Testing is cruel

It is a strength in any aspect of society or relationship to admit when you might

be wrong, but still the Scottish Government chooses to ignore expert and public opinion with regard to Primary 1 National Standardised Assessments (Scotsman, 10 September).

People have different levels of response to new or threatening situations, such as sitting a test with an authoritative adult looking over your

shoulder, and with some children, anxiety and/or aggression can occur. Physical manifestations include acceleration of pulse and breathing, shaking, and possible bladder relaxation, resulting in stress and distress. National Standardised Assessments for P1 pupils have affected some children this way.

Delivery of these tests has no benefit to the children and can be detrimental to the physical and mental wellbeing of some, so is thus in contravention of the Children and Young People (Scotland) Act 2014. The compulsory nature of these tests also contravenes this Act with regard to the opinion of the child and their carers, in deciding what is in the child’s best interest: it is the Government’s duty to support their view where possible. A more legally astute eye than mine may wish to investigate these contraventions.

The National Standardised Assessments for P1 pupils are a governmental process to supply data. If the children sitting these assessments are in varying states of anxiety, thus affecting performance, then these assessments are not standard and are not a fair test in the scientific sense, the resulting data being questionable at best, and perhaps worthless.

You can process peas and potatoes to grade them and provide information, but to process five-year-old children with an administrative tool like the National Standardised Assessments, for many children, is cruel.

DAVID MUIR Findhorn Place, Edinburgh