Drone studies, puppetry and cartooning to go in curriculum cleanup – Sydney Morning Herald

The government will cut more than 80 school-developed courses as part of its plan to pare back an overcrowded curriculum, but critics say the move fails to ease the burden for most teachers and students as the subjects were studied by so few.

Circus skills, which had 82 enrolments last year, classical ballet and travel and tourism will be among those to go, as will drone basics, studied by four students last year, leather, studied by three, and puppetry, studied by none.

Also on the chopping block are Catholic Studies Life Skills, bushcraft, game design, cartooning, music theatre, philosophy and equine studies. Big history, a Macquarie University-developed subject on the evolution of the universe from the big bang, will also go.

Drone studies is one of the year 9-10 electives that will be cut under a new policy Credit:James Brickwood

Premier Gladys Berejiklian said the government had exceeded its target of reducing the elective courses developed by high schools by at least 20 per cent. “We need our schools to be focussed on the core learning areas,” Ms Berejiklian said.