Kirsty Williams has announced a revised timeline for the introduction of a new national education plan aimed at developing a high-quality teaching profession and creating "inspirational leaders" to raise standards of schooling in Wales.
She said it would involve the establishment a new National Academy for Educational Leadership and investing £1.1 billion to upgrade the quality of school buildings.
The key part of the Education Secretary's announcement however was to confirm that the statutory roll-out to schools of the new Curriculum for Wales would begin in 2022, rather than 2021, to give the teaching profession and schools more time to prepare for and develop the changes.
The new curriculum will be introduced from nursery to Year 7 in 2022, rolling into Year 8 in 2023, Year 9 in 2024, Year 10 in 2025 and Year 11 in 2026. All schools will have access to the final curriculum from 2020 to allow them to move towards full roll-out in 2022. Opponents of the plan, while welcoming the delay to the implementation of the new Curriculum, said they feared it would cause "major chaos" if teachers were to be expected to teach two separate curriculums at the same time.Darren Millar AM, Welsh Conservative Shadow Education Secretary, said: "Since the last round of disastrous international test results, we have been calling for a pause and review of the roll-out of the Welsh Government's curriculum reforms, so I am glad the Cabinet Secretary has at last heeded this advice."The extra 12 months to prepare for these major changes will be welcomed by schools and I encourage the Welsh Government to use this time to engage with teachers so that they are fully abreast of the transitions afoot."My major concern, however, is that under these plans two curriculums will be running side by side for a period of around six years. "This has the potential to cause major chaos for teachers who are essentially being asked to juggle the demands of two syllabuses, and so Welsh Government will need to explain how it intends to manage this so that learning is not adversely affected."
Brecon and Radnorshire AM Ms Williams said the reforms would enable the Welsh Government to continue its attempts to keep improving the education system, including reducing class sizes, reforming teacher training and reducing bureaucracy, while establishing a national approach to long-term career development for teachers.
Ms Williams said: "Our plan is aimed at ensuring every young person in Wales has an equal opportunity to reach the highest standards and their full potential. We can't achieve those ambitions if we just stand still. Teachers and educators across our system are working together to raise standards and reduce the attainment gap.
"We all share a responsibility to inspire and challenge the next generation. That is why we will support teachers with continuous learning and development, better support and identify our leaders, and reduce class sizes so that we can raise standards for all."
Commenting on the new curriculum, she added: "Since becoming Education Secretary I have visited schools across the country, spoken to a range of teachers, parents and experts and held talks with unions.
"It’s the right decision to introduce the curriculum as a phased roll-out rather than a 'big bang’, and for that to start in 2022. This approach, and an extra year, will mean all schools have the time to engage with the development of the curriculum and be full prepared for the changes. As the OECD have recommended, we will continue our drive to create a curriculum for the 21st century."