The government has rejected all the major recommendations of a cross-party House of Lords select committee report calling for a fundamental reform of education for 11 to 16-year-olds. The case for change, however, is overwhelming.
The national curriculum imposed on schools since 2010 is both too limited and overstuffed. Pressure to meet the requirements of the English baccalaureate (EBacc) incentivises a narrow focus on eight academic GCSEs — maths, two English, three sciences, a foreign language, and geography or history: it is the same as the curriculum announced in 1904.
A move to relax the inappropriately prescriptive EBacc would enjoy strong support. A key purpose of the 11-16 phase of education is to prepare young people to progress to the full range of options available.
