So we're to have an extra training day in Wales for the next 3 years

[DrMadelineMaxwell]

To prepare and implement the new curriculum changes.

Not going to go down well with parents, I feel.

I think it’ll take more than 3 days to sort that out, it sounds bonkers.

Is this all across Wales? I hadn't heard. Can't see it being an issue though. What are the objections you've heard?

I wonder if it will come out of our holidays! We are a pioneer school 🤦🏻‍♀️

What do Welsh teachers make of it all?

I am coming to the end of my career so it wont affect me as much. I think sonw elements are good and I like some of the areas of learning but I can't see the link between assessments at KS3 and GCSEs as there won't be levels.
At this moment I am so cynical about lots of things in my school and am peed off with things I may have a clouded judgement.

It was in the press a few days ago about the extra days - I wasn't aware that there was a consultation document or that this was the result until seeing some end of year footage from someone thanking teachers in Wales. And I only watched THAT because it was shot at my child's school.

Working parents will see it as an imposition, bearing in mind a lot don't appreciate the need for an extra day's holiday training days at all.

It's already bonkers that we've been expected to spend the last year + preparing for an unseen curriculum.

I've never read so many words that actually explain very little as I have when reading some of the Areas of Learning.

1 extra day a year? Not a huge deal surely? Do you disagree with it for other reasons?

Nothing to stop schools disaggregating the day and taking it as twilights.

Disaggregated INSETs still mean an extra day off school for the kids.

I'm a parent rather than a teacher and it wouldn't bother me. They're not frequent enough to cause major disruption and as long as enough notice is given, which it always is with our school, we just arrange the day off between us.
Nothing the school can do about it and it's apart of having kids.

Yes, but they seem to draw fewer complaints than INSET days when the staff are in. They also foil the CFs who send their kids in regardless in the hope that we will take pity and keep them.

I don't live in Wales at the moment, but the curriculum changes are putting me off ever moving back. I'm really concerned about it for a number of reasons (my subject subsumed into an 'Area'; impact on the Welsh language; potentially disadvantaging top end Welsh students e.g. for Oxbridge; teachers trained as specialists teaching a broad range of knowledge and skills; based on the work and recommendations of a single academic...). One day per year will not be enough planning time.

What are the areas? What might a maths teacher be expected to teach?

The Areas of Learning and experience (AOLE) are Expressive Arts, Humanities, Languages, Literacy and Communication, Science and Technology, Maths and Numeracy and Health and Well-being.
I don't think it would affect you too much as a Maths teacher. In our school I think we are sticking to our subject disciplines but as a starting point trying to find links across subjects. My problem is how vague it is. It seems in my subject (History) I could teach any topic I want to. Also there doesn't seem to be any consistency from school to school, and they haven't decided what KS4 assessment will look like yet or how anything will be assessed.

Infographic

Try again...