Achieving the New Curriculum for Wales - Report launch

Wales (United Kingdom) has been on a reform journey since 2014, shaping and refining its strategies to improve the quality of student learning and the organisation of education. This includes the new curriculum for Wales, which was recently revised and is planned to roll out in schools between September 2020 and 2022. The new curriculum aims to create a better learning experience for students, to engage teachers’ professionalism, and to contribute to the overall improvement of Welsh education. An education policy is only as good as its implementation, however, and Wales turned to the OECD for advice on the next steps to implement the curriculum.

Andreas Schleicher, OECD Director for Education and Skills, and Kirsty Williams AM, Minister for Education in the Welsh Govenrment, discuss the OECD’s new report Implementing Education Policies – Achieving the New Curriculum for Wales and its implications for education in Wales.

Andreas Schleicher presents the findings from the report and suggestions for Wales to continue its development and implementation. Minister Williams discusses the implications of OECD tailored support in their process of developing their implementation strategy.

The OECD’s analysis covers the four pillars of education policy implementation — curriculum policy design, stakeholders’ engagement, policy context and implementation strategy — and builds upon the literature and experiences of OECD countries. This work holds value not only for Wales, but also for other education systems across the OECD looking to implement a curriculum or to enhance their implementation processes altogether.