The Cabinet Secretary for Education and Skills has this week responded to the 2023 report by Professor Louise Hayward, It’s Our Future – Independent Review of Qualifications and Assessment.
Three MSYPs, Beinn, Ruby, & Zainab, played a key role in ensuring that a diverse range of young people’s voices were heard throughout the development of Professor Hayward’s report. This report followed several other reports into Scottish education which SYP took part in to represent the views of Scotland’s young people on the education system they would like to see. We are grateful to the Cabinet Secretary for meeting with us to discuss her plans for the next steps in reforming our education system.
In responding to the report, the Cabinet Secretary said the Scottish Government:
- Will not be accepting the recommendation to remove exams for National 5 courses.
- Do accept that continuous assessment should play a greater role in determining a learner’s final grade.
- Will set out a ‘longer term improvement plan’ for Scottish education which will include “short, medium, and long term actions” by the end of this year.
SYP’s Vice Chair, Olivia Brown MSYP, in outlining what young people have told us they want their education system to be, said:
“Over the past four years young people have been clear – they want to see bold and ambitious reform of an education and qualifications system that simply is not working for them. This includes feeling overwhelmed by the pressure high stakes exams place on their mental health, not feeling that their views are taken seriously, and not being prepared for the challenges of the modern world. On their own, yesterday’s announcements will not do enough to reform our education system to meet those needs.”
“Throughout the review into qualifications and assessments and the other reviews into education, thousands of young people have voluntarily shared their lived experience of Scotland’s education system. Education reform now needs to boldly and ambitiously address their concerns so as not to let them down.”
SYP’s Chair, Ellie Craig MSYP, gave what she hopes the next steps will be for education reform in Scotland:
“The incorporation of the UNCRC into Scots Law earlier this year should be a turning point for education in Scotland. If we believe in the rights of our children and young people, then we should build an education system where everyone involved including learners, teachers, parents and carers, youth workers, and education bodies work together to respect, protect, and fulfil those rights.”
– Ellie Craig MSYP, SYP Chair
“Scottish Government also need to consider how the bold changes to qualifications outlined in the report are reflected in the Education Bill and crucially the review into Community Learning and Development. Only a joined up and ambitious approach will work to close the poverty-related attainment gap and give all young people in Scotland the education they deserve. All of this should work together to create an exciting vision of an education system which develops children and young people’s personality, talents, and abilities to the full.”
