Positive Reviews: History Curriculum Convincing, Geography High-Quality, and Physical Education Modern

The Ministry of Science and Education announced on Thursday that it has received positive reviews for the history curriculum, developed by the Bavarian State Ministry of Education and Culture, Science and Arts, as well as for the geography and physical education curricula evaluated by Slovenian reviewers.

Minister Blaženka Divjak expressed her satisfaction with the positive reviews, stating that they show that in the fall we will experimentally enter schools with quality curricula that, along with teacher education on new teaching methods, form the basis of the concept of a school for life that we are building.

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Thanking all expert working groups for their quality work, Divjak noted that she expects the curricula to be further improved based on the constructive suggestions of the reviewers.

History Curriculum – well-highlighted different perspectives and interpretations of history

The review of the history curriculum was sent by the Bavarian State Ministry of Education and Culture, Science and Arts, and the Ministry of Education and Science notes that a review from the Croatian Academy of Sciences and Arts is still expected.

Reviewers emphasize that the proposal for the curriculum well highlights different perspectives and interpretations of history, referring to the Council of Europe’s recommendation on history and history teaching in Europe from 1996. However, referring to the Council of Europe’s recommendation on learning and teaching history in areas where there are or have been armed conflicts from 2009, they suggest that aspects focused on inclusivity, relations among different communities, interregional relations, and the role of women and minorities should be more strongly emphasized.

They rated the selection and description of the five concepts on which the history curriculum is based (time and space, causes and consequences, continuity and change, sources and research of the past, interpretations and perspectives) as ‘convincing’, and equally convincing were the learning and teaching objectives of history that encompass knowledge, skills, attitudes, and values.

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They propose that the objectives of learning explicitly emphasize education for democracy.

Reviewers evaluated the curriculum in seven categories on a scale from 1 (inappropriate) to 4 (completely appropriate), with the highest rating given to four categories.

Thus, educational outcomes and content, the relationship between the breadth and depth of knowledge, skills, and attitudes in the subject, planned elements and forms of assessment, and strategies for learning and teaching were rated as completely appropriate (4) in relation to the age of the students.

Domains necessary for understanding the subject and compliance with European and global recommendations were rated as mostly appropriate (3).

The periods of ancient, medieval, and early modern history are considered well represented by the reviewers, who highlight the significance of certain historical phenomena important for understanding European modern and contemporary history and European integration, such as nationalism, the danger of totalitarianism, the Holocaust as a crime against humanity, and the building of Croatian democracy.

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According to the proposal for the history curriculum, these contents are mandatory in primary school while in secondary school they are part of the guidelines for shaping topics. Reviewers believe that these contents should be mandatory in secondary school due to their importance for understanding European history, where currently only the topic related to the emergence of an independent Croatian state and the Homeland War is mandatory, while others are elective.

The relevance of scientific knowledge in secondary school could not be fully assessed by the reviewers because the language of the description of thematic areas is not specific enough, and therefore in this category, the rating is ‘appropriate to a certain extent’ (2).

High-Quality Geography Curriculum, but Gymnasium Program Disproportionate to the Number of Hours

Slovenian reviewers rate the geography curriculum as high-quality, meaningfully structured, in line with the requirements and development of the geographical and didactic-pedagogical field.

Noting that the curriculum is very extensive in some parts, reviewers emphasize that it requires competent teachers.

Comparing it with the Slovenian curriculum, they point out that a large number of outcomes are the same or similar and believe that the elaboration of the adoption of outcomes by levels makes sense as it reduces the possibility of different interpretations of the same levels of outcomes.

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However, reviewers emphasize that the document is more extensive compared to most countries in Western and Northern Europe.

They believe that the objectives and outcomes are fully relevant and based on scientific knowledge in the subject area, and the domains necessary for the subject area are well represented.

They consider the gymnasium program to be demanding, extensive, and deep, “which is not fundamentally wrong, but is not proportionate to the number of hours allocated for teaching the subject.”

Physical and Health Education – Curriculum Follows Modern Trends

Slovenian reviewers assessed that the learning outcomes in the National Curriculum for the subject Physical and Health Education (PHE) are fully relevant and based on scientific knowledge in the subject area.

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They believe that the curriculum follows European and global recommendations for the subject area, as well as modern scientific trends, has positive incentives, and is oriented towards a healthy and active lifestyle with the assumption of sufficient motor knowledge and positive incentives towards sports and life application.

It is structured in such a way that it is possible to expect an increase in awareness of the importance of physical activity, an increase in sports activity, which can help improve the health of individuals and the nation as a whole, the reviewers conclude.