Curriculum for Wales: Learning from medical education

This chapter explores Student-Led Improvement Science Projects (SLISPs) for medical and pharmacy students using actor-network theory (ANT) and outlines what can be learned in the context of teacher agency. There are a number of practical similarities between medical students in their use of Improvement Science for researching potential process improvements in a hospital setting, and research involving teachers as part of the new Curriculum for Wales. In Wales, there is a shift in roles for teachers as they become more influential and instrumental in developing the curriculum for schools. The Curriculum for Wales provides the opportunity to explore more holistic and experimental pedagogies, but alongside this comes the uncertainty and ambiguity of multiple possibilities. Previous research with SLISPs and ANT, and more latterly, Latour’s book An inquiry into modes of existence can help to articulate some of these uncertainties and provide a lexicon to articulate the subtle mundanities of practice that accompany change and innovation.