Curriculum for Excellence — A Guide for Scottish Primary Teachers
A practical guide to Scotland's Curriculum for Excellence — the four capacities, the eight curriculum areas, Experiences and Outcomes (Es&Os), Benchmarks, and how CfE differs from curriculum frameworks elsewhere in the UK.
Preview
Page count: 2. Print-ready PDF — letter / A4 friendly. Click image to see all pages.
CfE structure
- 1 The Four Capacities CfE aims to develop young people as: Successful Learners, Confident Individuals, Responsible Citizens, Effective Contributors. These are the overarching goals of Scottish education.
- 2 Eight curriculum areas Expressive Arts; Health & Wellbeing; Languages; Mathematics; Religious & Moral Education; Sciences; Social Studies; Technologies. Welsh has six AoLEs; English NC has more discrete subjects.
- 3 Levels Early (pre-school to P1); First (P2-P4); Second (P5-P7); Third and Fourth (S1-S3); Senior Phase (S4-S6). More flexible than year-group-based systems.
- 4 Experiences and Outcomes (Es&Os) Statements of what learners should experience and be able to do. Written in the first person ('I can...'). Replace the old 5-14 curriculum objectives. e.g. 'I can use number facts to solve problems' — Maths, First Level
- 5 Benchmarks More specific guidance on what pupils should know/do at each level. Used by teachers for assessment. Updated regularly by Education Scotland.
- 6 Broad General Education (BGE) The period from Early to end of Third Level (approximately pre-school to S3). Characterised by breadth — all eight curriculum areas covered.
Learning objective
Describe the CfE structure including the Four Capacities, eight curriculum areas, and five levels; explain Experiences and Outcomes and how they differ from subject objectives; and understand Benchmarks and their role in assessment.
About this resource
Curriculum for Excellence resources
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For Scottish teachers
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C CfE documentation — free at education.gov.scot
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R Reinventing the Curriculum — CfE analysis — Mark Priestley, Gert Biesta
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