Pupils’ future chances hit by exams ‘lottery’
SCOTTISH pupils are facing an exams ‘postcode lottery’ that could harm their chances of getting a university place or top job, an expert has warned. The leading thinktank Reform Scotland has accused the SNP of having ‘inequality built in’ to its flagship Curriculum for Excellence.
It says some pupils will be restricted to just five crucial National 4 and 5 subjects, while others are able to take eight, purely because of the school they attend.
It is a massive blow to Nicola Sturgeon, who has pledged to make closing the attainment gap between rich and poor pupils a key priority of the new parliament.
Keir Bloomer, a Reform Scotland advisory board member, said different interpretations of CfE by different councils were to blame for the anomalies.
He said: ‘Our research shows that inequality of opportunity is now built into our examination system, not by the SQA but by decisions made mainly at council level. This is an unintended consequence of the way Curriculum for Excellence is being interpreted.
‘The intention was to extend the broader education provided in S1 and S2 into S3, with students beginning their examination courses in S4 only. Curriculum for Excellence had the admirable aim of broadening our children’s education, but in this case it is narrowing it.
‘This is not an issue of the preferences or ability of the student. Instead, it is a lottery based on the school a young person attends.
‘The result is that a very able student at one school could emerge with fewer qualifications than a similarly able student at a different school.
‘Through no fault of their own, certain young children will be disadvantaged in the job and uniare versity market, and it is important to shine a light on this so that parents, universities and employers are aware of it.’
Miss Sturgeon’s opponents warned she must take responsibility for the impact of SNP cuts and complacency.
Liz Smith, Scottish Tory young people spokesman, said: ‘We have been warning about the inequalities appearing within the exam system and, to date, the SNP has turned a blind eye to them all. It is not just National 4 and 5s that suffering but Highers and Advanced Highers too. This has major implications for college and university entrance.’
Lib Dem MSP Alex ColeHamilton added: ‘Councils have not been helped by swingeing SNP cuts to education budgets.’
And Iain Gray, Scottish Labour education spokesman, said: ‘This narrowing of the curriculum is now being compounded by many pupils facing a postcode lottery when it comes to the range of subjects they can study towards a qualification for, meaning that some pupils through no fault of their own could complete S4 with three fewer qualifications than a pupil at another neighbouring school.’
However, a spokesman for the Convention of Scottish Local Authorities said: ‘To suggest that councils treat Curriculum for Excellence as a lottery ignores the quality of outcomes already achieved by Scottish pupils, since CfE National 4 and 5 exams were introduced.
‘The national performance for schools has seen an improvement since CfE was introduced and we should be positive about this.’
A Scottish Government spokesman added: ‘Individual education authorities and schools make decisions about the curriculum and the number of qualifications pupils can sit to ensure they best meets the needs of their pupils, taking local circumstances into account.’
‘Inequality is now built into system’
THE attainment gap between rich and poor pupils was identified as a key target for the SNP by Nicola Sturgeon herself as she invited the public to judge her government on this key benchmark.
But Reform Scotland, a leading thinktank, has picked up on a structural flaw that is damaging the life chances of pupils.
They say some pupils will be restricted to only five crucial National 4 and 5 subjects, while other children are able to take eight.
This postcode lottery is yet another black mark against the Curriculum for Excellence, centrepiece of the Nationalists’ education policy.
The intentions behind CfE were good. It was meant to broaden children’s education.
Yet the reality in classrooms is just the opposite as some pupils find they simply cannot sit the exams they require for their chosen career path.
Able pupils – through no fault of their own – are being hemmed in, having their world narrowed by a flawed system. They are unfairly excluded from certain college and university courses, a nonsense in modern Scotland.
It is particularly galling as this is exactly the sort of morass Holyrood should be able to address.
The parliament is meant to be light on its feet, able to identify problems and react swiftly to deliver innovative solutions.
The trouble is SNP dogma. Loss of face in admitting making a mistake is something the party will not countenance.
So rather than take aboard criticism and refine legislation, they circle the wagons and discount any fault-finding as politically-motivated carping.
Continually putting the party’s interests first in this fashion protects bad systems and, in this case, betrays young Scots.
Miss Sturgeon will soon be confirming her new Cabinet. If she is serious about tackling the gulf between pupils, she needs a new Education Secretary.
Angela Constance has proved a dreadful flop, incapable of effecting meaningful change as she drifts from crisis to crisis.
She must surely be replaced with a figure who has the courage to accept CfE is far from perfect and to deliver the reforms needed to maximise the opportunities for our most precious resource – our children.