Some of the broad issues in syllabus development for Years 7-10 include:

• designing curriculum to meet the current and future learning needs and interests of adolescent students;
• ensuring a continuum of learning K-12;
• continuing to provide strong foundations through a core curriculum.

Other issues include:

• Continuity of students' engagement in learning from Stage 3 to Stage 4;
• Understanding of the needs of adolescent learners as a discrete developmental period;
• Ensuring that primary students are well prepared to engage in the subject-specific learning required of secondary schooling by articulating KLA learning more clearly in primary classrooms, where an integrated approach is popular;
• Ensuring that teachers have a clear understanding of the literacy and numeracy demands of subjects, and how to teach these to students;
• Ensuring that prior learning is known and built upon;
• Ensuring equity; that all students are taught all syllabus outcomes;
• Developing an understanding of organisational structures that support students' learning.

These issues are being addressed by the Department of Education and Training through the introduction of four Linkages curriculum guidelines that guide teachers in helping their students develop as learners. These guidelines are:

• Maintaining high expectations of all students;
• Addressing the needs of adolescent learners within the mainstream classroom;
• Teaching explicitly and systematically;
• Teaching subject-specific literacy and numeracy.

These guidelines will form the basis of the policy statement, Focus on Linkages.