Article
Details
Citation
Shapira M & Priestley M (2018) Narrowing the Curriculum? Contemporary trends in provision and attainment in the Scottish Curriculum. Scottish Educational Review, 50 (1), pp. 75-107. http://www.scotedreview.org.uk/online-content/2018/501/
Abstract
This paper forms the first part of research into the phenomenon of curriculum narrowing within Scotland¡¯s Curriculum for Excellence (CfE). It presents findings from a preliminary analysis of publicly available data ¨C Scottish Qualifications and school leavers¡¯ attainment data, aggregated by local authorities. Our findings show that the senior phase curriculum is becoming narrower. Fewer subjects are being taken in school year S4 for levels 4 and 5 National Qualifications. Yet, we found that the phenomenon of curriculum narrowing is more nuanced and complex than has been claimed. Attainment at SCQF levels 4-6 has risen since the introduction of the CfE and new national qualifications. The increase in the SCQF level 6 qualifications was particularly noticeable in more deprived local authorities. We acknowledge that the coarse grained nature of the available data makes our findings provisional; further phases of this research will address this through analysis of school level data.
Journal
Scottish Educational Review: Volume 50, Issue 1
Status | Published |
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Publication date | 31/12/2018 |
Date accepted by journal | 01/05/2018 |
URL | |
Publisher URL | |
eISSN | 0141-9072 |
People (2)
Professor, Education
Associate Professor, Sociology, Social Policy & Criminology