Will the curriculum review finally end the ‘traditional vs progressive’ debate?

The Curriculum and Assessment Review launched by the new government (DfE, 2024) once again provides an opportunity to think deeply about what we want to teach and why – and how we might assess student progress.

Discussion is often dominated by two extremes. There are those who are proponents of a traditional approach, with a rigid subject knowledge-led curriculum, high-stakes examinations, and pedagogies that promote the recitation of facts. This has links to what educationalists Michael Young and Johan Muller (2010) have called their “Future 1” (F1) curriculum.

Others promote a more progressive view led by the perceived needs of the student and with so-called soft skills dominating the curriculum, with possible pedagogies of experiential learning and group work, similar to what Young and Muller (2010) dub their “Future 2” (F2) curriculum.