Thank you to those who contacted me about primary school assessments.
I want every child to receive a rounded education that instils a love of learning and equips them with the skills they need, ready for work and ready for life. My worry is that Ministers have prioritised a ‘teaching to the test’ approach, with young people experiencing an increasingly narrow curriculum. Creative and vocational subjects are too often being left out, while at the same time many children are going through their whole school career without developing core English or maths skills.
I support calls for a full, expert-led review of the curriculum and the assessment system. I want to see a broad curriculum that not only ensures children get a strong grounding in reading, writing and maths, but also makes sure they can enjoy creative subjects and develop the skills they need throughout life. We need an assessment system that responds to this and fully captures young people’s knowledge and skills, with a balance of assessment methods that still maintain the important role of examinations.
I want to see a review that considers children’s education and experiences from the beginning of primary school through to the end of compulsory education. I believe it should also look at the current range of metrics used to measure schools’ performance, to ensure they support and are aligned with a reformed curriculum and assessment system.
The Government said it has no current plans to undertake major reform of the use of SATs in primary schools, but I will follow developments closely and continue to bear in mind your concerns.
