The long-awaited National Curriculum Framework was launched this afternoon and will start to be implemented in the next scholastic year.
For the first time the framework measures the minimum amount of time schools should dedicate to specific learning areas but also allows time for flexibility.
Education Minister Dolores Cristina said that the aim was to ensure that students were provided with the basic skills that led them towards the path of lifelong learning.
She said there was a strong element of flexibility to that individual schools could tailor their education according to the needs of students.
The NCF groups the conventional subjects into eight learning areas to ensure coherent education. These areas include languages, mathematics, science and technology, health and physical education (such as sports and PSD), religious and ethics education, education for democracy (such as social studies, environmental studies), humanities (history, geography) and visual and performing arts (art, music, drama, dance).
The framework then identified cross-curricular themes that should be present across all learning areas.
These include literacy and digital literacy, learning to learn and cooperative learning, education for sustainable development, education for entrepreneurship, creativity and innovation and education for diversity.
It also differentiates between three learning age-groups and sets specific educational goals. The groups are: early learning years (kindergarten to Year 2), junior years (Year 3 to Year 6) and secondary years.
It recommends referring to the secondary years, currently referred to as Forms 2 to 6, as Years 7 to 11 in the name of continuity.
A NCF implementation review board will be set up to ensure the implementation of the framework.
The revision of the NCF started in 2008 and the draft document was launched for consultation in May 2011. This document replaces the 1999 version.
The consultation process, with a wide range of stakeholders, was concluded in December 2011. This resulted in over 200 feedback reports and a task force was set up to go through the new proposals and amend the document to come up with the final framework – launched today.
The NCF can be downloaded from the Education Ministry’s website www.education.gov.mt