Guest posting to voced-coord email list.
Item 4 of 10:

Date: Wed, 28 Oct 1998 19:08:53 +1100
To: voced-coord@owl.qut.edu.au
From: Jim Cumming
Subject: VocEd: Years 9 and 10 (guest)

Dear Colleagues

The vertically integrated curriculum for Years 9 and 10 which Carolyn has outlined is an interesting model, and is obviously generating positive outcomes for students at Xavier.

Let me lay my cards on the table. I am strongly in favour of much stronger links between Years 9 and 10 for a mumber of reasons.

1. After eight years of national research on the middle years (5-8), my view is that the needs of young adolescents (10-14 year olds) are quite different from those of older adolescents. For example, whereas younger adolescents tend to be more introspective (eg identity, relationships etc), older adolescents tend to be more outward looking (eg social and global issues etc).

2. I have reservations about the increasing trend in some (but certainly not all) education systems towards Year 10 becoming a defacto third year of a higher school certificate. One of the most commonly-cited examples of school reform in Years 9 and 10 that emerged from a recent national research project was 'access by students in Year 10 to accredited stage one units/modules of Year 11 courses' (e.g. academic, vocational, community studies).

3. There is a need to avoid providing either 'beefed up' versions of middle school curriculum, or 'watered down' versions of senior school curriculum for students in Years 9 and 10. These students deserve challenging and rewarding learning environments and activities that connect more directly with their life experiences. For example, it has always surprised me that as educators, we have rarely managed to connect meaningfully with and build constructively on, the part-time work and other community experiences in which so many of our Year 10 students participate (ie as part of mainstream curriculum and teaching).

Don't get me wrong, by advocating stronger links between Years 9 and 10, I am not arguing for a universal model that creates three transition points(ie 5-8; 9-10; and 11-12). Clearly, there are structural, resourcing and other issues in systems/sectors that make that impossible anyway. What I am saying, however, is that we do need to rethink contemporary curriculum, teaching/learning and organisational arrangements with a view to responding more positively to the identified needs, interests and aspirations of today's 15 and 16 year olds. The good news is that some schools and their communities are already doing this. The bad news is that these practices are not always documented or disseminated.

Jim Cumming
Educational Solutions Pty Ltd
Tel (02) 6254 8538
Fax (02) 6255 2072
jcumming@dynamite.com.au