Labour’s ‘timetable for ambition’ tackles education reform

Scottish Labour has put forward a “timetable for ambition” in response to a report by the OECD that sparked pledges of sweeping reforms to Scotland’s education system.

Labour has said the OECD report amounts to a damning critique of the reforms championed by the Scottish Government and has called on all parties to support its proposal and demands for immediate action.

The report, published on Monday, found Scott ish teachers spend too much time in the classroom, while there is a “misalignment between Cfe’s [Curriculum for Excellence] aspirations and the qualification system” in the senior phase of secondary education in Scotland.

It also called for a better balance between breadth and depth of learning throughout CFE, for the government to overhaul the existing exams and assessment system, and for the development of a “systematic approach” to the review of the curriculum.

The party’s timetable for the implementation of the OECD’S proposals includes an immediate negotiation on a new deal for teachers, the establishment of an independent Inspectorate by the end of the week and the creation of an interim body forassessmentandcurriculum by mid-next month, while consultation on a new permanent body takes place.

The timetable also states the chairs of the new inspectorate and permanent assessment and curriculum bodies should be parliamentary appointments.

In Holyrood yesterday, education secretary Shirley-anne Somerville was questioned on whether she would consider reforming “senior phase” exams to include more coursework and other methods of assessments rather than formal exams.

MSP Fiona Hyslop said that a call from Glasgow council’s director of education Maureen Mckenna for a “big debate” in whether teachers’ continuous assessments should play a bigger role in final grades.

Ms Somerville said that no decisions had been taken yet and she would await the publication of a second report by the OECD in August.