
Challenge and Enjoyment Breadth
Progression Depth Relevance
Coherence Personalisation and Choice

6. Curriculum for Excellence
Curriculum Areas
Languages and Literacy
Mathematics and Numeracy
Sciences
Expressive Arts
Social Studies
Technologies
Health and Well Being
Religious and Moral Education

7. Curriculum for Excellence
Experiences and Outcomes
Experience: What a child is learning to do - the different experiences that make up that learning
Outcome: What a child can do as a result

8. Curriculum for Excellence
Responsibility of all teachers
Literacy
Numeracy
Aspects of Health and Well-being
Four Capacities

9. Curriculum for Excellence
Senior Phase S4-S6
Study for qualifications
Challenge and Depth to learning
Wider Achievement
Planning beyond school
More formal assessment
Further development of 4 capacities
Promotion of active and healthy lifestyle

10. Curriculum for Excellence
New Qualifications
retention of National Qualifications at Access, Higher and Advanced Higher, revised in line with Curriculum for Excellence;
the new qualification to replace the present Standard Grade and Intermediate qualifications at SCQF levels 4 and 5 – National 4 and National 5; and
the development of new qualifications in literacy and numeracy – National Literacy and National Numeracy – at SCQF levels 3, 4 and 5.

11. Curriculum for Excellence
Approaches to Learning and Teaching
Allow for choice
Encourage independence
Give children ownership
Encourage children to explain their thinking
Help children to make connections

12. Curriculum for Excellence
Greater focus on Successful Learning
Wanting to learn: seeing the point of it all
Learning by doing: practising, having a go, making mistakes
Positive feelings: usually based on other people’s reactions to what we do
Making sense: “digesting” what we learn, to gain our own understanding
Who Learns Wins by Phil Race

13. Curriculum for Excellence

14. Curriculum for Excellence
Outside school
Much of Learning and Experience takes place out with school
at home and within the family
at clubs and in community settings
individually and with friends
All of these experiences contribute to 4 capacities, and a young person’s broad education

15. Curriculum for Excellence
What is the role of parents in Curriculum for Excellence?
Education is changing…
Understanding the big picture -“Its about what you need to be a successful, contributing human being in the 21st century.”
“In a world of accelerating change, parents need to imagine the kind of education that will equip their children to lead fulfilled and successful lives.”

16. Curriculum for Excellence
Where do parents come in?
Schools and nurseries must engage with parents about the education of their children (Parental Involvement Act 2006)
Partnership working is key to Curriculum for Excellence
Parents have a responsibility to support their children and contribute to their learning and well being

17. Curriculum for Excellence
How can schools do it?
Working with you as partners – doing it together
Involving parents
Listening to parents
Sharing views and opinions
Valuing opinions
Trying to understanding each other
Providing information and support

18. Curriculum for Excellence
How can parents do it?
Find out more about Curriculum for Excellence
Get involved in what is happening in your school around Curriculum for Excellence
Support your school
Ask for information if you don’t think you have it
Work at that relationship

19. Curriculum for Excellence
All types of involvement make a difference!
Great deal of learning goes on outside school
Support at Secondary and beyond still makes a significant difference =
Where parents are involved children do better
Results in achievement, attitude and behaviour

20. Curriculum for Excellence
All Parents
SPICE
Support
Praise
Interest
Challenge
Encouragement

21. Curriculum for Excellence
What can Parent Councils do?
Thinking about what type of information the Parent Forum needs
Consider how best the information can be shared?
Identifying skills and expertise within the Parent Forum
Making connections with voluntary sector, community, health and business
Feedback to Headteacher
Running Focus Groups with Headteacher on proposed changes
Feeding back to Local Authority and Nationally
Talk to young people themselves…….

22. Curriculum for Excellence
A hundred years from now it will not matter what kind of car you drove, what kind of house you lived in, how much you had in your bank account, or what your clothes
looked like.
But the world may be a little better because you were important in the life of a child Margaret Fishback Powers