School league table fears quelled

John Swinney has moved to quell fears that the new national assessments being introduced in Scotland’s schools could be used to bring about a return to education league tables.

The education secretary clarified the Scottish Government would only be able to access national data from the online tests, which will measure the performance of pupils in P1, P4, P7 and S3.

This is the first year students will have to complete the online assessments, and the Scottish Government stressed they had been designed to be “as short as possible and age and stage appropriate”, with audio instructions for P1 youngsters.

Ministers have argued the tests are a vital part of efforts to close the education attainment gap, claiming the data will pinpoint where more work needs to be done.

But critics of standardised assessments fear they could lead to the return of school league tables, while unions have also warned the new system could be “absolutely destructive” if it brings an “obsession with targets” into classrooms across the country.

However Mr Swinney said the Scottish Government would only be able to access national data.

At an education conference in Glasgow, he said: “Scottish National Standardised Assessments give teachers objective and comparable information that will assist in identifying specific needs of young people in fulfilling their potential.”