OECD recognise Wales’ ‘clear vision for its education system and its learners’ in new independent report

6 Oct 2020 02:17 PM

The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) yesterday (Monday 5 October) published an independent report on progress made in achieving a new curriculum for Wales.

The report recognises that Wales now ‘has a clear vision for its education system and for its learners.’

The report also:

• acknowledges the Welsh Government’s role in ‘embedding co-construction across the system as a principle for curriculum development and education policy making more generally’
• praises communication saying it has been ‘clear and continuous with strong leadership from the top’
• recognises the Welsh Government has met challenges set in previous reports and that it has established ‘coherence to the different policy components and clarity on the vision, establishing a strong basis for education professionals to make the ‘national mission’ their own’

Speaking after the report’s publication, Education Minister Kirsty Williams yesterday said:

During my time as Minister, we have put a lot of effort into being more internationally connected.

We want to learn from the best, so that we too can be the best and working with OECD has been essential to this new approach for Wales.

The OECD know and understand our system, they can hold a mirror up to us as a government and the report provides a helpful challenge and validation of the progress we are making and I would like to thank everyone involved in providing this report to us today.

The Minister then explained how the report’s recommendations would be used to shape the future of education in Wales:

Next week, I will publish an update to Our National Mission, she said.

This will take into consideration the OECD recommendations, review our collective efforts and achievements and map the next stage of the journey.

Our continuing education reforms, with Curriculum for Wales at the centre, is truly a shared, national endeavour.

I am immensely proud to be working with teachers, academics, practitioners, businesses, unions, the OECD and many others who are building this future for our learners, our schools and our nation.

We have the strong foundations in place and we will move forward with our new curriculum.

A curriculum for Wales, of Wales, and by Wales.