The Courier & Advertiser (Perth and Perthshire Edition)
Tories call for review of school curriculum
Plea for probe into CfE after Scotland slides down international league tables
The Scottish Conservatives have called for an independent review of the Curriculum for Excellence after Scotland plummeted down international education rankings.
Nicola Sturgeon admitted at First Minister’s Questions yesterday the performance of Scottish schools in the Programme for International Student Assessment league tables is “not good enough”. But the First Minister said CfE, which was rolled out in 2010 in an attempt to deepen pupil learning, is the “right way forward”.
Ruth Davidson, the Scottish Conservatives leader, called for a full independent review of the system in the wake of Scotland’s worst-ever Pisa performance.
She said: “The single biggest education reform under this SNP government has been Curriculum for Excellence and nobody here can simply brush aside the fact that since it has come in standards have fallen.
“So, I’m telling the First Minister today that our ongoing support for Curriculum for Excellence cannot be taken for granted. I believe this entire project should be put on probation.”
Ms Sturgeon hit back by quoting the Scottish Conservatives’ education spokesman Liz Smith MSP, who said on Wednesday the principles of the curriculum are “absolutely right”.
The SNP added they are pursuing major reforms, which include giving headteachers more power, creating regional education boards and the introduction of standardised testing.
She added: “We are serious about making those improvements and I hope that the whole Parliament will get behind us, because some of what we are going to do over the next period will be controversial and some of it will run into resistance.”
Willie Rennie, the Scottish Liberal Democrats leader, told Ms Sturgeon the SNP’s complacency over education has been “oozing out of ministers for a whole decade”.
Education Secretary John Swinney took aim at Ms Davidson after FMQs. He said: “Her attack on CfE reveals a lack of substance and of political resilience. It does her no credit at all.”
Leading Scottish educationalist Keir Bloomer, the architect of CfE, said he “sticks by its principles”.
He told The Courier: “It is the best way forward for Scottish education. However, the implementation has been dismal.” Mr Bloomer added there is an “urgent need for greater rigour” at secondary level.
Scotland’s performance in the Pisa tables, which tests 15-year-olds in science, reading and maths across 72 jurisdictions, has been in decline since the turn of the century.
For the first time all three subject areas in Scotland were rated “average” rather than “above average” when the results were published on Tuesday.
I believe this entire project should be put on probation. RUTH DAVIDSON