Secondary schools will be instructed to stop teaching GCSE content before Year 10 under government plans to protect the first three years of secondary education from early exam preparation. Ministers say some schools begin teaching GCSEs in Year 7.

The changes would establish Key Stage 3, covering Years 7 to 9, as a more distinct phase, with greater emphasis on breadth and deeper understanding. The Department for Education says two reviews found that pupils increasingly disengage in their early teenage years, affecting attendance and achievement.

Education Secretary Lucy Powell said ringfencing these years would provide “more time to develop deeper understanding, as well as a richer experience that will engage more young people in their passions”.

A survey commissioned by the International Baccalaureate found that 57% of teachers identified GCSE preparation as the leading influence on the Key Stage 3 curriculum in England. That supports concerns about the prominence of exam preparation, though it does not establish that changing the curriculum will improve attendance.

The department’s attendance figures also contain a discrepancy: it describes persistent absence as nearly doubling between Year 6 and Year 9, but gives rates of 13% and 15%. Those figures represent a two-percentage-point increase, not a near doubling.

The policy reverses the previous Conservative government’s emphasis on core subjects and assessment performance. Former education secretary Michael Gove prioritised English, maths and science, raised grade boundaries, made exams harder and restricted resits. GCSEs became linear, with exams taken together at the end of Year 11 rather than throughout Key Stage 4.

Critics argued that making each exam more consequential encouraged teachers to start preparation earlier and concentrate on examinable material. There was, however, an earlier concern about purpose: a 2015 Ofsted report suggested Key Stage 3 could be “wasted years”, reflecting worries that pupils aged 11 to 14 lacked clear motivation.

The department promises a more engaging offer in drama, PE, music and languages, subjects that have seen declining take-up, in a new curriculum due later this year.

Responding to Sunday’s announcement, Liberal Democrat education spokeswoman Munira Wilson said school was “more than drilling kids for exams”, but warned against “micromanaging” teachers. A new curriculum alone would not restore attendance, she argued, pointing to anxiety and unmet mental health needs. Broader subject provision also depends on staffing: “schools can't offer more drama, music and languages without the teachers to teach them”.