It is true to say that the OECD report is useful and does highlight important and crucial issues; issues and concerns that are already being discussed by stakeholders in Wales. It's true to say that there are no surprises, as the education Minister said, but the report does underline the fact that there is a great deal of work still to be done, that the issues and concerns are very real and that we do need to hasten the process of focusing on those in order to avoid failure. Nobody wants to see the curriculum failing, of course.

The report does say that Wales has mapped out its policy plan successfully and that the vision is clear, and Plaid Cymru has supported that vision, but we have consistently argued that that vision does need to take root properly within our schools, and the report endorses that and states that the next steps need to explain the vision and what the objectives of the curriculum will mean for students learning in our schools, namely to explain what we're trying to deliver through the new curriculum, what are our expectations of the new curriculum, and how can we convey those to students, parents, employers and to the wider community here in Wales. The way the OECD puts it is: