The National Curriculum and
The Early Years Foundations
Stage
By Catherine Samuel and Bethany Hook
What is the National Curriculum?
• The National Curriculum was published in 1999 and is a set of
subjects and standards used in state primary schools that ensures
children across the country are learning about the same things.
Unlike the EYFS, some schools (eg. Academies and Private schools)
do not have to follow this curriculum.
https://www.gov.uk/national-curriculum/overview
What is the Early Years Foundation
stage?
• Introduced in 2008 – Give every child the best start.
• Updated in September 2012
• The learning and development requirements for all care
providers.
• Age 0-5
• Play-based curriculum
(EYFS, DfEE 2012)
Predominant Influences on the NC
The National Curriculum bases their expectations of children’s
ability in terms of their age. This supports Piaget’s theory of stages
of cognitive development.
(The Psychology Notes Head Quarter, 2012)
Predominant Influences on the EYFS
• 20th century research- Development of play theories.
• Bruner- 3 stages on how memory and knowledge is stored:
(Bruner, J. S. 1973)
National Curriculum Structure
English
RE
PE
Maths
ICT
(Babcock LDP, 2012)
Music
PSHE
Compulsory
subjects
Art &
Design
Science
D&T
MFL
Geography
History
(DfEE, 1999)
Key Stages, Year Groups & Ages
Year 1
5-6
KS1
Year 2
6-7
Year 3
7-8
Year 6
10-11
KS2
Year 4
8-9
Year 5
9-10
(DfEE, 1999)
EYFS Structure
Communication
and Language
Expressive
Arts and
Design
Understanding
the World
Physical
Development
EYFS
Numeracy
Personal,
Social and
Emotional
Development
Literacy
(EYFS, DfEE 2012)
Similarities
• Both curricula include activities for independent learning and
working collaboratively.
For example:
A higher ratio of teachers to children to support learning in both
curricula:
- Recent progress, not fully implemented yet.
- Supports Bruner’s idea of ‘scaffolding’ where help from more able
is given to child and gradually taken away to promote independent
learning. (Bruner, 1983)
- Supported by Vygotsky: ‘The Zone of Proximinal Development’,
(Wookfolk, Hughes & Walkup, 2013) and Kozulin (2003)
(DfEE, 1999) (EYFS, DfEE, 2012)
• More practical work is being enforced in the NC even in upper KS2,
making it more similar to the EYFS.
• Piaget’s theory of cognitive stages is apparent throughout the EYFS
and feeds into The National Curriculum too.
(Sensorimotor: EYFS  Formal Operational: NC)
• They both have a focus on developing language and communication
skills. Social interaction and ‘talk’ now play an important part in
education in both EYFS and NC.
- Supported by Palincsar (1998) who shares Vygotsky’s view of
Socioculturalism, believing talk is a key process in learning.
- Chomsky 1972: Talk is innate
(DfEE, 1999) (EYFS, DfEE, 2012)
Differences
• EYFS focuses on developing key skills e.g communication,
emotional wellbeing etc whereas the NC has a higher priority
on specific subject knowledge.
• NC Major Learning Path: Cross Curricular Learning
- Wider context and purpose
- Develops transferable skills.
- Barnes (2007) believes in multiple prospects for individual
achievement through a curriculum packed with opportunities.
(DfEE, 1999) (EYFS, DfEE, 2012)
The NC is primarily whole class, teacher initiated whereas the EYFS
is mainly taught through play as it is:
• Essential for development and confidence
• Begin to explore, think about problems and relate to others
• 1/3 Adult-led , 1/3 Child-initiated and 1/3 Child-initiated with adult
support.
• Stretched but not pushed beyond abilities
Three areas of effective teaching:
• Playing and exploring
• Active Learning
• Creating and thinking critically
(EYFS, DfEE, 2012)
• EYFS targets very young infants: springs debate over ‘too much too
soon?’ Are childrens’ childhood’s being taken away?
(House, R. 2011) (Meighan, R. 2004)
Assessment Similarities
• Both use continuous assessment throughout the year.
• Both curricula assess children’s achievement from a well
rounded perspective, including assessment on social
interaction, well being, behaviour, emotional development.
• Both curricula use their assessments to reflect on what needs
to be taught – aiding future planning and meet individual
needs.
• Both curricula focus assessment on their 3 prime/core areas.
• Links with EYFS, as children can reach Level 1 NC by the end of
EYFS
(DfEE, 1999) (EYFS, DfEE, 2012)
Assessment Differences
EYFS ASSESSMENT
Uses formative assessment with little
paperwork. Sadler (1981) would
dispute this way of assessment due to
concern over the inefficiency of
human’s intuitive judgemental
processes which can result in bias,
defective decisions.
NC
Observation
NC ASSESSMENT
Relies heavily on paper based exams
and results. The Guardian (2012)
would contradict the NC suggesting
paper exams create too much
pressure, suggesting results are
becoming more important than
learning.
Teacher
Tests
Formal
SATS, Y1
Phonics
Screening
Portfolios &
Projects
Self
Assessment
(DfEE, 1999) (EYFS, DfEE, 2012)
Another difference:
The NC has split into 8 levels across KS 1, 2 and 3 which are
used to assess.
• Each level is divided into 3 sublevels – A, B and C
• Child is expected to move up one level every 2 years.
Orlando, L. and Machado, A. (1996) would disagree with the NC,
suggesting although age can be a factor, it shouldn’t be used to
determine thinking ability.
… However …
(DfEE, 1999)
The EYFS… use a more rounded approach
The EYFSP:
• A well rounded picture of the child’s knowledge understanding and
ability.
• Evaluation of ‘readiness’ for Year 1
• Reflects on observations and discussions.
• The child’s level of development needs to be assessed against the Early
Learning Goals.
Progress Check (aged 2):
• Short written summary of child’s progress in 3 Prime Areas
• Identify child’s strengths and weaknesses across the EYFS
• Significant concerns need a targeted plan to support future learning
These assessments must be forwarded to the relevant people; Parents,
Health Visitors, Local Authority, School Teachers etc.
(EYFS, DfEE, 2012)
Reference List
• Babcock LDP. (2012), Partners in Education: Changes in ICT. Available from:
http://www.babcock-education.co.uk/ldp [Accessed 10 Dec 2012]
• Barnes (2007) cited by Rowley, C. and Cooper, H. (2009)
• Bruner, J. S. (1973). The relevance of Education. New York: Norton
• Bruner, J. (1983) Child’s Talk . New York: Norton
• Chomsky, N., Marsh, J. (1972). Desirable Literacies. McDonagh, J., McDonagh, S.
Learning to Talk: Talking to Learn.
• DfEE. (1999), The National Curriculum: Handbook for primary teachers in England,
Key Stages 1 and 2. London: DfEE, QCA
• Kozulin, A. (2003) Vygotsky’s Educational Theory in Cultural Context. Cambridge:
Cambridge University Press.
• Meighan, R. (2004) Natural learning and the natural Curriculum. Educational
Heretics Press
• Orlando, L., Machado, A. (1996) In defence of Piaget’s theory: A reply to 10 common
criticisms. Psychological Review 103, 143 – 64
• Palincsar, A. S.(1998). Social constructivist perspectives on teaching and learning. In
J. T. Spence, J. M. Darley and D. J. Foss, Annual Review of Psychology. Palo Alto, CA:
Annual Reviews.
• Piaget, J. (1964). Development and Learning. In R. Ripple and V. Rockcastle (eds),
Piaget Rediscovered. Ithaca, NY: Cornell University Press.
• Rowley, C. and Cooper, H. (2009) Cross Curricular Approaches to Teaching and
Learning. London: Sage
• Sadler, D. R. (1981) Intuitive Data Processing as a Potential Source of bias in
naturalistic evaluations. Educational Evaluation and Policy Analysis [online]. 3 (4),
pp. 25-31. [Accessed 06 Dec 2012]
• Schaffer, R. (1996). Social Development. Oxford: Blackwell
• The Department For Education (2012) The Statutory Framework for The Early Years
Foundation Stage. London: Department for Education.
• The Government Digital Service (2009) GOV.UK, The National Curriculum. Available
from: https://www.gov.uk/national-curriculum/overview [Accessed 06 December
2012]. The Guardian (Monday, 2nd April, 2012) The Guardian News [online].
[Accessed 06 December 2012]
• The Psychology Notes Head Quarter. (2012) Available from:
http://www.psychologynoteshq.com/piagetstheory/ [Accessed 06 December
2012].
• Vygotsky, L.S. (1962) Thought and Language. Cambridge MA: MIT Press
• Vygotsky, L. S. (1978) Mind in Society: The Development of Higher Mental
Processes. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.
• Woolfolk, A., Hughes, M. and Walkup, V. (2013) Psychology in Education: Cognitive
Development and Language. 2nd ed. London: Pearson.