John Swinney is underplaying the seriousness of falling educational standards

The BBC Reporting Scotland programme (May 9) reported that the number of Scottish children able to read and write well had fallen again.

In 2012 64% of second year secondary pupils were doing well or very well in writing, while last year only 49% were performing to this level.

The report opened with John Swinney in an Edinburgh school where we were told pupils’ vocabulary when they entered school was two and a half years behind the standard expected at that age.

We were then told that the Scottish Government had given money to provide specialist help to improve the situation. This implies that our government is addressing the problem, but they are not. Most schools are not getting this assistance.

The Curriculum for Excellence is letting our pupils down. Government ministers regularly appearing in our schools for photo opportunities is not the answer.

Primary one and Primary two pupils in Edinburgh schools finish school half an hour earlier than the older pupils, a practice which ended in most other Scottish local authorities over fifteen years ago

This means that five- and six-year-olds in Edinburgh have 22.5 hours of education per week instead of 25 hours. An incredible time difference if you add it up over the two years and time that could have been well spent educating the children in the report as well as all youngsters in Edinburgh.

John Swinney when commenting on the attainment levels said “significant improvement is needed, but we have to see these figures as part of a general round of Scottish education which can point to strengths” .

Children need to be able to read and write to get a good education, please just admit there is a very serious problem with education in Scotland. CATHERINE BAXTER

Glen Court, Dunblane Following the publication of the damning education data which again shows that the SNP government is failing miserably in this (and many other) crucial area of Scottish life, all John Swinney could say was “we need to be clearer about the standards expected in our classrooms”.

What a cheek! The Scottish people say in reply: “We need to be clearer about the standards expected from our government.”

After ten years of SNP rule our education standards have fallen to yet another new low. Our children are being cheated. We can all do something about this in four weeks’ time.

JIM HOUSTON Winton Gardens, Edinburgh