Commons Sense

House of Commons · Ministers' Questions

Curriculum and Assessment Review

Monday 4 November 2024 · 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 0 Partly answered 1 Not answered 0

Key points

  • Claire Hazelgrove raised concerns about the lack of consistent financial education in schools, citing research from the University of Cambridge.
  • Nick Timothy expressed alarm about the focus of the curriculum review, suggesting it lacks emphasis on academic attainment.
  • The response stated that the review will be evidence-based and will not aim to fix unbroken systems.

Topics (select to filter)

Questions & Answers

Q1 Claire Hazelgrove Lab Filton and Bradley Stoke
Education
Context

Financial habits are often set by the age of seven, but financial education is not part of the primary curriculum and many teachers at secondary level lack resources and confidence to teach it.

Question

Research from the University of Cambridge shows that financial habits are often set by the age of seven, yet financial education for young people is still a postcode lottery. It is not part of the primary curriculum, and many teachers at secondary level, where it is part of the curriculum, lack resources and confidence in teaching it. Can the Secretary of State confirm whether such foundational life skills, which all young people need in order to thrive, will be considered at all key stages in the curriculum and assessment review?

Answer from Bridget Phillipson

I am grateful to my hon. Friend for highlighting this important area, which has been raised by many Members in the past. I am sure the review will carefully consider what financial education young people need to meet that aim, and it will, of course, consider what support we need to provide to enable teachers to teach the reformed curriculum successfully.

Partly answered

Not addressed: The answer did not confirm if financial education would be considered at all key stages but acknowledged its importance.

How: Carefully Consider, Consider What Support We Need

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Q2 Nick Timothy Con West Suffolk
Education
Context

The previous answer to a question about the curriculum and assessment review was seen as lacking focus on academic attainment. The Education Secretary's appointee had criticised the Blair Government for their obsession with academic achievement.

Question

I think parents will be quite alarmed by the answer given to my hon. Friend the Member for Central Suffolk and North Ipswich (Patrick Spencer), as it had very little focus on academic attainment. The Education Secretary appointed Becky Francis, who attacked the Blair Government for their obsession with academic achievement. The National Education Union denies that school accountability should be at the heart of our assessment system, which is wrong, so will the Secretary of State take this opportunity to rule out scrapping SATs in year 6?

Answer from Bridget Phillipson

I rather fear that the hon. Gentleman and his party have learned nothing from the massive defeat inflicted upon them by voters in July. I can assure this House that the review will be evidence-based and will not seek to fix things that are not broken. However, I remind the hon. Gentleman that his record is a SEND system in crisis, one in five children persistently absent from school—they cannot learn if they are not there—falling standards, a persistent disadvantage gap, and over half of disadvantaged pupils in state primary schools not leaving with the required standards in English and maths.

Not addressed: The answer did not address ruling out scrapping SATs but criticised the opposition's record.

How: Massive Defeat, Review Will Be Evidence-Based

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