The London Curriculum

September 18, 2017

• Topical

Boris Johnson, launched a new supplementary curriculum exclusively for KS3 use in London schools in 2015 as part of an ongoing drive to raise attainment across the capital.

The London Curriculum aims to use the capital city as context for learning, helping young Londoners to better understand and engage with their city, whilst also supporting their knowledge and learning.

15 teaching units which support the new national curriculum have been developed for English, music, art and design, geography and history. These will be available for teaching in schools who register on the programme from September 2014. Further units in science maths and design technology will be ready in 2015. Each of the units is structured into three parts. The first consists of lesson plans and resources to be delivered that use the city and its heritage to illustrate core concepts. The second part gives students the chance to explore the city, through museums, galleries, theatres and institutions. Finally, there are project suggestions for students to complete, drawing on their new knowledge and skills.

London is the home of many key figures in history, defining events, leading institutions and famous literature. The new programme should maximise the potential of such rich heritage and culture to inspire both students and teachers. The aim is to deepen subject knowledge as a result of learning about topics associated with London.

English units include ‘Tales of the river’ featuring writers such as Charles Dickens and Oscar Wilde and ‘The London limelight’ will explore stories from London theatre. In art the ‘Riverscape’ module will look at art history through paintings of the River Thames and ‘London People’ introduces portraiture through the medium of London artists and subjects. In music students will study the musical impact of London’s history and London’s musical heritage. Geography will be studied through the medium of London maps and urban management will be looked at from the perspective of a London borough. In history the ‘World city’ unit looks at London’s global trade links from the Romans to the present day and ‘London at war’ studies the impact of the Second World War on city life.

The Mayor hopes that the London Curriculum will also boost results, saying that ‘Only a decade ago education in London lagged behind the rest of the UK, with sharp differences in results depending on a child’s background. Now it is leading the pack for educational reforms and improving results.’ The new curriculum is just one of many recent changes to education in the UK and should encourage further improvement. It was also felt that too few children in London knew of or had access of all the opportunities it has to offer. The London Curriculum should therefore help children to experience more of the city than just the area where they live, facilitating access to the cities rich heritage for all.

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