New curriculum could feature set texts

The Government could specify which authors children should read in primary school.

According to reports in The Times Educational Supplement (TES), the national curriculum review is considering issuing an approved list of writers.

At the moment, the curriculum simply sets out the range of literature that primary pupils should be introduced to, including modern fiction by ‘significant children’s authors’, as well as long-established children’s fiction, poetry, myths and plays. Children in secondary school, however, do study titles from a recommended list.

Former children’s laureate Michael Rosen is reported as saying: ‘I’m all in favour of people recommending books to each other. What I’m utterly against is some centralised list which is supposed to be the Government’s view or the state’s view.

‘If Michael Gove wants to suggest his list, that’s fine. But if it is the Government’s list or the DfE’s list, I would profoundly distrust it.’

Children’s author Alan Gibbons agreed: ‘What we need to see in schools is trust in teachers and librarians. We need a network of people who know about books and keep up to date with children’s literature, who have the freedom to select books according to their pupils’ backgrounds and interests.’