How Much Longer Will the Curriculum and Assessment Seesaw Remain Out of Balance in the English Primary Classroom?

Abstract

Winifred M. Burke

Drawing on a case study of one primary teacher’s practice (1990- 2006) the author seeks to demonstrate the adverse effects on pedagogy as well as pupils’ learning of Standardized Assessment Tests since they became the gold standard by which primary schools are judged. This insight into the adverse effect on her practice supports recent research findings that these tests continue to adversely impact on the education of disadvantaged pupils whilst also narrowing the curriculum and leading to teacher stress (Carleton et al, 2026). These researchers’ definition of disadvantages is wider than that held by the Department for Education and Science. This is not a call for an abandonment of the tests but a reform to limit the negative effects of the present system.

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