By Zayed Alzyoud
Academics, education experts and decision-makers on Sunday called for reforms in how Jordan develops and assesses school curricula, urging changes that keep pace with global developments and improve learning outcomes.
The recommendations were issued at the close of the First National Conference, titled “Horizons of Innovation and Development in Curricula and Their Assessment to Achieve Quality Education,” organised by the University of Jordan (UJ), through the School of Educational Sciences, in cooperation with the National Center for Curriculum Development (NCCD).
Speakers said curriculum reform should place greater emphasis on critical and creative thinking, problem-solving and digital skills. They also stressed the need to reinforce values of citizenship, responsibility and sustainable development.
They urged closer alignment with labour-market needs and community priorities, stressing the importance of linking learning content to real development challenges so graduates can build skills that are competitive locally and internationally.
The recommendations called for wider adoption of modern teaching approaches, including active learning, project-based learning and blended learning, to improve student engagement and learning outcomes.
On assessment, participants called for comprehensive and diversified systems that measure both performance and skills. They urged broader use of authentic assessment tools and reliable evaluation methods to strengthen fairness and accuracy.
They also called for expanding the use of modern technologies in curriculum design and assessment, including artificial intelligence applications and educational data analytics. Speakers said these tools can enhance learning effectiveness and monitor outcomes more precisely.
On teacher preparation, participants recommended sustainable, competency-based professional development programmes that enable teachers to integrate technology effectively and contribute to curriculum development.
They also urged redesigning teacher-education programmes to include digital competencies, curriculum design, outcomes-based assessment and active learning approaches.
The conference stressed the need to strengthen a culture of quality and accreditation through clear standards for curriculum development. It called for regular reviews based on measurable performance indicators.
It also urged stronger partnerships with community sectors and expanded support for research and applied studies to promote evidence-based decision-making in education.
Participants proposed establishing a national system of indicators to measure curriculum impact in advancing the Sustainable Development Goals. They also recommended creating a national benchmarking unit to draw on international best practices while adapting them to national priorities.
They called for aligning textbook content and targeted skills with international assessments and using their results to improve curricula and teacher training programmes.
Dean of the School of Educational Sciences and conference chair Prof. Muhammad Al-Zyoud said he hopes the recommendations will be translated into actionable plans. He stressed that education reform is a shared national responsibility requiring coordinated efforts by academic and educational institutions and decision-makers.