Missing the mark
The draft national curriculum needs a major reset if we are to reverse declining standards and imbue children with an appreciation of our liberal democratic heritage. By Alan Tudge.
I have previously made it clear I am disappointed by the draft national curriculum published by the independent Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority. It does not increase standards, it has a negative view of our history and it is a ridiculously long and unwieldy document at 3500 pages. Put simply, I would not support it.
There were many areas in the draft where learning was delayed, not progressed. Learning the times tables was pushed back to year 4 from year 3. In other countries it starts in year 2. There are 20 concerns in maths alone. The peak mathematics association expressed alarm at the draft and asked them to start again.
Evidence-based content, such as phonics, was minimised.
The biggest problem, though, was in the draft history curriculum. It gave the impression nothing bad happened before 1788 and almost nothing good has happened since. It downplayed our Western heritage. It omitted significant figures in our history such as Menzies, Howard and Whitlam. It almost erased Christianity from our past, despite it being the single most important influence on our modern development, according to our greatest living historian, Geoffrey Blainey. It introduced ridiculous concepts such as asking year 2 students – seven-year-olds – to ask whether statues could be deemed racist.
I have been crystal clear in my views to ACARA that significant rework was required. ACARA has taken this feedback seriously, along with thousands of pieces of public feedback.
This week I was briefed on some of these updates, but I am yet to see a full updated version of the curriculum. My initial view is that the revised draft curriculum has gone from an F to a C, but our students deserve an A+.
I am told there is a stronger, clearer focus on phonics. I am told maths concepts will remain being taught where they are today and not be delayed. I am told that nonsensical concepts like “mathematising” have been removed.
This is proof the public exposure made a difference. But I remain concerned the updated curriculum does not lift standards. With our education standards in decline over the past 20 years, we cannot have our curriculum stand still. It must aim higher.
I remain particularly concerned when it comes to the history curriculum. These are matters core to who we are as a nation. We should expect young Australians leaving school to understand how our nation is one of the most free, wealthy, tolerant and egalitarian societies in all of human history, and a magnet for millions of migrants.
Our Western political institutions are not always perfect but think of what they have given us: democratic government; equality before the law; freedom of association and speech; universal education; strong human rights.
These are very precious and very rare institutions. If students don’t learn this, they won’t defend it as previous generations did. Lowy Institute polling shows 40 per cent of young Australians say that non-democratic government may be preferable or that it does not matter what kind of government system we have. That is a catastrophe.
Just as Indigenous Australians (and other Australians) celebrate and fiercely defend Indigenous culture and heritage, we should all celebrate and fiercely defend our Western liberal culture. Students should leave school with a love of country and a sense of optimism and hope that we live in the greatest country on earth.
ACARA’s April draft certainly did not meet this standard. I was deeply disappointed in its ideological misgivings about our nation. Based on my briefing this week, there have been some improvements. Year 2 students are no longer asked to assess whether historical statues are racist. It recognises our democracy is based on our Christian and Western origins, with a reference to the importance of the values of patriotism and freedom. These are positive changes, but there is still a way to go.
The influence of authoritarianism and communism is growing in the world, particularly with the rise of an assertive China. Fundamentalist Islam remains a dominant force in many countries, as we are seeing in Afghanistan. There has not been a more important time since the 1940s to teach children the origins, values and singular greatness of liberal democracy.
This is an edited extract of a speech given by Federal Education Minister Alan Tudge to the Centre for Independent Studies on Friday 22 October.