Two Major Problems with the proposed English Curriculum.

I have been writing curriculum in NZ since I started teaching in 1991. This developed into writing a full curriculum– all core subjects and 32 cross-curricula projects - for Year 7 – 10 in 2002. I have adapted that every year since and appreciated the much greater scope & freedom of the 2007 NZ curriculum. My curriculum has been applied to great effect in three schools that I have founded – across a very wide range of demographics and developed abilities.

1. The first major problem with the new curriculum proposed is the implication that schools have not had the ability (or knowledge) to create great English learning opportunities for students.

In terms of English during the four years in the curriculum I have applied students will have studied the vast majority of:

The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe (Novel), Chicken Run (Film), Don Quixote Mulan (FILM), The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers (FILM and book excerpts), Woman in Gold (FILM), The Monument Men (Film), Charlie & The Chocolate Factory (Novel), and other Road Dahl texts, The Bee Movie, Real, Raw and Relatable (Humans of South Auckland Book), A Game of Cards, Fire on Greenstone, and Gathering the Whakapapa – Short Story Trilogy (Witi Ihimaera), Charlotte’s Web (Novel) or Jungle Book (Novel & FILM), Cats (Musical/Film) & The Lion King, Drallion (Cirque FILM), The Wonderful World of Henry Sugar (Novel), The Highwayman (Poem), Rabbit Proof Fence (Film), Swan Lake (FILM), Joseph (FILM), The Odyssey (Book), The World’s Fastest Indian (FILM), The Silent One (Novel), The Orator (FILM), October Sky (FILM), Apollo 13 (Film) or The Right Stuff (Film), The Fat Man (Novel) and Other Maurice Gee texts for extension readers, A Fitting Tribute – Short Story (CK Stead), A Great Day – Short Story (Frank Sargeson), The Whale Rider (Novel & Film), Mao’s Last Dancer (Film), The Silver Sword (Novel), The Snow Goose (Novella), Schindler’s List (FILM), Dunkirk (FILM), Avatar (Film), Ender’s Game, Amistad (Film),Amazing Grace (Film), The King’s Speech (FILM), Speeches of: Martin Luther King, Queen Elizabeth, Winston Churchill, King George V, David Ben Gurion, Chariots of Fire (FILM), Invictus (Film), A Beautiful Mind (FILM), Shakespearean plays (likely Romeo and Juliet – including Baz Luhrman’s film, Much Ado About Nothing, Mid-Summer Night’s Dream), Brother in the Land (Novel), I Am Legend (FILM), The Matrix (FILM), What’s Eating Gilbert Grape (FILM), The Great Gatsby (Novel & FILM), To Kill a Mocking Bird (Novel & FILM), Hurricane (FILM).

Writing now I am also considering David Walliams, and others, as engaging texts for children. I would definitely include The Overstory by Richard Powers.

The students will also have attended live performances where possible – Shakespeare at the pop-up-globe, CATS, Cirque du Soliel, etc.

There are also likely to have had books read out loud to them by great authors such and George MacDonald, Frederick Buechner, Douglas Adams.

Having a significant amount of content and at a good level has always been possible and, importantly, schools have been able to adapt to students, staff strengths and geographical locations.

2. Keeping in mind that the above texts/films/etc cover Year 7 – 10 - the “suggested” texts of the proposed curriculum (Year 7 – 13) show that those involved are significantly out off touch with young people within the NZ system. This can be added to the situation where OIA’s have shown that there is much confusion as to what a “knowledge rich” curriculum is.

A few of the texts are quite bizarre. The movie of Roald Dahl’s Fantastic Mr Fox is recommended for Year 9 & 10 – but is more at a 7 year old level. Whereas – MacBeth at Year 9 is a tough ask and there are much more accessible options if you have Shakespeare at that level.

The Crucible – by Arthur Miller is recommended. Surely, he has done his dash … but at least it is not Death of a Salesman.

I would think that even the 2019 film version of Little Women – is unlikely to lift all of the young men in need of inspiration in our schools.

1984 and The Lord of the Flies have also had their time. The themes are still relevant but better takes on those themes have been written since 1949 and 1954 (respectively) that are not likely to kill passion for literature in the same way.

There has also been some very good poetry since Shakespeare’s sonnets.

It is also true that there are a lot of engaging plays since A Streetcar Named Desire was first performed in 1947.

I nearly fell over to see Othello as the Year 13 Shakespeare suggestion. If students have survived until then – this might be the straw that breaks them.

And – to close out – how on earth does the writing group see Dubliners by James Joyce as having any relevance to young people in NZ in 2025. When that is added to Pride and Prejudice you really have to wonder if the writers have any awareness that these texts would have no appeal what-so-ever to the NZ teen cultural mix.

Now – I know that these texts are “suggestions” - but they set a theme. A theme that is narrow and completely out of touch with today’s young people. It smacks of a group of detached people sitting around a table and reminiscing about their youth.

alwyn.poole@gmail.com