Norway recently adopted a National Framework Plan for Preschools. In this study, the central questions are: (1) What does a Framework Plan for one to five year olds mean to the preschool teachers and their educational work with children? (2) What are preschool teachers' understandings of the concept of learning in their educational planning and…

This article examines the implications of the Primary Strategy for primary school teachers. It focuses on the framework for learning and teaching across the curriculum (DfES, 2003, Chapter 3 "Excellent primary teaching") and questions whether the new framework is in fact a return to a "whole" curriculum approach. The key issues explored are:…

The Year 6 National Curriculum reading test has become a familiar and established annual experience at the end of the primary phase in schools throughout England. From 1993 onwards, each year the national reading test for 11-year-olds has consisted of a different set of texts, accompanied by a different set of questions. With over a decade's…

The New Zealand Curriculum Stocktake, undertaken between 2000 and 2003, signalled a more coherent and fluid approach to curriculum processes, and support for school-based decision-making around curriculum design and implementation. The subsequent "Curriculum Marautanga Project" (Ministry of Education, 2004) promised a "reframing,…

Creativity in education often takes the form of concentrated periods of arts-based "light relief" from the rigours of the National Curriculum. In psychology, on the other hand, creativity is often associated with a dramatic moment of "illumination" in solving scientific, mathematical or practical problems. This paper explores a third approach…

Although the term "scientific literacy" has been increasingly used in recent years to characterise the aim of school science education, there is still considerable uncertainty about its meaning and implications for the curriculum. A major national project in England, "Twenty First Century Science", is evaluating the feasibility…

A study of the implementation of national core curricula in Australia was undertaken by seeking the general views, through interview and questionnaire, of curriculum developers and Technical and Further Education (TAFE) teachers who develop and deliver the curricula. Views of representatives of industry and commerce who employ students who are…

A movement of educational change in Portugal aimed at giving schools larger autonomy in curricular decisions is described. In reconceptualizing curriculum, the concepts of competence and innovation played a central role. An analysis of the curriculum development process is included and some suggestions are offered for future research and debate.…

Examines metamethodological issues concerning project organization and maintenance arising in large-scale research. Discusses problems in forming the research team, preparing the proposal, investigator independence, operational decisions, budget allocations, and basic assumptions about the research subject that require solution through…

Discusses the standards movement, several standards categories (content, performance, equal-opportunity, and world-class), state and professional standard-setting activities, ongoing controversies, teacher participation opportunities, and need for public support. The New Standards and Equity 2000 projects provide linkages to standards-based reform…

What is striking about the Goals 2000 initiative is its virtual omission of the student, except as passive receptacle. To claim that students will learn more with heightened expectations is misleading. For content to take root, it must connect with students' internal "prepared structures" and become a "comfortable friend." In…

Questions some new orthodoxies of British elementary education: fitness for purpose, planning based on subject order requirements, and differentiation (learning described by hierarchical levels). Teachers cannot implement National Curriculum goals without substantive professional development and deeper subject area knowledge. A fruitful change…

Argues that the confused thinking of the planners of Great Britain's National Curriculum for English is reflected in the relationship between speech and writing. Criticizes the curriculum's view that there is little difference between spoken and written English. Asserts that teachers can encourage in students a creative, flexible, and personal…

Charges that the sanctity of the English classroom is being dismantled in Great Britain, partly through efforts toward development of a National Curriculum for English. Criticizes the curriculum planners' apparent belief that anyone can teach English. Suggests that English instruction should prepare students not just for occupations, but for life.…

An examination of the National Curriculum in England and Wales illustrates the possibilities for implementing a U.S. program that maintains two languages. A better approach is to require proficiency in two languages as part of a core curriculum. Second-language ability would become a strength, not a liability. (33 references) (MLH)