Today in England, the review by Sir Jim Rose of the English Primary Curriculum was reported. The report was pre-empted by stories in the press that it was going to recommend the use of Twitter and other social media sites to become an integral part of the curriculum. This, combined with rumours that ministers had limited the scope of the review and excluded removing the requirement for SATs at the primary level, meant that the report was received with much interest.

The report firmly puts information communication technology at the heart of the curriculum, alongside English and math, and describes these subjects as "essentials for learning and life." The traditional subjects will continue with more cross-curricular work in six themes with a focus on speaking and listening. The other major change is that beginning in 2011 all children will be able to start school in the September after they turn 4 years old.

The rumoured inclusion of social media sites has been dumbed down in the report, presumably because of the earlier leak. The report references the need for higher-order thinking skills, by children exploring resources such as Wikipedia and determining what is valid information, and also the need for children to be able to manipulate digital assets.

Today I saw a posting from Curriki about using Twitter in and out of the classroom and the benefits it brings. Many schools in the U.K. do not allow access to such social media sites that are potentially valuable sources of information.

If the report had acknowledged the potential value such social media can bring to education, then maybe schools would have considered how they could safely allow students access to these valuable primary sources of information, which, for many students, are part of their everyday life. Perhaps this was a missed opportunity. Let's wait and see.