School children between the ages of seven and 14 are to have their literacy and numeracy skills tested each year, the Welsh Government has announced.
In a bid to drive up standards, the Welsh Government has unveiled its new Literacy and Numeracy Framework (LNF) alongside a £7 million National Support Programme for schools.
Teaching unions are against the LNF arguing that it will increase workloads.
Education Minister Leighton Andrews said: “The National Literacy and Numeracy Framework sets clear, realistic and achievable expectations for the teaching of literacy and numeracy and will be a critical tool in driving up standards across the board.
“The LNF will help school leaders and managers to embed literacy and numeracy across all subjects in the curriculum and will support all teachers to become teachers of literacy and numeracy.
“They will be assisted in implementing the LNF by a comprehensive National Support Programme that is tailored to address the needs of individual schools, learners and teachers.
“The National Support Programme will be launched at four regional events in March. The events will also provide useful information to schools on the forthcoming reading and numeracy tests.
“Schools will now have a full academic year to focus on embedding the LNF into their curriculum planning and their teaching and learning before being required to formally assess pupils’ progress against the LNF.”
The Federation of Small Businesses in Wales has welcomed the roll-out of national standards.