Commons Sense

House of Commons · Ministers' Questions

Literature Taught in Schools

Monday 4 July 2022 · 2 questions

Summarised by AI from the official record, so it can contain mistakes.

Read the full transcript on Parliament.uk

At a glance

Answered 1 Partly answered 1 Not answered 0

Key points

  • The national curriculum mandates pupils read a wide range of literature to appreciate rich literary heritage and develop a love for literature.
  • Parents should be able to see what is being shared with their children in school.
  • Schools have the freedom to decide on specific literature within the national curriculum guidelines.

Topics (select to filter)

Questions & Answers

Q1 Nicholas Fletcher
Education
Context

The variety of literature taught in schools is under scrutiny, including the extent to which it reflects a broad range of cultural and historical contexts.

Question

What assessment he has made of the adequacy of the variety of literature taught in schools. The national curriculum mandates that pupils should read a wide range of books, poems, and plays to appreciate our rich literary heritage and develop a love for literature.

Answer from Nadhim Zahawi

The national curriculum states that pupils should read a wide range of books, poems and plays to appreciate our rich literary heritage and to develop a love for literature. That includes pre-1914 contemporary prose, poetry and drama, Shakespeare and seminal world literature. Schools have freedom to select texts meeting those criteria.

Answered
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Q2 Nicholas Fletcher
Education Women & Equalities
Context

Concerns have been raised about books and materials that encourage questioning of biological sex, potentially conflicting with parental views on gender roles and stereotypes.

Question

Does my right hon. Friend agree that caution is needed with books that encourage a child to question their biological sex and to believe they were born in the wrong body because of gender nonconformity and not conforming to society's stereotypes? Parents should be able to see what is being shared with children, whether in lessons or the school library.

Answer from Nadhim Zahawi

I want to be clear: parents should know what their children are being taught in school. There are clear requirements on schools about providing parents with information about their school's curriculum. We appreciate that parents have particular concerns about gender nonconformity, which is why we are developing very clear guidance for the frontline for schools to be able to deal with that issue.

Partly answered

Not addressed: The specific ask regarding caution and clarity in books encouraging questioning of biological sex was acknowledged but not specifically committed to without vague promises of developing guidance.

How: Under Review, Developing Very Clear Guidance

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