The English Baccalaureate could be scrapped following concerns raised in Labour’s Curriculum and Assessment Review Interim Report that it may constrain student choice.
The Report, released on Tuesday [18th March], and led by Professor Becky Francis, suggests the EBacc may be restricting student choice and limiting access to creative and vocational subjects such as art and drama. The review is assessing whether the qualification remains “effective” within the current education system.
Introduced in 2010 by Michael Gove, the former Conservative Education Secretary, the EBacc was designed as a key measure of school performance in England. It assesses pupil achievement in core subjects at Key Stage Four and was intended to raise academic standards by focusing on English, mathematics, science, a language, and either geography or history, with an end-of-year exam structure.
However, the review warns that the EBacc “may unnecessarily constrain the choice of students, impacting their engagement and achievement”, as most of their nine GCSEs are pre-selected, leaving little room for creative and vocational subjects.
The review also found that the EBacc is one of “two main barriers to achieving breadth and balance” at GCSE level. Additionally, according to The Department for Education’s Key Stage Four performance report, government targets for EBacc entry rates have not been met, far below the 75 per cent goal for 2022 and the 90 per cent target set for 2025, making it unlikely to be achieved.
With the final report due in autumn 2025, its findings could play a significant role in shaping future curriculum reforms, potentially leading to the removal of the EBacc as a performance measure in schools and paving the way for a more flexible approach to secondary education.
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