Last week, I had a teacher (outside my organisation) challenge me about TransformED, questioning why I am such a strong advocate for the proposed curriculum reforms. Her argument was that “the proposed TransformED curriculum doesn’t change anything that is already being done in classrooms, and it’s how I teach already.” I was shocked. Stunned, as a matter of fact. To suggest that the proposed reforms offer absolutely nothing different from what is currently in place is, in my opinion, an extraordinary assertion. But what I found even more bizarre was the contradiction within her own argument. If the approaches being proposed through TransformED are already central to her teaching practice, surely that would be a reason to welcome its implementation, rather than dismiss the reforms altogether? What an individual teacher does in their classroom is not necessarily what the curriculum requires, nor what every pupil across Northern Ireland consistently experiences. That is a fundamental distinction. What struck me most was the absence of any meaningful explanation. No comparison with the existing curriculum, no reference to specific proposals and no evidence to support the assertion that nothing would change. In my opinion, it felt like disagreement simply for the sake of disagreement. I welcome professional debate, particularly on something as significant as curriculum reform. However, personal experience and the argument that “we already do that” are not sufficient grounds to dismiss systemic reform. The question is not whether individual teachers are already implementing effective practice. Of course they are. The question is whether our curriculum ensures that all pupils, regardless of their school or classroom, experience the same high expectations, coherent knowledge and opportunities to succeed. That is the conversation these individuals should be having. Evidence over ideology. Always.

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Absolutely. Effective teaching strategies cannot compensate for a poorly designed curriculum. Yet, that is precisely what many excellent teachers have been expected to do for years. Speaking from a Northern Ireland perspective, this is why I welcome Education Minister Paul Givan's direction on curriculum reform. What we teach, when we teach it, and how knowledge is sequenced matters enormously. Evidence over ideology. Always!