Education is changing - information for businesses
Education needs to prepare young people for a rapidly changing future and the world of work. Education in Wales is changing with the introduction of a the new curriculum in 2022.
Digital literacy will become a core cross curricular requirement, alongside literacy and numeracy. Broader skills such as resilience, communications and problem solving will help young people apply the knowledge they acquire at school and apply to real life situations.
By the time children leave school they’ll have problem solving skills, be good at communicating, and be confident at working in teams.
An understanding of the world of work will begin at an early age. All children and young people in primary as well as secondary school will be able to learn about careers.
Careers and work-related experiences (CWRE) is a cross-cutting theme in the Curriculum for Wales for 3 to 16 year-olds. Schools and settings are expected to follow the Statutory Guidance for CWRE in developing their curriculum. The careers and work-related experiences toolkit is a resource to support embedding CWRE in schools and settings.
Traditional subjects will be grouped into six areas of learning. Subjects will still count, but without boundaries so pupils get a wider context. For example teachers might include entrepreneurship as part of Science and Technology or Expressive Arts.
“Over two-thirds of employers (70%), rate Literacy and Numeracy skills as one of their three most important considerations when recruiting school and college leavers, but almost half (45%) of businesses ranked aptitude and readiness for work as the single most important factor”
Educating for the Modern World, CBI/Pearson Education and Skills Annual Report, November 2018
Will qualifications change?
Qualifications at 16 will change, adapting over time to reflect the changing curriculum. They may look quite different from today's GCSEs when they are introduced from 2025.
Qualifications Wales have consulted on future academic and vocational qualifications, and how they link to the Curriculum for Wales. Their findings confirmed that the GCSE brand would stay.
Find out what’s been done so far, how you can get involved and the timeline for the work .
How can you get involved as a business?
When the curriculum is live we hope you’ll link with schools to offer experiences and projects that help young people understand the world of business and work.
Careers Wales facilitate the Education Business Exchange to provide opportunities to develop exciting curriculum enhancing programmes for learners.