Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson said her curriculum review would embed critical thinking skills in lessons.

Children will be taught how to spot extremist content and fake news online under planned changes to the school curriculum.

Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson said she was launching a review of the curriculum in primary and secondary schools to embed critical thinking across multiple subjects and arm children against “putrid conspiracy theories”.

Pupils might analyse newspaper articles in English lessons in a way that would help weed out fabricated clickbait from true reporting. In computer lessons, they could be taught how to spot fake news sites and maths lessons could include analysing statistics in context.

  • ᴇᴍᴘᴇʀᴏʀ 帝OPAEnglish
    11·
    3 months ago

    What my Dad always called “the elastic curriculum” - some politician gets a bug up their ass and demand schools teach it (eg BoJo and Latin). At least this weaves through different subjects so could be made to work. Still, it must be a bit difficult to teach critical thinking in religious schools.

    • Zip2English
      9·
      3 months ago

      And that’s why religious schools need to stop, and the Church of England needs to be disestablished.

    • breadsmasher@lemmy.worldEnglish
      6·
      3 months ago

      A bit difficult to teach critical thinking in religious schools

      Religion requires you to not have critical thinking skills at all

      • ᴇᴍᴘᴇʀᴏʀ 帝OPAEnglish
        3·
        3 months ago

        I went to a Catholic school - they did their level best not to avoid anything resembling it (and sex education).

        • breadsmasher@lemmy.worldEnglish
          4·
          3 months ago

          Just so I understand, the catholic school you attended did teach critical thinking and sex education?

          • TurtlePower@lemm.eeEnglish
            2·
            3 months ago

            Mine did, too. Hell, I had a 4th grade teacher that taught the class how to meditate during the last 5-10 minutes of class. She would turn off the lights, have us put our heads down on our desk and would put on a CD with new age bell/chime/gong meditation music, and she would talk us through guided meditations; simple visualization and relaxation. She also taught us to stand up and speak out when we saw someone doing something bad: “You are doing the wrong thing!”

      • ℛ𝒶𝓋ℯ𝓃@pawb.socialEnglish
        2·
        3 months ago

        My evangelical school did a “classical education” and made the mistake of actually having some critical thinking after all the indoctrination. I’m a pagan leftist transgender homosexual now.

    • then_three_more@lemmy.worldEnglish
      4·
      3 months ago

      must be a bit difficult to teach critical thinking in religious schools.

      Which is why all religious schools should be banned.