**TL:DR - I believe students should be involved in the curriculum design process because this will give them more control over their own education**. Actively engaging students in creating their own syllabus can have a positive impact on how motivated they feel towards the learning process. A study conducted on a group of medical students at the University of Ioannina in Greece has concluded that 'the first key factor to optimize the students’ performance and their learning experience is the personalized curriculum, which seems to have been warmly welcomed by the majority of students, as the best way to correspond to the needs, interests and abilities of all students'. A curriculum actively determined by students, whether at school or at the university, can help stimulate the interests and inclinations of the students, who will feel more fulfilled and productive attending a class that they actually care about. Plus, this is a way for students to optimise their own learning and become more conscious of what they have to do if attending subjects of their choice. Of course, this should be achieved in collaboration with the teachers, and the communication between teacher and student when it comes to the syllabus can help re-shape the way education is viewed and experienced by both. The reality of demotivated students will change, and a tailored syllabus can show that students are, in fact, 'totally absorbed in what they are doing, studying areas they have chosen which clearly matter to them' ('The Conversation'). Works Cited Zaimis, Tilemachos, and others, 'Students design their own curriculum: An experiment to maintain students' enthusiasm', *MedEdPublish*, 1 (2016) <https://www.mededpublish.org/manuscripts/666#:~:text=Studying%20with%20a%20personalized%20curriculum%20was%20welcomed.&text=It's%20important%20to%20give%20students,match%20with%20their%20teachers'%20enthusiasm.> [accessed 11 February 2021]. 'What if young people designed their own learning?' (2016) <https://theconversation.com/what-if-young-people-designed-their-own-learning-59153> [accessed 11 February 2021].

**tl;dr - A national standard syllabus is necessary to maintain a certain level of education in all areas. Giving inexperienced students the choice would be a mistake and a logistical nightmare.** Although theoretically the argument for students being allowed to build their own syllabus may have strengths, practically it fails. In most schools, primary and secondary, a national curriculum must be adhered to (the exception to such cases includes the small minority of schools such as private schools and academies). 'A national curriculum is a set of subjects and standards... so children can learn the same things. It covers what subjects are taught and the standard children should reach in each subject'. By allowing school students to build their own syllabus standardisation would be lost. Varied and bias responses would cause areas of expertise as well as areas of ignorance causing ill foundations of knowledge for children. Such important decisions cannot be made by those of such a young age, but instead should be left to the experienced leaders in education. Motivation must be found through other means as school students are not well-equipped enough for such responsibility. Similarly, for those in higher education such as university, the logistics of giving students the power to build the particulars of a syllabus would be impossible to manage. University courses can include hundreds of students that are likely to all having different opinions. Additionally, through choice in degree (or 'majoring'), choice in modules and choice in dissertation titles, students already have the means to pave their learning experience. Although the idea of motivation through choice is desirable, it is too idealistic. Realistically, standardisation of curriculum is the only way to manage education. The Government (2020). 'The National Curriculum', *Gov.UK*. Accessible at: https://www.gov.uk/national-curriculum

Children are not experts in the education field. It is highly likely they would choose options which suited their interests in the moment and not what would benefit them in the future. I remember choosing my own GCSEs at 14 and finding that overwhelming enough. Experts in the field know best as to what will aid the child’s learning, not the children themselves- that’s why they are at school in the first place.

A class that is deliberately focused on and influenced by what's presented in the syllabus by a professor will always be an effective way for a student to learn. A syllabus for a class allows for an immediate breakdown of the material they will be learning in order to better their intentions in taking the class. If a student builds their own syllabus, I would immediately call that an independent study. Allowing students to pursue independent studies more often should be a main focus in education, but most students will still need guidance from an advisor of sorts.

**TLDR: school age students (I'm guessing year 7-11ish) do not have the experience needed to make decisions like that and could end up damaging their future prospects** Whilst I do think it would be good to have a bit more of a choice when it comes to the content you focus on (perhaps within a particular subject), I think younger students would tend to choose subjects that are easier or viewed as more laid back so school is more fun. I know when I was at school I used to hate doing work, and just wanted to mess around, as did most of my peers judging by how our classes went. If I had been able to choose what subjects to do and not to do I would have chosen things like art and tech and I.T. (lessons in which it was easier to relax) and ignore things like maths and science and English (which I now love). This would have set me up improperly for life, and I think I would lack some of the fundamentals necessary for employment or even understanding the world.

Students should be allowed to influence their education, sure. It is important that syllabuses change with the times and student voices should be heard. However, as mentioned allowing students to create the syllabus in each school and year is a logistical nightmare. How would schools maintain standards? How would they compare data? How would they ensure a good amount of knowledge is taught to help them in the working world? You cannot teach everything, and whilst I agree that students should have a voice in their education, a national curriculum that changes with the times and data is the best way for schools to run.