ERIC Number: EJ957937
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2012
Pages: 15
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-0300-4279
EISSN: N/A
Competing Issues in Australian Primary Curriculum: Learning from International Experiences
Ewing, Robyn
Education 3-13, v40 n1 p97-111 2012
There is no doubt that the increasing politicisation of education in an economically rationalist climate is contributing to less equity, access, participation and, therefore, social justice for many Australian primary children. This article initially explores how the development of the impending national Australian curriculum replete with a high stakes testing regime and a website, "My School", with its propensity to create league tables is problematic if an improved quality education for all Australian children is the goal. It contends that continuing to ignore the need for new ways of thinking about curriculum and pedagogy will continue to contribute to educational inequities. Recent research and writing from similar educational initiatives in both the United Kingdom and the United States of America support these assertions. Secondly, this article discusses the need to consider research about the potential role the arts can play in transforming children's learning across the curriculum to improve both academic and affective outcomes. The implications for teacher education and the preparation of primary teachers for the profession are considered throughout the discussion.
Descriptors: Social Justice, Educational Quality, Educational Change, Foreign Countries, Relevance (Education), Change Strategies, Elementary School Curriculum, National Curriculum, Educational Development, Educational Finance, Curriculum Development, High Stakes Tests, Art Criticism, Instructional Effectiveness, Instructional Improvement, Educational Policy, Politics of Education, Access to Education, Performance Factors, Barriers
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Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Descriptive
Education Level: Elementary Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Location: Australia
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A