ABSTRACT
This chapter argues that aims for primary education should be broader than a focus on academic outcomes. It examines how aims for primary education are diverse and complex and describes how to find and interpret the aims of primary schools. The chapter highlights some essential aims, from our joint perspective and supports new teachers in enacting their own aims. The layout and organisation of a classroom can reveal much about how far aims are put into practice. The teacher who states that s/he believes every child learns in different ways, at different rates and through different interests must demonstrate this in the curriculum and also the physical environment. Celebratory displays are likely to show the learning process from inception to outcome, exploring the ways that children approached the learning. Indeed, international research conducted with more than 2 million teachers highlighted that teachers’ beliefs about the nature of teaching and learning directly influence classroom practice and pupil outcomes.
