This blog post is written by Nashita (Year 12) who is dedicated to making a change, and Jamal (Year 13) an aspiring tech consultant. They are here on their work experience placement at the Fair Education Alliance producing content based on the Shadow Curriculum and Assessment Review. As part of their research, Jamal and Nashita interviewed members of the Youth Shadow Panel, and have shared their findings and thoughts below.

Introducing the context around the shadow review including its necessity

In September 2024, the government launched a call for evidence as part of the curriculum and assessment review, with Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson stating it would create “a cutting-edge system to support young people's future life and work”. However, students have lacked a voice in their education for years, with even this government consultation centred towards collecting practitioners' feedback. In response, the Youth Shadow Panel called for evidence from students across England to propose changes to create a more inclusive education system shaped by young people.

The future the youth want

Respondents' most common perspectives included assessments negatively affecting students’ mental health and wanting learning to be more relevant to life. The call for evidence also showed an interest in learning about culture, climate, finances, and politics.

We agree with the findings of the Youth Shadow Panel in that students want a curriculum with practical life skills and hands-on learning. As such, we call for greater content diversity and advocate for a greater emphasis on oral exams, group projects, and presentations. Our goal is a more inclusive, engaging, and future-focused education system that prepares us for life ahead, rather than causing us to feel overwhelmed during exam seasons. Instead of testing true understanding, exams focus on memorisation, raising the question: is education about real understanding or just temporary recall for a grade? This is why we must support the Shadow review's recommendations to make the education system fairer.

The FEA’s proposal

The Fair Education Alliance (FEA) - made up of nearly 300 organisations, representing education, charities, social enterprises, and more - has submitted a response to the government’s review, focusing on educational inequity, and emphasising social justice and inclusion.

60 FEA members contributed to developing the submission, participating in large meetings to share ideas and smaller sub-group sessions to draft responses. Despite differences of opinion on certain topics, the ongoing dialogue helped refine and strengthen the final submission, ensuring a more nuanced and well-rounded response.

The FEA submission highlighted key themes; focusing on reducing overload to give struggling students more time and flexibility. It stressed the need for the curriculum to develop essential skills for employment, and called for greater diversity within the content being taught, ensuring it includes a broader range of thinkers to offer a richer, more inclusive perspective. 

Inclusion and Impact of Stakeholders

In a Foreword from the Review Chair, as part of the call for evidence issued by the Curriculum and Assessment Review team, Professor Becky Francis CBE states “We have deliberately kept questions as open as possible, and welcome responses from all those interested: young people and their parents, teachers, lecturers, education leaders, subject experts, researchers, employers and others.”

Whilst the launching of this call for evidence is the first step in hearing evidence from stakeholders, there was a lack of balance between those who held more ‘power’ in their voices. Many of the calls for evidence were dominated by practitioners and businesses, and whilst the perspective of employers for the future workforce is valuable - bringing insights into raising skills and fostering collaboration - the ones who are directly subjected to these changes the most, are the young people who have yet to leave the education system.

Education is important for its own sake. But it also plays a critical role in supporting all young people to thrive throughout life and in building a stronger economy and a more equitable society.

How this leads to a Fair Education

Significant gaps persist in performance between students, notably for socioeconomically disadvantaged young people. The curriculum and assessment review is to ensure that all young people leave education prepared for life and work, equipped with the knowledge, skills and attributes they need. 

Following the review, all state schools – including academies that currently do not have to follow the national curriculum – will be required to teach the national curriculum up to age 16, giving parents certainty over their children’s education.

Previous curriculums have focused on high expectations; designed to raise standards for students, especially those with socioeconomic disadvantages. The last curriculum (2014) was built to provide a broad, balanced education ensuring all pupils gain core knowledge across key subjects. This resulted in an emphasis on scientific knowledge and mathematical skills in STEM, aiming to prepare students for modern careers and technological advancements. As seen with increased digital integration, such as advances in AI - albeit accelerated by the Covid-19 pandemic - this was justified.

While this approach was intended to better prepare students, it has faced criticism for being outdated and assessment-heavy. The Youth Shadow Panel findings reflect the sentiment of multiple stakeholders who believe that assessments should foster the skills that young people need to develop for life and work. “Critical thinking, applying knowledge in different situations, and teamwork, are all better developed through coursework than exams”.

These insights emphasise the need for an education system that supports diverse student identities, learning pathways, and school environments.

The Department of Education encourages everyone to provide feedback on the future of curriculum and assessment, regardless of the review outcomes. During our work experience week, we researched the Shadow Curriculum and Assessment Review and interviewed members of the Youth Shadow Panel. We both agree with the report's findings; however, it's important to recognise that young people have diverse opinions on the issue. What truly matters is that organisations like the Fair Education Alliance continue to give young people a voice in shaping a fairer and more inclusive education system.

Nashita and Jamal

Work Experience Students

• The Youth Shadow Panel is hosting live events for young people across the country in March and April. Sign up here to share your experiences and views on education, and engage in discussions on key topics present in the Shadow Curriculum and Assessment Review.