This book is an exhilarating journey into the set of ideas known as the key competencies. The authors employ creative zeal and the collective wisdom of more than a decade of research on the subject as they dig deep into what the key competencies mean and their purpose within the New Zealand Curriculum. They lay out rich new possibilities for educators to explore in their own work. The multifaceted nature of each key competency goes under the spotlight and the authors also use them as a stepping-off point for conversations about how students learn and the future of schooling. Throughout they draw on actual examples from inspiring teachers. This very readable book is for teachers and school leaders wanting to get to a deeper understanding of the complexities of the key competencies and their potential to bring about real change in teaching and learning. It's also for anyone interested in wrestling with why education needs transformative change. The authors are a small team of researchers at the New Zealand Council for Educational Research (NZCER), who used a creative inquiry process to bring together this ground-breaking work.

Will today's curriculum prepare secondary school students for life in the 21st century? Rachel Bolstad and Jane Gilbert propose radical new models for schooling that challenge long-held ideas about the purpose and structure of the senior secondary years. They take a specific look at the curriculum that is taught in Years 11-13 and how it will need to change to be relevant in the developing knowledge society. In the recent controversy and upheaval over assessment, they say we have failed to think deeply enough about what, and how, senior secondary students should actually learn. Bolstad and Gilbert tease out and challenge the historic assumptions that have lead to the current curriculum-one that either lays down the basis of a specific body of knowledge that will be developed by those who go on to university, or weeds out those who won't. They argue that to be successful in the knowledge society no-one can be left behind. It is not enough for our schools to produce people who are knowledgeable; we need to develop adaptable, technologically and socially adept people who can use and create knowledge.