A British special school's experience in developing an aims-based curriculum for disabled pupils is described. Overriding aims, or first principles, were spelled out and translated into more pragmatic terms, which were analyzed to constitute a curriculum. Methods for linking the aims-based curriculum with the National Curriculum are outlined. (JDD)

A cyclical process model for implementing England's National Curriculum was developed by a British school for pupils with moderate learning difficulties. The model focuses on curriculum audit, time allocation for various subjects, framework for curriculum organization, support program for teachers, developing subject rationale, recordkeeping,…

This article explores how England's National Curriculum history might be taught to pupils with severe learning difficulties (SLD). The article suggests one possible conceptual framework for the teaching of history, examines some tensions inherent in attempting to teach history to SLD pupils, and describes two examples of good practice in this…

Discusses the United Kingdom's plans for increasing student participation in post-16 vocational education and training. Explores the proposed General National Vocational Qualifications (GNVQs) and Ordinary and Advanced Diplomas. Identifies the place of economics in the National Curriculum. Draws a number of parameters from the government plan and…

This paper reviews changes to the key stage 3 curriculum at a leading comprehensive school. The nature and practical concerns of the changes are described. These move beyond a fresh approach to content; they include issues about engaging students actively in learning for the future, planning around the school's distinctive ethos and expertise in…

This framework for teaching sets out teaching objectives for Reception to Year 6 to enable pupils to become fully literate. It also gives guidance on the Literacy Hour in which this teaching will take place. The document is a reference point for day-to-day teaching, and help for headteachers and governors of schools in England as they plan and…

In this unit of work, the children will continue to learn about the features of playscripts, through reading and analyzing a play and writing a play based on a narrative. In the course of learning how to interpret and write stage directions, the children will apply their knowledge of adverbs. In the discrete work on vocabulary and spelling, the…

Effective drama teaching improves the following student skills: speaking and listening, reading and writing through developing thinking, communication skills, and critical analysis. Drama is part of young people's core curriculum entitlement in the United Kingdom. It is included in the English Curriculum Orders and in the Key Stage 3 Framework for…

This article considers issues concerning assessment of students with special needs at Key Stages 1 and 3 of the British National Curriculum. These include timing and administration of assessments, teacher training, special adaptations to the assessments, special arrangements, recording and reporting, and exceptions. (DB)

Suggests that the formation and implementation of the National Curriculum for England and Wales has been a dialectical process involving legislators, administrators, and teachers. Using case studies, discusses some problems with the curriculum and schools' responses that may work against a truly national curriculum. Criticizes reduced local…

Although Section 19 of the British Education Reform Act is often seen as denying special needs pupils' entitlement to the National Curriculum, this article offers suggestions for more positive applications of the legislation. The article presents a case study, a flow chart illustrating the recommended process, an example of curricular…

This paper calls for emphasis on school-based assessment in England, to ensure that special needs children benefit from England's National Curriculum, there is compatibility between the 1981 and 1988 Education Acts, and potential for conflict between the Warnock model of school-based assessment and Local Management of Schools is reduced.…

Outlines ways that the core skills recommended by the British Secretary of State can be integrated into the economics A/AS level syllabi. Identifies and discusses these skills in the context of curriculum development. Discusses the implications for the first national examination in 1996. (NL)

This article draws upon a Department for Education and Skills (DfES) commissioned telephone survey of a nationally representative sample of schools to investigate the challenges faced by those seeking the successful implementation of the Foundation Stage (FS) (for 3--5-year-olds) in reception classes. Its focuses on head teachers' and reception…

Argues that the British Government's National Curriculum document contains conflicting messages, particularly regarding "relevant education" and "cross curricular learning." Points out what the author considers to be puzzling contradictions and confusions operating within the government's own ideology and educational aims. (TW)