Education Secretary ‘open to change’ if OECD recommends exams overhaul

SCOTLAND’S Education Secretary is “open to change” relating to scrapping exams if an independent organisation points to the move.

A report by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) concluded the Scottish Government should consider overhauling what have been labelled “19th century” assessment methods and pointed to major weakness in the implementation of the SNP’S Curriculum for Excellence.

Professor Ken Muir, who recently left his role as chief executive of the

General Teaching Council, will lead efforts to replace the SQA with a new specialist agency for curriculum and assessment and investigate moving inspections away from Education Scotland.

Education Secretary Shirley-anne Somerville confirmed to MSPS that the Scottish Government is “accepting the OECD’S 12 recommendations in full”.

Highlighting a potential overhaul of exams, which could even be scrapped following the OECD’S comparative analysis, due to be published by the end of August, Ms Somerville stressed she is “open to change if change is indeed recommended”. But critics have called for the “radical move” of scrapping exams to be ruled out by SNP ministers.

The Education Secretary confirmed that the Scottish Government “will move the inspection function out of Education Scotland”.

She added:“i’m minded to accept the OECD recommendation to create a new specialist agency responsible for both curriculum and assessment which will replace the SQA.”

Ms Somerville said she expected Professor Muir to start his work investigating how to replace the SQA in August and for it to take around six months.

The Education Secretary intends to outline plans for awarding national qualifications in 2022 by the start of the new school term this August, using the most up-to-date position with the pandemic.

But Conservatives have called on the Scottish Government to rule out what they labelled a “radical move” of scrapping exams altogether.

Scottish Conservative education spokesman Oliver Mundell said a strong exam system was a “cornerstone” of Scottish education and should be maintained.

Mr Mundell claimedthat scrapping exams would “further diminish our international standing and remove one of the last hallmarks of Scotland’s worldleading system.”

He added: “No government serious about raising standards in our schools can contemplate such a radical move to break with tradition.”

But Ms Somerville pointed to the second OECD report which will examine specifically the future of qualifications.

She said: “I think it’s fair and reasonable for the Government to say we are open to a discussion about what’s in that report.”