KEY POINTS:
History lessons as many of us knew them could end up as history themselves, say some education experts.
Auckland History Teachers' Association co-chairman Graeme Ball says that already history students could go through high school without learning about the Treaty of Waitangi, if their school so decided.
Planned
changes under the draft curriculum - a final version of which is due in schools from next year - will give them more flexibility to develop subjects with input from students and the community.
Mr Ball said the "loosening" of guidelines went too far. It left schools open to pressure from groups wanting their version of history taught.
History lessons could be increasingly tailored around niche community interests but miss out a more national perspective.
For instance, South Auckland schools could put more emphasis on the history of Pacific Island cultures, while Canterbury schools might focus on links to Britain.
Mr Ball said the potential wide range of topics could prove problematic for external assessment.
An earlier analysis of about 9100 official submissions on the draft curriculum found high levels of support, with 80 per cent of respondents saying it reinforced the direction schools were heading in.
While 72 per cent of responses said it provided the right amount of flexibility, some indicated it was not detailed enough to enable schools to design a curriculum.
Groups ranging from the teacher unions and the Education Forum to the Office of the Children's Commissioner warned that it was vague and could result in wide disparities.
A Ministry of Education spokesman said responses were being worked into a final version of the curriculum to be made public in October.
He said supporting documents and an implementation plan were being developed to assist schools.
The curriculum sets out the Government's expectations of what primary and secondary schoolchildren should be able to achieve by the time they leave school. It does not prescribe content but provides a framework of concepts from which lessons are developed.
No national topics have existed for history since the introduction of the National Certificate of Educational Achievement in 2002.
New Zealand History Teachers' Association chairman Paul O'Connor said exams effectively set history topics under the old assessment system but that went under NCEA.
He said a history review panel of teachers and a university academic was involved in developing guiding materials to give direction to schools and teachers.
The curriculum review was a chance to rejuvenate history lessons and incorporate wider aspects not taught, such as the role of sport and leisure, rather than "rehashing" old content.
"There is a consensus among a lot of history teachers that it is time for a change."
NZ Historical Association president Giselle Byrnes praised the draft curriculum's "forward-thinking" approach.
But she backed history teachers, some of who were craving more guidance on content. She wanted more New Zealand history taught because students could go through high school without learning it.
