One aim of the department for education’s curriculum and assessment review is that the curriculum embeds “digital, oracy and life skills in their learning” for everyone. Our research on skills internationally offers insights as to how to do this.
Supported by the new Centre for Education Systems, we reviewed life skills in the curriculum in England, Scotland, Ontario, New Zealand, the Netherlands, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Singapore and China.
A key finding was that England is an outlier in leaving skills out. This needs tackling, because research shows that essential skills shape young people’s life outcomes. Unfortunately, when skills aren’t part of the regular curriculum, young people don’t get equal access to developing them.
For example, The Duke of Edinburgh’s award supports learning lots of life skills, including teamwork and collaboration. The charity is working hard to give more equal access to the award, but those who experience poverty are still less likely to take part.
Likewise, the level 3 extended project qualification supports skills development, but more advantaged students are more likely to take it.
And more generally, young people who are more advantaged have more opportunities to develop skills valued by employers outside the regular school day.
In short, not including skills in the curriculum affects social mobility. It’s also unfair that skills are at the heart of vocational education while GCSEs do not target the skills lots of young people will need to continue education.
Our look at skills in the curriculum internationally showed that some common fears about including skills are myths.
One such myth is that before the 2014 curriculum reforms, England had a skills-based curriculum. In fact, we had to look hard to find references to generic skills in the previous national curriculum or implementation documents.
Another is that paying attention to developing skills must be at the expense of developing knowledge or high academic standards. We included countries in our review that do much better than England on international tests and that effectively embed skills in curriculum policy.
This needs tackling; skills shape life outcomes
So, what should be done in England?
Our review doesn’t identify a single approach that we could simply import. One reason for this is that all the countries we looked at have 14-19 curriculums without a transition point at 16 like we do.
In addition, each has its own curriculum traditions and ways of connecting academic and vocational education. Many also have more individual teacher agency to integrate generic skills into their teaching than is commonly the case in England.
Nevertheless. there are lessons that can be drawn. The types of skills other countries successfully include can help to flesh out the curriculum review’s focus.
For example, other countries include oracy as part of broader communication skills as an explicit cross-subject goal. Collaborative skills are also often a priority.
Most countries also explicitly include citizenship skills as a focus in ways that go beyond current concern for ‘British Values’ (for example, embracing global citizenship and sustainability).
Given all the pressures on schools and teachers, adding in lots of content to subjects or new subjects could become a burden rather than an opportunity. Review chair Professor Becky Francis has said as much already.
However, there are countries that successfully include skills without big impacts on regular subject teaching and assessment. We found examples of skills being included in many different ways, including extracurricular and informal learning, similar to activities already commonplace here.
But what is already happening could be boosted by making opportunities to learn skills an entitlement.
Schools are already doing much to provide these opportunities. Teamwork, for example, is essential to PE. But that doesn’t necessarily develop the collaborative skills every subject needs to do group work.
Adding a life skills entitlement to the curriculum would encourage schools to reflect on their existing successes. It would also help them identify gaps and assess whether access to the opportunities they offer is fair.
The key difference in other countries is that by including skills in the curriculum, they become important for all students and in all schools.
Read the full report, Generic skills in the 14-19 curriculum: An international overview here
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